Pitt has hired a new vice chancellor to help raise money and improve fundraising efforts at… Pitt has hired a new vice chancellor to help raise money and improve fundraising efforts at the University.

Cynthia Roth, a Pitt alumna, was appointed vice chancellor for planning, organization development and quality improve at Pitt’s Office of Institutional Advancement.

Her new responsibilities will be to consult and help manage Pitt’s Discover a World of Possibilities Capital campaign. The fundraising effort seeks to raise $1 billion by 2007.

“I bleed blue and gold,” Roth said. “Pitt is my alma mater. It’s great being able to go out and talk about Pitt with other people.”

Roth graduated with a B.S. in nursing in 1981 and earned her Master of Public Management degree from Carnegie Mellon in 1987.

She has worked extensively in management positions in the West Penn Allegheny Health System and in hospitals across the region.

Albert Novak, the vice chancellor of the Office of Institutional Advancement, said in a press release that Roth’s management experience would help the University’s fundraising efforts.

“Cindi’s expertise and knowledge will be extremely valuable in helping us strategically manage growth and design and implement effective processes to take our operations to the next level of fundraising so crucial to the University’s long-term plans,” Novak wrote.

Pitt is more than 80 percent toward its goal of raising $1 billion by 2007.

Roth has also served in volunteer positions as a Pitt trustee, president of the National Alumni Association and as a chair of the board of visitors at Pitt’s School of Dental Medicine.

“I’ve been a volunteer with the University for 20 years. It’s been a part of my family, it’s been a part of my life the whole time,” Roth said.

Roth said that it “feels natural” to make the transition from a volunteer to a management position within the University.

Roth looks forward to future fundraising efforts, and said that Pitt will always be looking to raise money for its programs and scholarships.

“The need never goes away, that’s the fun part,” Roth said.