Chief Advancement Officer for The University of Texas System
Randa Safady is a national expert and higher education leader with 33 years of professional and volunteer service. She is the chief advancement officer for The University of Texas System and works with UT’s 14 presidents and vice presidents for development and communications, providing strategic counsel on a broad spectrum of issues. She currently serves as the only Texan on Philanthropy 2030, a national board to advance philanthropic work as a professional career. Safady developed the UT System’s Center for Enhancing Philanthropy, the first of its kind in any university system nationally. She is also the executive producer of State of Tomorrow—a statewide PBS series featuring the extraordinary impact of universities’ research on society that garnered five EMMY awards from the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences’ Lone Star division. Prior to positions with the University of Texas, Safady served as Director of St. Edward’s University College Assistance Migrant Program (CAMP) to ensure that first generation children of farmworker families had equal opportunities to degree attainment and provide new paths for their families. Ms. Safady received bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Texas State University and a Ph. D. in Higher Education Administration from UT Austin.