Paul Sclafani, former Major Gifts Officer at St. John’s University, was named Senior Executive Associate Athletic Director for External Affairs and Revenue Generation at Fordham University in July of 2022.
In his position, Sclafani will be responsible for oversight, strategic planning, and coordination of external units and functions including all athletics revenue generation, strategic communications, media relations, brand management, marketing, fan experience, creative services, and ticketing and sales. He will also be responsible for the development of revenue generation initiatives, which include strategic partnerships and external contracts such as multi-media rights, apparel partners, licensing, merchandising, and other business contracts as applicable to revenue generation.
Sclafani served as Major Gift Officer at St. John’s University from 2020-2022 where he helped lead the fundraising efforts for St. John’s Athletics.
His main responsibility was to manage a fundraising plan for Men’s and Women’s Basketball Training Facility Renovation by identifying and soliciting key prospects for six- and seven-figure multi year commitments. During that time, he was also a member of the executive staff for marketing/tickets/promotion while overseeing the priority point system for major donors regarding upgrading seats, season ticket licensing agreements and travel packages. In addition to those responsibilities, he was the liaison with the sport sponsorship partner, Learfield, on new and current sponsor discovery, activation, and fulfillment.
Prior to his time as a Major Gift Officer, Sclafani held the title of Associate Director of Athletic Development in March of 2017, after serving as an Assistant Director in the same department since August of 2013. He was responsible for fostering internal and external relationships for the Office of Athletic Development and for the management of special events, major gifts, and strategic planning with the Senior Director of Development. Sclafani coordinated and executed a wide variety of events that targeted donors, alumni, and other constituent groups.
Sclafani also oversaw the cultivation and solicitation of major gift prospects, as well as assisted with communications, social media, marketing, direct mail, and other solicitation methods.
During his three years as an Assistant Director of Athletic Development for St. John’s University, Sclafani was responsible for the planning and execution of a wide variety of events relating to the University's Athletic program. This included Red White Club Men's Basketball pre-game receptions, Athletic fundraising dinners, golf outings and events for former student-athletes of each of the University's 17 NCAA Division I sports teams. He collaborated with other members of the Office of Athletic Development, while managing event logistics, coordinating outside vendors and internal University services, and helped in the timely production of communications materials.
Prior to this position, Sclafani served as Assistant Director in the Office of Advancement Services. As an undergraduate student at St. John's, he worked as the head men’s basketball team manager and associate director of the Norm Roberts Basketball Camp. He later served as a graduate assistant for the Department of Athletics.
Sclafani received a B.S. in Sport Management from St. John's College of Professional Studies and an M.B.A. in Finance from St. John's The Peter J. Tobin College of Business. He currently resides in Forest Hills, N.Y., with his wife, Elizabeth and their daughters Isabella and Charlotte.
