Phil Castleberry

Mr. Phillip D. Castleberry, a 20-year veteran of higher education advancement and fundraising, became vice president of University Advancement for Rochester Institute of Technology in February 2020.

In this role, Mr. Castleberry oversees the largest fundraising effort in the university’s history—“Transforming RIT: The Campaign for Greatness”—and provides strategic vision and operational leadership for all aspects of the university’s development and alumni initiatives, including fundraising and cultivating constituency relations. He oversees a team of approximately 100 professionals focused not only on achieving, and exceeding, the ambitious goals of the $1 billion “Transforming RIT” campaign, but on cultivating a culture of philanthropy and engagement with RIT alumni and friends across the region, the nation, and the globe. 

Before coming to RIT, Mr. Castleberry was vice president for institutional advancement at St. John Fisher College. In this role, he oversaw development, alumni and constituent engagement, corporate and foundation relations, government affairs, advancement services, stewardship, and events. Mr. Castleberry generated significant philanthropic giving at St. John Fisher and was the architect of “Fisher Forward,” the most ambitious comprehensive campaign in the college’s history with a fundraising goal of $75 million. 

Prior to St. John Fisher, Mr. Castleberry spent seven years at the University of Rochester, serving most recently as associate vice president of university advancement. Before that, he held a variety of development and advancement roles of increasing responsibility with such institutions as Washington University in St. Louis, the University of Missouri—St. Louis, William Jewell College, and the University of Central Missouri.