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Jamie Hurst (’21) | Assistant Vice President for Strategic Engagement
Jamie Hurst is originally from California and started with MSU Denver in December 2013. Previously, she worked at Upper Iowa University as the Director of Corporate and Foundation Relations after working in college athletics for nearly a decade at Upper Iowa, Iowa State University and Indiana State University. Jamie earned her J.D. from Hamline University School of Law, M.A. in Sport Management from Indiana State University and B.A. in Religious Studies/Human Development from the University of California, San Diego where she was an NCAA Division II softball student-athlete. As the Assistant Vice President for Strategic Planning, Jamie provides leadership, vision and direction to the Alumni Relations and Annual Giving teams while also serving as the Executive Director of the Alumni Association. Jamie also serves as an affiliate faculty member in the Human Performance and Sport department where she teaches Legal Liability in Sport. In her spare time, she is an avid Roadrunner Softball fan, loves all things baseball, enjoys playing guitar and woodworking. She and her wife live in Westminster and enjoy the Colorado outdoors with their two dogs, Rowdy and Copper.

 

Evann Coad | Assistant Director of Annual Giving
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Evann Coad joined the MSU Denver Alumni Relations and Giving team in August 2022. He is originally from Indiana and graduated from Indiana University in 2013 with a B.A. in Public Policy. As assistant director, he assists the executive director in the design and execution of strategic communications for alumni, donors and friends of the university.

Evann began his career in Advancement as a caller for the IU Foundation Telefund while a student at Indiana University. Over the course of his career he has also worked for the University of Colorado, University of North Florida, and served as a marketing specialist for the Wounded Warrior Project. As a first-generation college graduate, he is passionate about university fundraising and connecting students with the financial means to complete their education.

In his free time, he enjoys hiking, reading, tinkering with his PC, and spending time with his wife, his son and their two shepherd mixes, Otto and Ruby.

 

Jesse Drewes (’22) | Alumni Engagement Coordinator
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Jesse Drewes is a Colorado Native and joined the Roadrunner family in 2020 as a student in the Human Performance and Sport department studying Sport Management. In 2022 he joined MSU Denver’s University Advancement team as a student intern for Alumni Relations. In his role as an intern, he focused on the efforts to successfully run the Colorado Rockies 50/50 Raffle program in partnership with the Colorado Rockies. He was brought on full-time in 2023 after graduating from MSU Denver with a B.A. in Sport Management. His current role is within the Alumni Relations Team as the Alumni Engagement Coordinator. In his new role he looks to grow the love and support for MSU Denver among all MSU Denver Alumni.

As a proud MSU Denver alum and a first-generation college graduate he hopes to share his story to inspire the students behind him and show how a college degree can lead to many opportunities.

Jesse enjoys his free time spending time with family, friends, and watching any and all sporting events.

 

Heather Holzbauer-Schweitzer | Executive Assistant to the Alumni Association Board
303-605-7802 | [email protected]

Heather Holzbauer-Schweitzer is originally from Minnesota and joined MSU Denver Alumni Relations and Annual Giving team in February 2022 as the Engagement Associate. She graduated from Winona State University in 2014 with a degree in Therapeutic Recreation.

Heather began her career in higher education in 2015 as the coordinator of adapted sports and events at the University of Central Oklahoma where she ran the largest multi-sport, multi-disability sporting event in the nation – the UCO Endeavor Games. Heather left higher education to pursue her career at the Oklahoma City Veteran’s Medical Center where she provided exercise, leisure education and adapted sport opportunities to veterans.

Heather and her family relocated to Colorado in June of 2021, where she returned to working in higher education. In her free time, Heather enjoys gardening, hiking, drinking craft beer and watching rugby with her husband and two dogs, Bruiser and Zoelle.

 

Jane Karger | Assistant Director of Alumni Engagement

Jane Karger, originally from Pittsburgh, PA, joined MSU Denver as the Assistant Director of Alumni Engagement in 2021.  She works to create platforms and opportunities for alumni to connect with each other, support each other and welcome them back to campus to engage with current students, faculty, and staff.

Before she joined the Roadrunner community, Jane spent her career in athletics, working to foster a team environment, support the campus community and develop student athletes on and off the field through the women’s lacrosse programs.  She spent time at as the head women’s lacrosse coach at Drew University and an assistant coach at Princeton University, the University of Connecticut, Central Connecticut State and Mount St. Mary’s University.

Jane graduated from Mount St. Mary’s University with a B.A in Education and German and earned a MA in Educational Psychology from the University of Connecticut.  In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her two Newfoundland dogs, Riggs and Minnow, going on adventures with her family and traveling to new places.

 

Ruby Matheny | Assistant Director of Alumni Engagement
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Ruby Matheny is a proud first-generation college graduate and MSU Denver alumna. She has a passion for equity, inclusion, and community building which she channels into her work in higher education. While Ruby studied Political Science and Philosophy in her undergrad, she remained determined to positively shape the world through high-impact practices in higher education.

