November 20, 2007 - Nelessen Named Director of Annual Giving

Mathieu N. Nelessen of Lawrenceville, N.J., former director of law enforcement sponsorship at Special Olympics New Jersey, joined Rider on November 5 as the director of annual giving.

As a member of the development team, Nelessen will be responsible for guiding and enhancing the Annual Fund at Rider. Leading a team of three other professionals, he will focus his initial efforts on promoting Annual Fund participation among Rider’s alumni and friends, including those affiliated with Westminster Choir College.

“We are delighted to welcome Mathieu as a leader within our development team,” said Ed Gwazda, assistant vice president for development at Rider. “He brings broad experience and a record of remarkable success at Special Olympics of New Jersey. Mathieu’s energy and enthusiasm fit well with the optimism we all share at this important time of growth and achievement for Rider.”

Prior to joining Rider, Nelessen successfully led New Jersey’s Law Enforcement Torch Run department, the largest grassroots public awareness and fundraising arm of Special Olympics, to the top Torch Run fundraising program in the world. While providing strategic direction for this department, Mathieu paved the way for the largest single-year increase in fundraising at a level of more than 15 percent. As a result, for the first time in history, The New Jersey Law Enforcement Torch Run broke the $2 million mark. Along with the marketing and branding of the Torch Run, Nelessen was also responsible for the stewardship and development of a Law Enforcement Torch Run State Committee, a state executive board of 52 officers.

“I am thrilled to join the Office of University Advancement at Rider and I look forward to joining a team which will help take the University to an even higher level of prominence,” said Nelessen.

Nelessen’s earlier career included serving as director of education and outreach at Special Olympics, a role that encompassed coordinating the design, funding and implementation of state-wide recruitment models throughout public and private schools in New Jersey targeting students with intellectual disabilities. He earned a B.A. in psychology from Rutgers University.