Washington, D.C., Aug. 02, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- UNCF (United Negro College Fund) has announced the promotion of Therese Badon to the position of senior vice president. In this new capacity, Badon will be responsible for oversight of the Southern Division, which encompasses 30 employees and eight area offices located in New Orleans, Houston, Dallas, Atlanta, Birmingham, Charlotte, Ft. Lauderdale and Orlando. These offices are responsible for fundraising in Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, North Carolina, Florida, Texas and New Mexico.
Badon will also manage the Development Special Events Division for the organization and the National Faith and Education Initiative. She also assists in managing the joint campaigns with UNCF’s 37 member institutions. Badon has a fundraising goal of $15 million.
Badon has been a strong advocate and supporter of education for minorities and low-income students aspiring to fulfill the dream of earning a college degree. She has also been engaged in efforts to help improve schools, health disparities and assistance to families from low-income communities.
Since first joining UNCF in 2005, two weeks prior to hurricane Katrina, Badon served as the area development director of the New Orleans office. Specifically, she handled all fundraising and major events in the market that covered Louisiana and Arkansas. During that time, Badon was credited with a variety of important accomplishments, including working with two former U.S. presidents, President Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush on the Wave of Hope campaign to raise funds for those historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) that were devastated on the Gulf coast after hurricane Katrina.
Shortly thereafter, in 2008 Badon was promoted to regional development director with additional fundraising responsibilities to include Texas, Oklahoma and New Mexico along with her existing responsibilities in Louisiana and Arkansas. Badon consistently exceeded her fundraising goals each year.
In 2012, Badon was promoted to Vice President of Development for her outstanding fundraising performance, commitment to service, UNCF member institutions, students and her excellence in leadership.
As Vice President of the Special Events Division, due to Covid, Badon was instrumental in managing the first virtual UNCF national walk for education. Through this event, the fundraising team generated $2.9 million in 2020 and in its second year $2.6 million. Badon also managed the newly created UNCF national faith and education initiative, bringing together prominent national faith leaders across all denominations in support of UNCF, its HBCUs and the students they support.
“UNCF is fortunate to have a strong fundraising leader like Therese Badon,” said UNCF Executive Vice President and Chief Development Officer Maurice E. Jenkins, Jr. “Badon is a tremendous asset to UNCF and continues to demonstrate her talents and climb the ladder of success. As you may know, UNCF has a long-standing policy of promoting from within whenever possible. Badon is a great example of this. This way, both our staff and donors benefit from the knowledge and skills acquired over time, while ensuring the continued high quality of our UNCF brand.”
Prior to joining UNCF, Badon served as the executive director of Alumni Relations and Annual Giving at her alma mater, Dillard University in New Orleans. She also served as a banking officer at Capital One Bank, formerly Hibernia National Bank, where she worked 12 years in the industry.
Badon is an elected official serving on the Orleans Parish Democratic Executive Committee representing District E. She’s a member of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and served on the Alumni Relations Commission for CASE. Badon has been rated as a Faculty Star for her presentation skills during the CASE/Kresge HBCU Learning Institute and she is a Kresge Advancement Fellow. She is published and acknowledged in the book, “Changing the Odds”: Lessons learned from the Kresge HBCU Initiative.
Badon holds a bachelor’s degree in business administration and management from Dillard University in New Orleans. Badon has served as commencement speaker for St. Mary’s Academy, Women’s Day and Martin Luther King Day speaker at St. Peter Claver Church and several other engagements. Badon is involved in many other community activities. She served as a member of the Human Relations Commission for the City of New Orleans appointed by former Mayor Mitch Landrieu and former Mayor C. Ray Nagin. Badon also served as a board member for the Daughters of Charity Services of New Orleans, board member for Marillac Health Center, board member for the Girls Scouts of Southeast Louisiana, and a previous board member for KIPP New Orleans Schools. Badon was honored as one of New Orleans City Business “Women of the Year” and is a member of Pontchartrain chapter of The Links, Inc. and Delta Sigma Theta, Inc. She has received numerous other awards and honors. Badon is also a notary public in New Orleans and the wife of former Louisiana State Representative Austin Badon who currently serves as the clerk of First City Court in New Orleans and mother of her loving son, Ayden.
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About UNCF
UNCF (United Negro College Fund) is the nation’s largest and most effective minority education organization. To serve youth, the community and the nation, UNCF supports students’ education and development through scholarships and other programs, supports and strengthens its 37 member colleges and universities, and advocates for the importance of minority education and college readiness. While totaling only 3% of all colleges and universities, UNCF institutions and other historically Black colleges and universities are highly effective, awarding 13% of bachelor’s degrees, 5% of master’s degrees, 10% of doctoral degrees and 24% of all STEM degrees earned by Black students in higher education. UNCF administers more than 400 programs, including scholarship, internship and fellowship, mentoring, summer enrichment, and curriculum and faculty development programs. Today, UNCF supports more than 60,000 students at over 1,100 colleges and universities across the country. Its logo features the UNCF torch of leadership in education and its widely recognized trademark, ‟A mind is a terrible thing to waste.”® Learn more at UNCF.org or for continuous updates and news, follow UNCF on Twitter at @UNCF.
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