Skip to content

New Chief Development Officer appointed at William Woods University

Press ReleaseEducation

JUNE 9, 2025
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

New Chief Development Officer appointed at William Woods University
 
Fulton, MO – Romaine Seguin, President of William Woods University (WWU), today announced the appointment of Christi Slizewski Tennyson as the university’s new Chief Development Officer. Tennyson will begin her new position at The Woods on July 1.

A 1997 graduate of WWU, Tennyson has deep roots at the institution through family and alumni involvement. The mother of a 2025 WWU graduate whose twin sister and cousin are also William Woods alums, Tennyson returns to The Woods from Meds and Food for Kids, a non-profit organization based in St. Louis dedicated to treating and preventing child malnutrition in Haiti, where she was serving as Development Director. In her new cabinet-level role at William Woods, she will be responsible for leading the University’s advancement efforts, development and alumni relations.

“We are fortunate to welcome an accomplished development professional of Christi’s caliber to join our leadership team here at William Woods,” said President Seguin. “Her proven record of development achievement, and deep, personal commitment to William Woods, will be extremely valuable to the university. With the addition of Christi, we are well-positioned for the foreseeable future to engage with donors, alumni and other supporters of William Woods University.”

During her tenure at Meds and Food for Kids, Tennyson developed and implemented a comprehensive fundraising strategy encompassing major gifts, corporate partnerships, planned giving, annual giving and capital campaigns, meeting 110% of restricted gift goals for the current fiscal year. Prior positions include serving as Stewardship Director for Lamda Chi Alpha, where she led a team of five major gift officers who raised more than $5,000,000 during her nine-month tenure; and as Senior Development Officer for Presbyterian Children’s Services, where she exceeded fundraising goals by 145 and 105 percent for the years 2023 and 2022, respectively. An ordained minister, Tennyson also served as a Pastor for the Pilgrim United Church of Christ from 2015-2021, where in addition to her clerical duties, boosted annual giving at the church by 12 percent.

In addition to her family connections to the university, Tennyson has been actively involved in WWU alumni activities over the past 25 years, serving as President of the William Woods University National Alumni Board (2017-2021) and serving as Vice-President, Fundraising Committee Chair and Treasurer of the WWU National Alumni Association. She received her Bachelor’s degree from The Woods in Communication and Marketing Management in 1997, and her Master’s of Divinity from Eden Theological Seminary in Webster Groves, Mo., in 2018. She and her partner share their four adult children.

New Chief Development Officer appoint...