Kris Bosman has been named the new chief alumni relations officer for the University of Utah. Bosman is currently the senior director for Alumni Relations for the David Eccles School of Business. Bosman will replace Linda Dunn, who was announced as interim chief alumni relations officer in June 2020.

“Kris’s breadth and depth of knowledge about the University of Utah and alumni relations through her experiences across campus make her uniquely qualified to lead the U’s Alumni Relations efforts,” said Heidi Woodbury, vice president for University Advancement. “I am thrilled she accepted this role. I also wish to extend my deep gratitude to Linda Dunn for so ably and steadily guiding the Alumni Relations team during the past year.”

The mission of the Office of Alumni Relations is to create and preserve lifelong relationships between university, U alumni, U students and the community. The alumni of the University of Utah are over 285,000 strong. U Alumni is a term that includes all diverse alums and invites every alum to engage, whether through the support of scholarships, community engagement projects, lifelong learning opportunities or the myriad of social, cultural and enriching U events on campus and in the community. Currently, there are 32 U Alumni clubs, with 20 based within the U.S. and 12 based internationally and eight Alumni communities.

The chief alumni relations officer is responsible for creating a vision and executing a strategy to increase the engagement of alumni with the U and building connections to current students to facilitate lifelong engagement and support for the university.

“Co-chair Kim Brunisholz and I, together with the search committee, had a wonderful pool of interested applicants for the chief alumni relations officer and it was a difficult choice,” said Sarah George, chief philanthropy officer at the U and co-chair of the search committee. “Kris Bosman rose to the top with her deep connection to the University as an alum as well as her experience and innovation in alumni relations for the business school.  She is a well-respected and collaborative colleague on campus and we look forward to seeing her wonderful vision come to life for expanding engagement with the University’s alumni and students.”

It is a return to U Alumni for Bosman, who formerly served as advancement coordinator. She has also worked with the Crimson Club in U Athletics as special events coordinator and as assistant marketing director. She is also an alum of the U having received a degree in political science in 1999.

“I am humbled and honored to have the opportunity to serve as the chief alumni relations officer for the University of Utah, a place I have called home as a student, alumna and staff member,” said Kris Bosman. “I am so excited to follow the exceptional work of my predecessor, Linda Dunn, and collaborate with colleagues across the university to build an alumni network that will create value and bring pride and community to all of our alumni and students.

In addition to overseeing the university’s alumni relations staff, Bosman will manage strategic planning, the expansion of the alumni and career networks, student scholarships and alumni communications.

“I had the pleasure of serving on the chief alumni relations officer search committee and met many exceptional candidates for this position,” said Kellie Esters, senior executive director of Advancement for University of Utah Health. “While all of them had their own unique strengths, Kris Bosman quickly stood out as the best fit for this important role. It was evident at the outset that Kris has a tremendous affinity for the University of Utah and that, combined with her extensive wealth of experience in the alumni relations space, is impressive. I look forward to collaborating with Kris on alumni engagement and mentoring strategies that will benefit all University of Utah alumni and students.”

Bosman will begin her new role on Sept. 7, 2021.