Bob Martin walked into Old Main ready to grab the reins of a major project.

Martin assumed the position of vice president for university advancement Monday.

Eastern is preparing to enter the public phase of a major private fundraising campaign. The silent phase began in 2007. It will go public starting in the fall.

“It will be the biggest alumni and private support campaign in Eastern’s history,” Martin said. “We will announce (the fundraising goal) this fall. It’s still quiet. That will come from the president’s steering committee and what we’re comfortable with and what the needs are of the university and how well we can meet those. It’s going to be a very important campaign for Eastern.”

He said campaigns like Eastern’s typically last between six and seven years. The majority of his week was spent meeting the staff.

The position name was changed from external relations following Jill Nilsen’s retirement to emphasize fundraising. The campaign is his main focus.

“I’ve had meetings with communications and marketing staff, my philanthropy staff and the alumni staff, and I met with some members of the alumni board my first weekend here before I officially started,” Martin said. “I met with the president’s council (Wednesday) and the president (Thursday), and I’ve had phone conversations with some of the trustees. Mostly, it’s been welcoming me to campus, but a lot of things we’re getting ready for are concentration on some alumni events, some marketing pieces, annual fund pieces and the campaign. It’s been an exciting first week.”

Increasing membership in the alumni association is one goal Martin has for the position. A variety of media will be used in contacting alumni.

“We want to, through communications and marketing, send out the best information that reaches the most people in the most effective way,” he said. “For some people it’s going to be Facebook, Twitter and Web sites. For other people it’s going to be snail mail.”

Martin described his first week as fun and busy.

“This is the friendliest campus I’ve ever seen,” Martin said. “I’ve been greeted by people in the parking lot. It seems like everyone is so happy to be here. Auburn (University) is a great place, I loved Auburn, but this has seemed the most welcoming place I’ve ever been, so we’ll put

Auburn in second.”

Sarah Ruholl can be reached at 581-7942 or seruholl2@eiu.edu