The athletic development staff includes (clockwise from back) Matt Palumb, Barb Nesci, Scott Sidwell, Lisa Moore and Mary Dunham.
Athletics Development Staff Solidified with Addition of Moore and Palumb
9/7/2006 2:52:53 PM | Men's Basketball, Football
The Syracuse Athletics Development office has added two to its team and promoted three current staff members. Director of athletics Dr. Daryl Gross announced the promotion of Scott Sidwell to senior associate athletics director for development. Sidwell joined the Syracuse development staff as the associate director of athletics for development in December, 2005.
“Scott has made an immediate impact on our department and Orange Pack,” Gross said. “His knowledge has guided our department into a new chapter of fundraising. He has tremendous work ethic and is an outstanding leader.”
Sidwell has added assistant director of athletics for development and gift planning Lisa Moore and director of donor relations and special projects Matt Palumb to his staff. Current staff members Mary Dunham and Barbara Nesci were promoted. A 25-year veteran of the athletics development staff, Dunham is now the executive assistant for Orange Pack. Nesci, who joined the athletics department staff in 2001, is the office manager and Varsity Club liaison.
“A new chapter in fundraising begins today for Syracuse University athletics,” Sidwell said. “I am extremely pleased about having Lisa and Matt join our department. Their connections to the university and community, coupled with the knowledge and relationships that Mary and Barb have developed through the years, form a strong fundraising team. We have assembled a wonderful group to raise the resources necessary to continue the rich history and tradition of Syracuse athletics.”
Moore moves to the athletics department from her position in the University’s Office of Gift Planning. She is a three-year veteran of the University development staff, having served as a Major Gifts Officer from 1999 to 2001, and in the Office of Gift Planning since June, 2005.
Moore’s 17-year career in development incudes positions at the Central New York Community Foundation, Ithaca College, the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill, and St. Bonaventure University, her alma mater. Her responsibilities have included annual giving, major gifts, and planned giving. Moore also conducted an endowment campaign and oversaw community relations for the Franziska Racker Centers of Ithaca. She earned a degree in mass communication from St. Bonaventure in 1989, where she was a member of the women’s soccer team.
“I have such an appreciation for working with people with great vision and dedication,” Moore said. “The amount of activity in the athletic development office is unlike any other part of campus – our students, staff, alumni and fans come in contact with each other on a daily basis. It is a thrill to be working around all this energy, knowing that we all share a common cause.”
A 2000 graduate of Leadership Greater Syracuse, Moore has volunteered for a variety of organizations in Central New York including the Dewitt Rotary Club, American Lung Association, On Point for College and the St. Thomas More Foundation. In 2003, she was recognized as a 40-Under-40 honoree. She lives in Jamesville with her husband, Peter, Syracuse’s associate director of athletic communications, and their children, Hannah and Jack.
Palumb brings a strong athletics background to the development office. A 1990 All-American, Palumb was the starting goalie for the Orange lacrosse program from 1987 to 1990, which won three consecutive National Championships during his sophomore, junior and senior years. He has spent the past four years as the athletics director at Bement Preparatory School in Deerfield, Mass. He also was a teacher and coach for Bement.
In addition to his athletics expertise, Palumb brings a strong business background to the position. He has been a sales/promotions representative for Cascade Lacrosse helmets since 1991. The 1988 NCAA Championship Most Valuable Player, Palumb has been an NCAA lacrosse referee since 1992 and a basketball referee since 1987. He has officiated five NCAA Division I Lacrosse Final Fours and represented the USA in the 2006 World Lacrosse Championships in London, Ontario.
“I am so excited about coming home to a place that has been so comfortable for me every since I was a little boy visiting my grandmother,” Palumb said. “After spending my childhood and then my college years running around Manley Field House, having an office there seems to be a perfect fit. When I think about the staff I am joining, at my alma mater, it is hard to imagine doing this at any other place. I bleed Orange and believe in what the mission is – supporting the Syracuse student-athletes. I never thought about this career path as a student-athlete, but now I see the big picture. It is great to be part of it.”
Palumb, who earned his degree in psychology, has strong family ties to Syracuse and the athletics department. His father, Peter, was a three-year baseball letterwinner for the Orange from 1961-63. The 1961 Orange squad advanced to the semifinal of the College World Series. After graduation, Peter served as the Nottingham High School football coach for two seasons before moving to West Genesee High School, where he coached for 25 years. Palumb’s grandparents, Dorothy and Robert (Rocky), were also members of the athletics department staff. Dorothy was former Orange head football coach Ben Schwartzwalder’s secretary for 20 years and Rocky worked in the department equipment room for two decades. Palumb and his wife, Lindsey, have one son, Jackson.
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