Institute Leadership
Meet the Leadership Team
Leandra Hayes-Burgess
A native of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Leandra Hayes-Burgess has served as an advancement professional for higher education institutions and nonprofit entities for over 20 years, with 13 of those years dedicated to service in upper administration.
She currently serves as the Vice President for Institutional Advancement for Benedict College in Columbia, South Carolina. Over the span of her fundraising career, Leandra has successfully assisted colleges and universities, secure over $60 million in support of their missions, programs and services. She previously served as the Senior Development Director at the University of Miami, Assistant Vice President for Major and Planned Gifts at Claflin University, the Assistant Vice President for Institutional Advancement at Talladega College; Director of Development for Bennett College for Women; and Assistant Vice President for Institutional Advancement and Director of Alumni Affairs at Livingstone College.
She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication arts from Johnson C. Smith University, a Master of Arts degree in philanthropy and development from Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota, a certificate in Management and Leadership from Harvard University and is a Certified Fund Raising Executive.
Leandra is married to Marcus H. Burgess, Interim Vice President for Institutional Advancement for Claflin University. Together, they are the proud parents of three wonderful children, Marcus, II, Mariana and Tyler.
Rob Henry
Rob Henry is vice president, people, culture & talent at CASE where he is responsible for creating an overall global strategy for achieving CASE's vision and mission related to talent management and for guiding conference programming, diversity/inclusion initiatives, research, and the CASE Library.
Formerly an active CASE volunteer speaker and adviser, Rob joined the CASE staff in 2006 as head of emerging constituencies, later adding the responsibility for online educational programs. He previously held advancement management positions at Yale University, the University of Connecticut Foundation and Michigan State University.
Rob is a graduate of Murray State University and has a master's degree from Eastern Michigan University. In 2006, he received the prestigious CASE Crystal Apple Award for Teaching Excellence.
NancyJo Houk
NancyJo Houk oversees a team dedicated to transforming Native communities through education by designing and implementing new ways of inspiring constituent engagement and giving. She led the College Fund through rebranding and incorporating functional changes, including new messaging, a new organizational framework, and implementing engagement/revenue-generating strategies required to achieve organizational growth.
Houk has a bachelor’s degree in business and communications with an emphasis in public relations and management from Regis University. She has 30 years of non-profit management, marketing, and development experience, including The Women’s Foundation of Colorado, TelecomPioneers, the National MS Society, Alzheimer’s Association, and Big Brothers/Big Sisters. She was featured in the Chronicle of Philanthropy for developing cutting-edge donor acquisition strategies (the original peer-to-peer fundraising approach) and has given presentations on constituent engagement and direct marketing at national conferences.
Karl Miller Lugo
Karl Miller Lugo is Vice President of Advancement and Alumni Engagement at The University of Texas at San Antonio, where he serves as a member of the President’s Cabinet and University Leadership Council and oversees an operation comprising University and Athletic Development, Corporate and Foundation Engagement, Donor Engagement, Alumni Engagement and the Alumni Association, Operations and Advancement Services.
Prior to joining UTSA, Karl was a Vice President with the international fundraising consulting firm Bentz Whaley Flessner (for four years), where he focused on campaign planning and management, major and principal gifts, advancement assessments, and building processes for comprehensive fundraising strategy and accountability.
Karl spent 10 years at the University of Texas at Austin and finished his UT Austin career as Executive Director for Fundraising, where he oversaw principal, major, and annual giving programs, and led the successful completion of the $3 billion Campaign for Texas in partnership with campus chief development officers. With over thirty-two years in development and higher education, Karl has held senior leadership positions at public and private universities.
An active member of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), Karl was a member of the inaugural CASE Minority Advancement Institute class. He currently serves on the US/Canada Council, has chaired three district conferences, served on the CASE Commission on Philanthropy, the CASE Diversity Recruitment Advisory Group, and the faculty of several conferences. He was awarded the CASE Crystal Apple Award for Teaching Excellence and holds the CASE Laureate distinction.
He holds bachelor’s degrees in public relations and Spanish from Western Kentucky University and an MBA from the Gordon Ford College of Business at Western Kentucky University.
Karl is a native of Puerto Rico before relocating to Kentucky for 28 years, then settling in Texas. He is an Ironman triathlon finisher and the proud holder of a Ducktorate Degree from the Disney University. Karl and his wife have two children.
Ann-Marie Thornton
As Senior Director of Institutional Advancement, Ann-Marie is responsible for raising and managing philanthropic support for the Community College of Baltimore County’s (CCBC) major gifts, annual giving, alumni relations and advancement services areas. Serving as the primary resource for all cultivation, solicitation and donor relations initiatives for individuals, Ann-Marie is consistently engage in prospect management, stewardship, relationship building and strategy development. She has been with the Community College of Baltimore County for over eleven years and recently worked with a team of volunteers including retirees, alumni, board members, faculty and staff to raise $57.3 million in capital, scholarship and program support for CCBC through its New Beginnings Campaign. With over 25 years of fundraising experience, Ann-Marie excels at organizational efficiency and effectiveness where she employ these skills with her team on a daily basis.
Ann-Marie is a graduate of Shippensburg University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Communications Journalism and a Master of Arts from Bowie State University in Organizational Communications. She is an active member of CASE where she currently serves on the CASE Community College Advancement Advisory Board and the CASE District II Conference committee.