Susan Ross, co–founder and partner, launched moss+ross following a successful fundraising career with Duke University. She has been the key manager of moss+ross’s work with the Fuqua School of Business, the Durham Public Library, Ronald McDonald House, Urban Ministries of Durham, SEEDS, and Durham Habitat for Humanity since retiring from Duke in June 2009.
Susan spent nearly three decades as a senior fundraiser at Duke University, leading teams responsible for well over $500 million in fundraising for endowment, facilities, athletics, and annual giving during her professional career. Her most recent role was Assistant Vice President for Financial Aid Development, where she led a staff and volunteer team which raised $308 million for student scholarship endowments university–wide.
Along the way she played significant roles in Durham’s non–profit community, serving as President of the Durham Rotary Club and the Junior League of Durham and Orange Counties, and chairing the Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Durham program, the Orange/Durham Coalition for Battered Women, Duke’s United Way campaign, and the building campaign at Trinity Avenue Presbyterian Church.
From 1998–2004, Ross was Associate Athletics Director and Director of Athletics Development at Duke during a time of tremendous growth. Duke Athletics raised more than $100 million during her tenure, increasing the number of Iron Dukes donors to more than 7500, broadening the gift planning program, and funding a number of construction projects including basketball, football, and tennis buildings.
She received a journalism degree from the University of North Carolina in 1977, where she was a member of Phi Beta Kappa. She began her career as College Relations Director at Saint Mary’s College in Raleigh, with responsibility for admissions and alumnae publications and public relations. She joined the Duke staff in 1980 as Assistant Director of Annual Giving, later serving for seven years as Director of the Duke Annual Fund. She became Associate Dean and Director of Development for Arts and Sciences in 1992, where she developed and launched a $325 million campaign as part of the $2.3 billion Campaign for Duke.
Ross’s work at Duke has won three awards from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, and she is a regular presenter at national fundraising conferences, receiving top marks on three different CASE Athletics Fundraising Conference faculties. She has taught fundraising through Duke’s Public Policy and Continuing Education programs, and been a guest trainer for many undergraduate courses. She has also led volunteer training programs for the Durham Red Cross, Durham Habitat for Humanity, the Junior League and Trinity Avenue Presbyterian Church.
A native of Durham, Ross is a graduate of Hillside High School. She is married to Duke fundraiser Tom Hadzor and together they have six children, ages 20–29. The Ross–Hadzor family loves college sports, tennis, golf, traveling and cooking.
Mary Moss, co–founder and partner, was among North Carolina’s leading independent school fundraisers when she began moss+ross. She has directed the firm’s consulting relationship with The Hill Center, Roanoke Island Historical Society, Caring House, Santa Catalina School, Triangle Day School, Triangle Family Services, and IntraHealth International. With volunteer training as a particular specialty, Mary has led training sessions for the Santa Catalina School in California, Wake Forest Medical Alumni Association, and the Triangle Community Foundation.
Her fundraising career spanned more than two decades at three prominent Research Triangle schools. She stepped down in 2008 as associate head for institutional advancement at Saint Mary’s School, her high school alma mater, with responsibility for development, alumnae relations, and admissions. Prior to that, she was Director of Development at Ravenscroft for 11 years and at Durham Academy for nearly five years.
At Saint Mary’s School, she developed annual development action plans that resulted in gifts of over $21.5 million, including back–to–back $1 million Annual Fund totals. Her department received nine national and regional Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) awards in fundraising and communications. She helped coordinate the strategic planning process, and she coordinated two critical school strategic positioning studies, twice retooling all admission and communication materials as well as the web site. During her seven–year tenure, school enrollment increased 28%.
At Ravenscroft, the development program raised over $20 million, including two capital campaigns for facilities and endowment as well as Annual Fund, restricted funds, and auction donations, and the school was recognized with two national CASE awards. She ran the final stages of a capital campaign at Durham Academy while building aggressive Annual Fund campaigns and auctions.
Her nonprofit fundraising career began in 1981 as Duke University’s first full–time telethon director. Later, she advanced to assistant director of annual giving, assistant director of planned giving, and director of major projects for Duke’s Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Mary is an active community volunteer, currently serving as a member of the board of directors of the New Voices Foundation. She has been a volunteer consultant with numerous schools and nonprofits including the Junior League of Raleigh, Triangle Family Services, Hayes Barton United Methodist Church, and other organizations. She has spoken at many CASE/NAIS and CASE District III conferences on fundraising, admission, and strategic positioning and planning, receiving the highest ratings each time as a speaker.
She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a bachelor of arts in political science. She is also a graduate of the Institute of Paralegal Training in Philadelphia as well as the Leadership Raleigh program. She is married with three grown sons and enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, and enjoying the North Carolina beaches.