Helen Way Klingler College of Arts and Sciences Award Recipients
A Person for Others Award
Richard C. Shadyac, Jr., Arts '79
Memphis, Tenn.
Leading the top health care charity in the United States is a daunting, yet rewarding, task that Rick passionately embraces.
Rick is president and chief executive officer of American Lebanese Syrian Associated Charities, the fundraising and awareness organization for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, whose mission is dedicated to finding cures and saving children with cancer and other deadly diseases. Children from across the United States and around the world receive treatment at St. Jude, and no family ever receives a bill from St. Jude for anything.
“It is extremely rewarding to me knowing that the work I do each and every day is helping some of the world’s sickest children,” Rick says. “There is no greater mission than to be able to save the lives of children, and I am fortunate to lead the organization that raises the funds that supports St. Jude.”
Rick provides strategic leadership and vision to ALSAC, which employs about 1,300 team members. ALSAC relies heavily on supporters and volunteers who make donations and support thousands of fundraising activities annually to fund the life-saving research and treatment at St. Jude. Under Rick’s leadership since 2009, fundraising revenue has grown 56 percent despite global economic challenges that have negatively impacted overall charitable giving. According to Forbes, ALSAC is now the fifth-largest U.S. charity.
ALSAC has undertaken enhanced fundraising and awareness efforts in the fitness, digital, multicultural and international areas. In addition, Rick has expanded marketing and donor development strategies and is overseeing efforts to elevate St. Jude as an iconic brand. His efforts have resulted in numerous brand accolades, including St. Jude being named the No. 1 Health Non-Profit Brand of the Year for two consecutive years according to the Harris Poll.
Rick credits Marquette with exposing him to a variety of academic fields and emphasizing the importance of service.
“The Jesuit principle instilled in me shaped my personality into one that often questions circumstances and applies analytics to problems,” he says. “This is how I approach my work and challenges today, and at the center of it all is servant leadership.”
