We are pleased to welcome Amanda Willis as the newest member of our team.

Amanda’s 20 years in fundraising combines experience as a consultant, advancement officer, and volunteer member of not-for-profit boards. This broad experience enables her to see fundraising from a 360-degree view, creating a sound, cohesive strategy and successfully implementing fundraising plans.

She entered the field as vice president of development at Westminster Christian Academy, a K-12 independent school with over 1,000 students in south Louisiana, following a tenure as a member of the Academy’s board of directors. Recruited to a leading consulting firm in the southeast, she rose to the position of senior vice president, and conducted feasibility studies and helped lead capital campaigns in independent schools, colleges and universities, and a variety of not-for-profit organizations.

In 2009 she was recruited to the role of vice president for advancement at Riverside Military Academy in Gainesville, GA. A challenging turn-around opportunity, she led a small team in an advancement effort focused on donor relationships while growing alumni involvement, nearly doubling the size of the alumni donor base. For work “above and beyond” the call of duty she was recognized with Riverside’s President’s Award in 2017.
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“I am pleased to join Columns Fundraising and look forward to helping organizations and donors achieve their philanthropic objectives,” she said. “I’ve known some of the partners individually for years, and recognize that the service provided by the Columns team is of the highest caliber. It’s an honor to join them in supporting the great work of the charitable community.”

Amanda holds a degree from Auburn University in journalism and has written for Louisiana newspapers as well as The New York Times News Service. She earned her CFRE credential in 2005. She is a member and pas t chairman of the board of the Quinlan Visual Arts Center and is a member of The Rotary Club of Gainesville, GA, where she lives with her husband. In the little free time she has, Amanda enjoys spending time with her children and grandchildren.

Welcome, Amanda!