By Winston-Salem State University Newsroom,
Thesha Woodley has been appointed director of alumni engagement for Winston-Salem State University, where she will lead the creation of programs and services to effectively manage and sustain relationships with the over 30,000 alumni.
Woodley is a 2007 graduate of WSSU with a bachelor’s degree in business administration with an emphasis in marketing.
“I am looking forward to returning to Winston-Salem State University and working with alumni like myself who fell in love with the university as a student and want to give back,” said Woodley. “Winston-Salem State is my second home. WSSU not only educates students but creates familial relationships, cultivates your skills, affirms your purpose, and is a catalyst to achieve your dreams. I want to tap into that love of the WSSU experience to build more opportunities to connect, engage and support our alumni through involvement..”
Woodley most recently served as the associate director of visitor experience and membership for the Mint Museum of Art in Charlotte, where she led the implementation of the museum’s membership program and fulfilled the customer experience needs of 135,000 annual visitors.
“Ms. Woodley and the members of her team will focus on strengthening alumni engagement, outreach, and annual giving with particular emphasis on young alumni,” said LaTanya Afolayan, vice chancellor for university advancement and executive director of the WSSU Foundation, Inc., noting young alumni represent 68 percent of WSSU’s alumni population.
“We anticipate stronger collaboration between the Office of Alumni Engagement and units throughout the university including the Division of Student Affairs, the College of Arts, Sciences and Business and Education, and the School of Health Sciences.”
Afolayan also said under Woodley there would be more emphasis on student education and engagement through a series of pre-alumni programs and activities.
As a WSSU undergraduate, Woodley was a member of the honors college and served as vice president of the campus chapter of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA). She is a graduate of Leadership Charlotte, a member of the WSSU Young Alumni Council’s 2017 Class of 40 Under 40, and a member of the WSSU National Alumni Association. Woodley served as the president of the QC Alumni Chapter of the WSSU National Alumni Association from 2014-2019.
The office of alumni engagement is a unit of the division of university advancement, which is also comprised of the following areas – advancement services, development, university, and donor events.
