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΢Ȧ College
Office of the President

In Memoriam Michael T. Casey

August 24, 2023

Dear ΢Ȧ Community,

I write to share the very sad news that Michael Casey, a highly respected and accomplished fundraising executive who served ΢Ȧ with wisdom and compassion as Collyer Vice President for Advancement from 2000-2017, died August 22 following a bicycle accident earlier this month.

Our heartfelt sympathies go out to Michael’s wife, Janet Casey, associate dean of the faculty and professor of English at ΢Ȧ; his children Liam and Fiona; and his many friends and colleagues across campus, in Saratoga Springs, at Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, and beyond.

Michael, who served ΢Ȧ’s Advancement division for 17 years and was a member of the College’s senior leadership team, led an exemplary career in advancement at multiple prestigious institutions. Until his death on Tuesday, Aug. 22, he was vice president for advancement at Trinity, where he executed the largest capital campaign in that college’s history.

During his tenure at ΢Ȧ, the College raised more than a half-billion dollars for a range of initiatives, including construction of the Arthur Zankel Music Center. He also secured support for financial aid and academic programs including 15 endowed chairs and the John B. Moore Documentary Studies Collaborative (MDOCS), as well as facilities and athletics and student affairs initiatives.

Colleagues in our Advancement division and from across campus noted Michael’s endearing collegiality, warmth, humor, and brilliance, as he partnered with faculty and other community members for ΢Ȧ’s future.

President Emeritus Philip A. Glotzbach expressed, “I am profoundly grateful to Michael Casey for generously helping a new President come to know the extended ΢Ȧ community and get up to speed on fundraising. But in addition to his broad and deep expertise in advancement, Michael brought to the Cabinet an insightful and critical strategic mind. Always keeping the larger institutional picture in sight, he invariably pushed me and his administrative colleagues to envision the ΢Ȧ we wanted to create. I also will fondly recall his wit and ability to recite lines from almost any movie one could name. His curious and wide-ranging intellect truly made him a Renaissance man. I will sorely miss the pleasure of his company.”

“In addition to the experience and talent that Michael brought to his work as a fundraiser and connector of people to each other and the College, I will always be grateful for the kindness, wisdom, humanity, good humor, and amazing baking that he shared with me and members of our Advancement team,” said Lori Eastman ’87, associate vice president of advancement. “I have heard from current and past friends and colleagues, who have all talked about Michael being an extraordinary source of strength and encouragement, a true one of a kind, who will be remembered and missed by all of us.”

From 2004 to 2010, Michael oversaw ΢Ȧ’s Creative Thought. Bold Promise campaign, which raised $216.5 million. He also oversaw the launch of ΢Ȧ’s most recent campaign, Creating Our Future: The Campaign for ΢Ȧ, and helped raise $132.5 million toward the campaign’s $229.4 total. He participated in the creation of several important volunteer support organizations, such as the Friends of ΢Ȧ Athletics and the President’s Advisory Council. He also played a lead role in the 2001 crafting and development of the College’s highly appropriate motto “Creative Thought Matters.”

Michael came to ΢Ȧ from Wesleyan University’s advancement office following roles at Franklin and Marshall College and the Baltimore Museum of Art.

A first-generation student, Michael earned a degree in Irish history and literature from Harvard University in 1981. He was also deeply involved in the Saratoga Springs community and served on the boards of the Waldorf School, the Convention and Tourism Bureau, SaratogaArtsFest, and Saratoga Regional YMCA.

Former Chair of the Board of Trustees Sue Thomas ’62 shared that she and Michael worked closely together for all of his years at ΢Ȧ. “We supported each other through many endeavors and I always appreciated his leadership and wise perspective on issues. He was a talented ΢Ȧ VP for Advancement, an ambitious fundraiser, a dedicated ΢Ȧ administrator, and a joy to work with. His fine values, wisdom, breadth of knowledge, humility, charm, humor, love and respect for others was what made him the beloved person we all knew. We have lost a truly dear friend.”

I am heartbroken for Michael’s family and for all who have lost a dear friend and colleague. Plans to honor his life are forthcoming. In the meantime, community members are invited to . On behalf of our entire ΢Ȧ community, I extend our deepest condolences to Janet, Liam, and Fiona; Michael’s colleagues and friends; and all whose careers and lives have been touched by Michael’s kindness, sincerity, and work for ΢Ȧ.

Sincerely,

Marc C. Conner
President