David Knight has 35 years of development experience, including senior positions with the Ocean Conservancy, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the American Enterprise Institute, Georgetown University and MacMurray College.
David successfully initiated the Campaign for the Oceans, the first capital campaign for the Center for Marine Conservation (now The Ocean Conservancy). He supervised the largest challenge grant in the organization’s history, doubled grant and gift income, and increased corporate participation 400% through cause-related marketing campaigns.
The Airline Pilots and Owners Association saw its grant and gift income quadruple in four years under David’s guidance. He generated and matched the first challenge grant in organizational history and established a planned giving program. At the American Enterprise Institute, David managed a five-person development office that doubled the institute’s income in four years, resulting in $10 million in annual revenues.
While at Georgetown University, David coordinated all fundraising efforts for Main Campus priorities for its $115 campaign. His emphasis was on endowing professorships and scholarships for six schools and colleges, as well as athletics, the Main Campus library, the building of the Intercultural Center, the Yates Field House, and restoration of the Old North building.
David holds a Bachelor of Arts in Business and Economics, and Government from MacMurray College in Jacksonsville, Illinois, where he served as the Director of Alumni Affairs. He currently serves as president of the Brunswick Public Foundation of Lake Forest, Illinois.