Office of Development

Matt Rizzo joined the Advancement Division at Dartmouth in June of 2020. He brings more than 20 years of experience as a philanthropic advisor, institutional leader, and campaign director. Prior to his appointment at Dartmouth, Matt served as vice president of institutional advancement at Bennington College; associate vice president for development at Brown University; and vice president for external relations at Vermont Law School. In these roles, Matt was responsible for building and leading teams in the planning and execution phases of transformational capital campaigns, staffing presidents and development committee chairs, and working with donors to advance institutional strategic initiatives.

An early entrepreneur, Matt began his career in Chicago by founding a nonprofit that assisted inner-city student-athletes in the college admissions, financial aid, and recruiting processes, and went on to work as a development director for community arts and culture organizations in Vermont. Matt is a fourth generation jazz musician, classically trained in guitar, a passion he still pursues. He earned his bachelors degree in history from Denison University, where he was a member of their nationally ranked lacrosse team. 

Sylvia Racca joined Dartmouth in December, 2002, as the executive director of the Dartmouth College Fund. Prior to Dartmouth, she served first as the director of the annual fund and then as director of development at Scripps College in Claremont, California, which is one of the Claremont Colleges along with Pomona, Claremont McKenna, and Harvey Mudd. Before moving west, she served as an assistant director in the Alumnae Fund of Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts. 

Prior to her career in higher education, Sylvia enjoyed a successful and engaging career for a decade syndicating tax-advantaged investments in commercial, historic, and multifamily real estate throughout the United States with Atlantic Equity Corporation in Boston, Massachusetts.