ST. VINCENT’S ANNOUNCES APPOINTMENT OF FIRST-EVER CHIEF DEVELOPMENT OFFICER
Santa Barbara, CA — Effective July 1, 2022, St. Vincent’s has appointed Dr. Regina Ruiz as Chief Development Officer. Dr. Ruiz is now serving as St. Vincent’s first-ever Chief Development Officer in the organization’s 164-year history in Santa Barbara, California.
Dr. Ruiz joined St. Vincent’s in 2019, as the Vice President of Development and Marketing. Dr. Ruiz is a Doctor of Education in Organizational Change and Leadership from the University of Southern California. Her unique background brings a broad set of talents to St. Vincent’s. In her role as Chief Development Officer, she will use her extensive leadership experience from both the private and non-profit sector to craft a targeted development, marketing, and communication strategy for all the St. Vincent’s programs and oversee all of St. Vincent’s Public Relations.
Her recent doctoral dissertation titled: A Strategy to Thrive During a Crisis for Nonprofit Organizations is published in the University of Southern California Library. The qualitative research included interviews with the top nonprofit leaders in Santa Barbara. The study is a basis for promoting improved services and policies in nonprofit crisis response efforts.
As an accomplished broadcast journalist, Dr. Ruiz has anchored and reported at top-market television stations across the country for more than a decade including New York, New Mexico, Las Vegas, Santa Barbara, and most recently for NBC in San Diego. She has also worked at ESPN writing sports highlights and at the Olympics in Greece with NBC Sports.
In addition, she earned her Master of Science in Broadcast Journalism from the top communications college in the country, the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.
Rosa Paredes, President and CEO commented, “Regina is an experienced development and marketing executive with a strong background in the non-profit sector. We are fortunate to have Regina as our Chief Development Officer, and she will continue to take St. Vincent’s further in fulfilling our marketing and development needs so we can continue to serve our community.”
Dr. Ruiz said she is eager to continue the tradition of caring and success founded by the Daughters of Charity at St. Vincent’s, “I am humbled by this tremendous opportunity. I believe when you are called to lead, you are called to serve. I look forward to expanding our ministry and serving even more of our brothers and sisters in need in Santa Barbara.”
St. Vincent’s is the oldest continually operating human service agency in Santa Barbara beginning operations in 1858. Today, St. Vincent’s provides the largest affordable housing programs on one campus, early childhood education, and transitional housing. St. Vincent’s also operates the only day center for the unsheltered in our community through collaboration with the Franciscan Friars at the Old Mission Santa Barbara. St. Vincent’s continues to fulfill our community’s greatest needs.