Al Checcio has been named Temple University’s senior vice president of institutional advancement, with his appointment to the role being confirmed during the executive committee meeting of Temple’s Board of Trustees, held Thursday, Sept. 11.
Checcio will now lead the university’s fundraising and philanthropic efforts on a permanent basis after serving as interim vice president of the Office of Institutional Advancement since this past March.
“It goes without saying, but Al’s tremendous track record in the area of philanthropy and fundraising speaks for itself,” Temple President John Fry said. “Even before he assumed the role of vice president in an interim capacity, Al was conducting a thorough review of our Office of Institutional Advancement, and the work he has undertaken for Temple has been instrumental in helping to set the division up for continued success. We are seeing stronger engagement with alumni, and recent gifts to the university reflect that. This directly correlates to the work being pursued by Al and his team, and we could not be more excited to have Al assume the role of senior vice president on a permanent basis.”
Prior to his current role, Checcio held chief fundraiser roles at several prominent institutions, including the University of Southern California (USC) and Fordham University. In total, he has more than 40 years of experience in fundraising and philanthropy and has led major fundraising campaigns at institutions that include American University, the University of Pittsburgh, Drexel University and right here at Temple during a previous stint in his career. While at USC, he oversaw the highly successful Campaign for USC, which was the largest fundraising campaign in the history of higher education when it launched in 2011. It was also the second multi-billion-dollar campaign led by Checcio during his career.
“I am deeply grateful to President Fry and the Board of Trustees for this opportunity and am honored to be back at Temple at such an important time in its history,” Checcio said. “When it comes to fundraising at this institution, I am bullish on Temple and its potential to really be a leader in this area. This is a university with a deep alumni base and a resonant mission. There is so much capacity for our giving and alumni engagement to increase, and I have full confidence that we will see just that in the years to come.”
In the months to come, Fry and Checcio will work closely to launch a new comprehensive campaign that will coincide with Temple’s 150th anniversary. The university has already gained momentum in this area as in April, Temple received a $27.5 million gift from Sidney and Caroline Kimmel, the largest in the university’s history, to support the Caroline Kimmel Pavilion for Arts and Communication. Additionally, this year, 1,400-plus Temple University alumni and friends came together to raise more than $900,000 during the fourth annual Temple Giving Days, which represented a more than $300,000 increase from what was raised during the previous year.
“We are already seeing so much momentum in this space,” Checcio said. “I am eager to further pursue this work and continue to develop meaningful relationships with Temple alumni and friends.”
In addition to his time spent working in higher education, Checcio previously served as vice president of development at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. A native of Pittsburgh, Checcio earned a bachelor of science in history and political science from Drexel University.