C. Eileen Watts Welch,
MBA
Executive
Director of Advancement
Ms. Welch recently joined the Center for Child &
Family Health in the fall of 2005 after serving nine years as the Associate
Dean for External Affairs of the Duke University School of Nursing where she
lead the successful Campaign for Nursing Excellence whose capstone is the newly
dedicated $18 million Duke University School of Nursing research and classroom
building. She was recruited to Duke in
1996 having served ten years with Inova Health System in Fairfax County,
VA. Prior to her career roles in
development, she was an entrepreneur owning and operating a chain of retail
bookshops, and as an outgrowth of that retail business, founded a book jobber
company through which she operated several federal government contracts.
A
strong community service background is evident through her serving as an
officer in such organizations as the Reston Chapter of the Links, Inc., and the
Reston Board of Commerce. Currently she
is vice president of the Durham Chapter of the Links, Inc., member of the Board
of Directors and treasurer of the Durham Colored Library, Inc., co-chair of
their Merrick Washington Magazine project, a member of the City of Durham -
Parrish Street Historical Development Advocacy Group, a member of the board of
the Durham Public Library Foundation.
Recently she accepted an appointment by Mayor William V. Bell to serve
on the Durham County Gang Assessment Community Advisory Committee.
Ms.
Welch is a Durham, North Carolina native, with long time community ties as far
back as her great-grandparents. On a
national level, she is a founding member of the American Association of
Colleges of Nursing’s (AACN) Professional Development Officers
Organization. She often lectures on
subjects such as African American Philanthropy, Volunteer and Non Profit Board
Management and Women as Donors. As a
guest speaker at the 2005 and 2006 North Carolina Mutual Founders day wreath
laying ceremonies, she spoke from the point of view of the founders
descendants, about standing on the shoulders of giants.
Ms. Welch earned her MBA from George Mason University and B.A. from Spelman College. She and her husband --of 39 years -- are parents of two sons who with their wives form a solid nucleus family and a great source of pride.