Elan Durham is seeking a new position utilizing their experience in writing, editing, marketing, and travel. They have a background in real estate, sales, administrative work, and university instruction. Durham has an MFA in Writing and Literature and a BA in Comparative Humanities. They have worked as an administrative assistant for a real estate brokerage, managed a creative writing journal, and taught various writing and literature courses as an adjunct faculty member.
Prospect (or development) researchers identify and provide relevant financial, philanthropic, and personal information about potential donors to academic and non-profit organizations. How does one end up in this engaging and rewarding career path? This webinar will look at one researcher’s path to a career in prospect research, moving from traditional and non-traditional library work into development work. Maureen will address the skills and proficiencies librarians bring to the role, and highlight why prospect research is a vibrant and viable career choice for information professionals. She will also discuss the variety of academic and professional backgrounds found among prospect researchers. Anna will cover volunteering in prospect/fundraising research, including examples of how it’s like CI work and expands one’s network/brand.
1. Elan Durham
10 Glassworks Avenue
Cambridge, Massachusetts
02141
617-583-3950
europabridge1@gmail.com
Twitter: @europabridge1
http://about.me/elandurham
Instagram
LinkedIn
Selected Highlights - Professional & Personal Biography
After many years in Los Angeles and New York working in sales and real estate, I made a
transition to education in the 90’s, and taught university at the University of North Carolina in
Wilmington. More recently, after years of travel in Europe, I relocated to the Boston-Cambridge
area, where I am seeking a position that asks me to use what I know about writing, editing,
marketing, and travel. Open to relocation …
Education:
MFA Writing and Literature, University of North Carolina – Wilmington
BA Comparative Humanities, University of Alabama - New College
Selected Professional Experience:
Administration, Sales & Marketing: 1992-1998
Skills: Marketing and sales of multi-million dollar properties, administrative assistance,
public relations, hospitality and events support in the entertainment and hospitality
industries.
The Corcoran Group, 660 Madison Avenue, New York, Administrative Assistant: Assistant
Broker with a focus on luxury properties in Manhattan. See the New York Times link for a
representative sale - The Etro Loft: Habitats/7,000 Square Feet for Sale in TriBeCa
Nature’s Own, Santa Monica, California. Called ‘the best store of its kind’ by the New York
Times, as Floor Manager I assisted such clients as George Harrison, Cher, and Billy Crystal,
among many others. See the New York Times link for shopping on Main Street in Santa
Monica: From Fossils to Footwear
University Instruction: 1998-2005
Skills: Course development and presentation, research, student conferences,
evaluation of student work, and coordination of related extra-curricular activities.
Adjunct Faculty: University of North Carolina-Wilmington, English, Creative Writing, and
Women’s Studies Departments
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2. Courses Taught: ENG 373 The Female Tradition in Literature, ENG 210 Women in Literature,
ENG 110 World Literature Surveys; ENG 100, 101, 103, 201 College Writing & Reading; CRW
201 Creative Writing; WMS 210-Introduction to Women’s Studies, WMS 495-Seminar in Special
Topics. Also see Masters of Liberal Studies Program
Management, Editing, Administration: 1997-2001
Skills: Managing editor, coordination of community outreach, fundraising, and grant
writing.
Managing Editor & Assistant to Coordinator of Creative Writing: Louisiana State University,
Baton Rouge. Creative Writing Department. Edited proofs, interfaced with the publisher,
helped redesign the journal, wrote a successful grant, and established an advertising base for
the New Delta Review.
Tutor: Writing & Reading Center, University of North Carolina, Wilmington. Trained staff and
students in essay writing, editing, research, and writing across the curriculum.
Various: 1989-2001
Guest Lecturer, California Institute for the Arts: Critical Studies Program. Los Angeles,
California. Theatre performance and Q & A for students in the BFA playwriting program.
Manuscript Mentor/Panel Participant: Literary Festival mentor and participant for
undergraduate students in the BFA program at UNCW.
Actor, Dramatist Guild of America: Performances in Los Angeles to assist playwrights in the
development of original works written for the theatre.
Producer, The Vagina Monologues, University of North Carolina
Awards and Recognitions:
• William Faulkner Festival Scholarship: Awarded LSU Writing Scholarship from the
Faulkner Festival in New Orleans
• Significant Impact: Recognized by the Vice-Chancellor of Student Affairs and Dean
of Arts & Sciences for making a significant impact on UNCW students’ lives.
• Champion-McDowell Davis Scholarship: Nominated for artistic excellence by
Creative Writing Department in 2000, University of North Carolina Wilmington.
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