Executive Director of Fletcher Allen Foundation Named

Immediate (May 22, 2008)     
 
Maria McClellan         
Marketing & Communications
(802) 847-2886

BURLINGTON, VT - Kathryn Battillo has been named Foundation executive director and vice president of Development at Fletcher Allen Health Care following a national search. She will begin her new role at Fletcher Allen effective August 1.

Battillo, 55, comes to Vermont's academic medical center from the Boston area with more than 20 years of fundraising experience at a variety of institutions, including Suffolk University, the Boston Ballet, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and Babson College.  Battillo is not a stranger to Vermont, having worked in Alumni Relations at the University of Vermont in the late 80's; she also has a son who graduated from UVM in 2006.

"We are very pleased that Kathryn will be returning to Vermont to lead our fundraising efforts here at Vermont's academic medical center," said Fletcher Allen President and Chief Executive Officer Melinda L. Estes, M.D.  "I believe her track record of success in fundraising for institutions of higher education and health care make her an ideal candidate to promote our philanthropic mission at Fletcher Allen."

The Fletcher Allen Foundation is a partnership with the community that was launched in January, 2008, to enhance philanthropic support for the organization.  Edwin I. Colodny is the chair of the board of the Foundation.  "Kathryn is both a proven leader and successful fundraiser," said Colodny.  "With her energy and experience, I believe Fletcher Allen is now poised to take its fundraising to a new level."

"This is a chance of a lifetime for me to partner with Dr. Estes, Ed Colodny and the Fletcher Allen Foundation to increase private philanthropic support to help the organization achieve its vision of becoming a national model for the delivery of high-quality academic health care for a rural region," said Battillo.  "My family and I have strong ties to Vermont, and it is a dream come true to move back to this beautiful state to undertake such a challenging and exciting fundraising position at the state's academic medical center."

Since 2002, Battillo has served as vice president for advancement at Suffolk University where she launched the university's largest capital campaign -- $75 million - to coincide with the university's centennial in the fall of 2006.  A year and a half into the public phase, the campaign has raised $52.7 million, which is approximately 70 percent of goal.  In addition to overseeing fundraising, Battillo also oversaw alumni relations, operations and research, and communications at Suffolk, successfully reorganizing and building the staff, which grew from 21 to 51 over a five-year period.

Prior to joining Suffolk University, Battillo held a variety of leadership positions in fundraising, including chief development officer at the Boston Ballet, where she increased private support by 100 percent, helping the organization balance its overall budget for the two years she was present - a critical accomplishment for the Ballet.

She also served as director of development at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute from 1999 to 2000, where she created the first-ever major gifts team, and built a staff of nine that partnered with the physicians to raise money for their treatment and research centers.

In addition, her background also includes serving as principal gifts officer at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and serving as associate director of Alumni Relations at the University of Vermont from 1985 to 1987.  She also spent five years as associate director of Alumni Relations at Simmons College in Boston, from 1980 to 1985.

Battillo received a bachelor of arts in Psychology from Bridgewater State College in Bridgewater, MA, in 1975, and received her master's in Library Science in 1979 from Simmons College in Boston.

A native of Boston, Battillo will be relocating to Vermont with her husband, Tom, and her son, Michael, who is in the process of completing his master's in business administration at Suffolk University through an online program.

About the Fletcher Allen Foundation
The Fletcher Allen Foundation is a partnership with the community that was launched in January, 2008, to enhance philanthropic support for the organization.  In addition to Ed Colodny, the Foundation board includes Nancy Binter, M.D., Brian Boardman, David Coates, Lois McClure, Holly Miller, Marc Monheimer, David Schneider, M.D., Roger Stone, Betty Woods, and Glen Wright.

About Fletcher Allen
Fletcher Allen, together with its partners at the University of Vermont College of Medicine and College of Nursing and Health Sciences, is Vermont's academic medical center.  Its mission is to improve the health of the communities it serves by integrating patient care, education, and research in a caring environment.

Fletcher Allen serves as a regional referral center, offering advanced care to the approximately 1,000,000 people of Vermont and northern New York including a Level I Trauma Center, the Vermont Children's Hospital, a Level III Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and a National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center -- one of 39 in the nation.  Fletcher Allen also has state-of-the-art care for people with heart disease and many other illnesses.

In its community hospital role, Fletcher Allen serves approximately 150,000 residents in Chittenden and Grand Isle counties and provides primary care services at nine Vermont sites.  With more than 30 patient care sites and 100 outreach clinics, programs and services across Vermont and upstate New York, Fletcher Allen is committed to being a national model for the delivery of high-quality academic health care for a rural region. With approximately 6,700 employees, Fletcher Allen ranks as the second largest employer in the state.