By Joan C. McKinney, director of university communications
CAMPBELLSVILLE, Ky. - Benji Kelly, director of planned giving at Campbellsville University, has been named the new vice president for development, according to Dr. Michael V. Carter, president.
“We are pleased to announce that Benji Kelly has been named to serve as vice president for development,” said Carter. “Benji brings eight years of experience with CU. His commitment to Campbellsville University is proven, and his years of work in admissions, alumni relations and planned giving provide Benji with the base of experience and contacts that are vital for this important leadership position,” he said.
For four years, he served as key admissions counselor in the Office of Admissions and helped significantly expand our student recruitment base, Carter said.
For the past four years, he has served as director of alumni relations and director of planned giving in the CU Office of Development.
Carter said, “Benji has been a key player in our fundraising success in recent years, and he is widely respected by his colleagues on campus and among the various constituency groups that are so important to the future of Campbellsville University.”
Kelly was hired “following a national search with a number of excellent applicants having been considered,” said Carter.
“Benji's strong Christian faith, knowledge of and love for Campbellsville University, and his knowledge of development and fundraising are the reasons for his being hired. We look forward to working with Benji and the development staff in the days ahead as we move Campbellsville University forward,” said Carter.
Kelly will be responsible for the staffs of alumni relations, planned giving, foundation relations, donor relations, major gifts and the Big Maroon Club, all under the Office of Development umbrella, and the Office of University Communications.
Kelly graduated from CU in 1999 receiving a bachelor of science degree in communications.
After graduating, he began his career as an admissions counselor before moving to the Office of Development.
Kelly received his master's degree in business administration from Campbellsville University in 2005.
While an undergraduate student at CU, Kelly was a standout basketball player and is the second highest scorer in CU's history with 2,121 points.
He is the son of Jim and Joetta Kelly of Murray, Ky. He graduated from Calloway County High School in 1990.
Kelly has been involved with the following professional organizations: Council for the Advancement and Support of Education, Association of Southern Baptist Alumni Directors, Association of Southern Baptist Admission Professionals, Kentucky Association of Secondary and College Admission Counselors and Kentucky Association of College Registrars and Admission Counselors.
He is also a member of the Campbellsville-Taylor County Chamber of Commerce and has belonged to the Calloway County Chamber of Commerce and the Agriculture Leadership Development Team at Murray State University and U.S. Tobacco Inc.
Kelly and his wife, Kellie Jo Williams Kelly, an alumna of CU, reside in Campbellsville with their daughter, Katelyn Elizabeth, who was born Jan. 20, 2006. Mrs. Kelly is a first-grade teacher at St. Augustine Schools in Lebanon, Ky.
Kelly serves as assistant to the pastor at Lowell Avenue Baptist Church, which is pastored by the Rev. Dave Walters, vice president for admissions and student services at CU. He was also youth minister at the church for three years.
Kelly can be reached at (270) 789-5211 or jbkelly@cjpk.net.
Campbellsville University is a private, comprehensive institution located in South Central Kentucky. Founded in 1906, Campbellsville University is affiliated with the Kentucky Baptist Convention and has an enrollment of 2,310 students who represent 100 Kentucky counties, 32 states and 28 foreign nations. Listed in U.S. News & World Report's “America's Best Colleges” 14 consecutive years as one of the leading Southern master's colleges and universities, Campbellsville University is located 82 miles southwest of Lexington, Ky., and 80 miles southeast of Louisville, Ky. Dr. Michael V. Carter is in his ninth year as president.