Mary Perrotti

Lead the development and implementation of a comprehensive advancement strategy to support FXW's mission of inclusive, faith-centered education. Partner with the Head of School and Board of Directors to drive initiatives fostering sustained growth, community engagement, and philanthropic support.

• Directed the creation and launch of a user-focused website, enhancing the digital experience for prospective families, current parents, and alumni. Oversaw site architecture, content creation, and design to reinforce FXW’s brand and accessibility.
• Developed and executed a strategic marketing plan, expanding FXW’s digital footprint through targeted SEO strategies to increase visibility, drive web traffic, and capture leads for admissions and advancement goals.
• Built and mentored a high-performing advancement team with clear objectives, performance metrics, and professional development opportunities, ensuring alignment with FXW’s mission.
• Manage a portfolio of major gift donors, overseeing cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship activities to expand FXW’s philanthropic network and support scholarship funds and key initiatives.
• Spearhead a multi-year capital campaign focused on facility enhancements and financial aid expansion, rallying community support to drive FXW’s vision for excellence.
• Crafted a communications strategy to deepen donor engagement, enhance visibility, and improve satisfaction, leveraging impactful storytelling, campaign transparency, and personalized stewardship.

Identified, engaged, secured, and stewarded major gifts ($10,000+) and planned giving donors, working closely with the Board of Directors and Academy Foundation Trustees to grow endowment giving and advance the school’s mission.

• Successfully solicited and managed a $600,000 gift, reaching a $20M milestone for the Student Life Center Campaign.
• Facilitated a transformative gift exceeding $1M for the construction of a new track as part of the East Campus Athletic Complex master plan.
• Directed planned giving efforts, securing gifts over $1M to build a legacy endowment fund and to steward the completion of a $2M bequest supporting tuition assistance.
• Redesigned and relaunched planned giving webpages and the 1906 Society marketing materials, collaborating with the Stewardship Committee to enhance donor engagement.
• Contributed to the Strategic Planning Sub-Committee for Sustainability and Market Position, providing insights on long-term financial health and growth strategies.

Coordinated advancement activities for the school and parish, managing a $545,000 unrestricted annual giving campaign for the school, a $405,000 Diocesan Services Fund annual campaign for the parish, grant submissions, and leading special events. Oversaw the creation and implementation of organizational strategies and best practices for donor data management, acknowledgment processes, and engagement and cultivation of diverse parish and school constituencies, supporting a comprehensive advancement plan.

• Created a master donor database by consolidating data from separate sources into a new system, applying best practices for consistent reporting, acknowledgment, and data management.
• Incorporated giving societies into the school’s annual giving campaign, including faith engagement events such as donor Masses and Liturgy of the Hours Vesper Services.
• Strengthened parishioner and school family support for campus capital campaign efforts, including pledge fulfillment.
• Identified major donor prospects for targeted solicitations.

Directed training programs for 2,000 employees, including mandatory and elective courses, and established a Leadership Development Institute. Oversaw the administration of tuition reimbursement and external education programs, managed recruitment and placement of interns, and coordinated agency-wide staff recognition events.

• Served as a senior member of the Human Resources leadership team, contributing to the strategic design and execution of policies, procedures, benefits, training, and employee remediation.
• Developed curriculum to prepare rising managers for administrative roles, covering budget preparation, employee relations, FMLA, and leave practices.
• Launched the Leadership Development Institute, collaborating with Vice Presidents to incorporate "best practices" from the for-profit sector into a mission-driven context to identify and develop future leaders.

Increased society membership from 3,010 to 4,277 members and raised contributions from $535K to $2.1M by driving impactful cultivation, solicitation, and relationship management of major donors ($1,000+). Utilized innovative marketing and constituent engagement strategies, organizing targeted recognition events and spiritual enrichment activities, including architectural church tours and pilgrimages.

• Directed design and wrote copy for all marketing materials for the Annual Catholic Appeal, earning 1st Place Awards for Integrated Campaign from the National Catholic Development Conference (2012 and 2013).
• Coordinated all aspects of a major donor pilgrimage to Rome, including logistics for Cardinal George and the auxiliary Bishops of Chicago, with VIP access to the Vatican Museum.
• Introduced and managed the annual Christmas Concert, hosted by Cardinal George, in collaboration with the City Lights Orchestra to support the children of the City of Chicago.

Managed an annual budget of $1.6 million and increased donations from individuals, organizations, parishes, corporations, and foundations from $9.4 million to $14.1 million. Spearheaded strategic organizational changes to optimize advancement efforts, including restructuring internal departments, launching new premier events, consolidating database management, and conducting expense reviews to maximize net revenue.

• Worked closely with the Development, Planned Giving, and Annual Fund Committees of the Board of Directors to set and achieve fundraising objectives.
• Served as a senior member of the President/Administrator’s Cabinet, providing input on agency-wide decisions impacting fund development.
• Oversaw the creation of a master database using Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge and collaborated with the Finance Team to integrate with Financial Edge for cohesive financial and donor management.