Ruby has worked in new student orientation, data, internship management, relationship management, life design, diversity and equity/antiracism, and career development. Ruby is a mom, an avid reader, audiophile, writer, artist, camper, exercise enthusiast, and is always looking to contribute to the relief of suffering in the world.

 

Bre Milnes | Executive Director of Advancement Communications & Giving
Bre Milnes is originally from Illinois and joined MSU Denver Alumni Relations in April 2015. As the Senior Director of Advancement Communications and Annual Giving, she leads the effort to communicate strategically with our alumni, donors and friends of the University. Other duties include leading the direct marketing and call center operations for the office of Alumni Relations & Giving.

Bre began her career in higher education as a marketing coordinator and assistant softball coach at Kirkwood Community College in 2009.

She earned an M.S.Ed. in Sport Performance and Leadership, and a B.S. in Sport Marketing and Administration from Northern State University. In her free time, she enjoys skiing and hanging out with her cats watching true-crime television shows.

 

Brandi Rideout | Senior Director of Alumni Relations
Brandi Rideout joined MSU Denver as the Assistant Director of Alumni Programs in 2015. As the current Director of Alumni Relations, she creates the best possible environment for students to succeed in life. Through innovative programming and networking events, Brandi hopes to create a legacy of engaged alumni who can always count on their Alma Mater for support. She is also an affiliate faculty member in the Human Performance and Sport Department.

Prior to becoming a Roadrunner, Brandi spent over 10 years dedicated to developing student-athletes. She helped create the best possible environment for them to succeed athletically and academically as the Assistant Athletic Director for Student-Athlete Services and SWA at Upper Iowa University, Director of Student-Athlete Services at the University of Maine, and the Assistant Basketball Coach at Colby College.

Brandi graduated from the University of Maine at Farmington with a B.S. in community health education and earned a MEd in higher education administration from Upper Iowa University. As a first-generation college student, she passionate about higher education and the opportunities that can develop as a result of obtaining a degree. She brings positive energy and a great attitude to any situation and is always looking for ways to grow and learn.

Brandi enjoys spending her free time skiing and hiking with her dog, Zion, and was the proud winner of her 7th-grade spelling bee.

 

Andy Schlichting | Director of Advancement Marketing and Communications

303-362-3219 | [email protected]

Andy Schlichting returned to MSU Denver in January 2022 after previously spending over six years in the athletics department. As the Director of Advancement Marketing and Communications, he leads the digital communications efforts with alumni, donors, and friends of the University.

Prior to his current role, Andy spent nearly 13 years working in marketing and communications, including over 11 years in college athletics. He began his professional career at MSU Denver in February 2009 and served as the Sports Information Director for the athletics department until 2015, leading the external communications and digital media for the Roadrunners, while assisting with the marketing team. He served in a similar role at the University of Colorado Boulder from 2015 to 2021, while managing all the digital communications for the athletics department through social media and the Buffs’ website.

Andy left collegiate athletics in October 2021 to accept a position at MYR Group Inc., a publicly traded electrical construction company, as the Proposal Coordinator in the marketing department. In his role at MYR Group, he wrote proposals for construction project bids and assisted with graphic design and video production.

A native of Chaska, Minn., he earned his B.S. in Sports Management with a minor in Business Administration, along with his M.S. in Education from Southwest Minnesota State University. He also competed in football at SMSU, earning all-region and all-conference honors as a punter and backup wide receiver. In his free time, Andy enjoys any outdoor activity, including hiking, running, skiing, and climbing, and learning foreign languages.

 

Lynne Winter (’17) | Associate Director of Advancement Communications
Lynne Winter joined the Roadrunner family in 2013. As a student employee, she worked as a teaching assistant, tutor and for the Reach-a-Roadrunner Alumni Call Center. In April 2017, she joined the University Advancement staff full-time to combine her adaptive range of writing skills with her passion for supporting the future of students and programs at Metropolitan State University of Denver.

For more than two years, she has shared stories of lives transformed with alumni, donors, faculty, staff and the community through Metropolitan Denver Magazine, Early Bird articles, the Your Gifts at Work newsletter and bi-monthly alumni newsletters. She cultivates and edits content for stewardship and fundraising publications, project proposals, donor acknowledgment letters, alumni newsletters and more, in support of MSU Denver University Advancement’s mission to secure private financial support for the University.

Lynne graduated from the University of Colorado at Denver with a B.A. in English and earned a B.S. in environmental science from MSU Denver in 2017. In her free time, she enjoys reading comic books, planning vacations to Disney destinations, and watching movies (particularly Marvel) with her husband, 8-year-old Border Collie mix, Sully, and her son who is currently earning his Ph.D. in medical physics in Wisconsin.