Milwaukee Succeeds Welcomes Fund Development Manager

Fund Development Manager Kelsey Hau

Over the past few months, Milwaukee Succeeds has been actively recruiting for its first ever fund development manager, a new position that was approved as part of the organization's 2023 budget. On April 17, Kelsey Hau will officially step into the role, joining the expanding team to identify new funding prospects and drive dollars to where they can have the greatest impact.

"As Milwaukee Succeeds continues to push our collective work towards systems transformation," says Deputy Director Dave Celata, "we know our partners need support in aligning practices and policies with both data and lived experience." Thus the role of fund development manager was born.

In this position, Kelsey will collaborate internally and externally to secure the funding needed to support our collective impact work, including the partner-led implementation of our shared priorities. Through prospect research, grant writing, donor cultivation and fund management, she'll build a base of support that will allow Milwaukee Succeeds to move the needle and better position our children for a brighter future.

Kelsey brings a wealth of experience to the role, having spent eight years in nonprofit development at organizations such as Sojourner Family Peace Center and Meta House. Most recently, she led the Seton Catholic Schools development team in launching a $30 million campaign, collaborating with the board of directors and the development committee to meet the aggressive fundraising goals.

Her experience will be instrumental in identifying innovative approaches to funding our priorities, in collaboration with the Greater Milwaukee Foundation and larger StriveTogether network. It will also assist her in building the relationships necessary for effective donor cultivation and engagement.

Kelsey, a Marquette University alumna and avid Marquette basketball fan, is also a foster mother. In her spare time, she loves cooking and writing.