Matt Colson grew up in Farmingdale’s backyard. Now he is leading the philanthropy effort.

Matthew Colson joined FSC last July as Vice President for Development & Alumni Engagement, overseeing the fund-raising strategy and alumni engagement for the College. He also serves as Executive Director of the Farmingdale Foundation and is an ex-officio member of the Alumni Association Board.

“The welcome and support I’ve received from the Farmingdale family has been truly humbling and a testament to how special this college community is,” Colson says. “I look forward to working closely and strategically with the entire campus community as we mobilize and inspire our alumni, loyal donors, friends, and business partners in pursuit of excellence and critical support for our students and faculty; and together move the mission of the College forward in service to Long Island and beyond.”

In his short time at Farmingdale, Colson has already made an impact — inheriting and completing the Student Emergency Fund campaign to assist students in need during the COVID-19 pandemic. It raised $130K from 200 individual donors and has served over 100 students who otherwise were struggling to continue their studies. Under his leadership, the Office for Development & Alumni Engagement also has rolled out more frequent communications and program offerings to our alumni, established a regular social media presence, designed and deployed a new comprehensive annual fund strategy, successfully closed new scholarship agreements, including the second-largest gift in the history of the College, and organized an On-Demand Gala in November that raised over $135,000.

Colson was previously Executive Director of Alumni Relations at Stony Brook University, where he professionalized the operations of the Alumni Association, generating a 60 percent increase in the Association’s revenue, strengthened the alumni donor base, and developed award-winning engagement and cultivation programs, including the 40 Under Forty Alumni Awards.

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Connect with Matt and learn more about the Office for Development & Alumni Engagement.