Cedars-Sinai Names New Vice President to Lead Development

Cedars-Sinai has appointed Heather Renshaw Vucetin, a seasoned fundraising executive with two decades of experience in academic medicine, as vice president of Development.

"Heather brings a combination of deep experience, great skill and composure to a position that is essential to Cedars-Sinai's future growth and success," said Arthur J. Ochoa, JD, senior vice president of Advancement and chief advancement officer.

Vucetin currently serves as associate dean, Medical Center Development (MCD), at Stanford University. As a member of the MCD's executive leadership team, she contributes to overall strategy, leadership and direction for development at Stanford Health Care and Stanford School of Medicine. She leads a team of 100 staff focused on major gift fundraising, annual and leadership giving, prospect advancement, strategic reporting, analytics and research.

Vucetin joined Stanford in 2007, serving initially as senior director of Development for the Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. She secured key financial support for a new research facility, faculty recruitments, capital equipment and research, as well as a $75 million naming gift, the largest individual gift to Stanford Medicine at the time. In 2011, she transitioned into the role of senior director, Major Gifts, creating a comprehensive Grateful Patient Program and leading a team of gift officers as part of the $1 billion Campaign for Stanford Medicine, which closed two years early in August 2016 with $1.71 billion secured.

"I'm thrilled to join Cedars-Sinai's incredible Development team and build on its considerable success," Vucetin said. "I look forward to achieving new accomplishments with talented and creative colleagues."

Vucetin previously held fundraising positions with the University of Michigan Health System, the Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and the University of Virginia Health System. She earned her bachelor's degree in biology, with a chemistry minor, from the University of Memphis.

At Cedars-Sinai, Vucetin will lead the Development function. She will steer the front-line fundraising team, maintain her own portfolio of key institutional donors and prospective donors, and guide the Development operations group. Together with Ochoa and Melissa Coleman, the chief of Development Strategy and Operations, Vucetin will lead the strategy and planning for a new $1 billion comprehensive campaign, which already has picked up considerable momentum in its first fiscal year.

Vucetin succeeds Ken Massey, who is transitioning to fundraising consulting after ably leading the Development team for eight years.