Bill Knott began Nov. 3 as the senior vice president for University Advancement and brings a wealth of experience to his new position at Cornerstone.

Knott and his family have lived in Zeeland, Mich. for the past nine years, but he has worked at several organizations before settling in the Midwest. While working as the senior area director at World Vision, Knott oversaw a group of field representatives who covered nine states.

Before Knott worked in fundraising, he served on the pastoral staff at Woodmen Valley Chapel in Colorado Springs, Col. After Knott was done working at the church in 1995, a friend asked him about doing pastoral ministry in another way.
Knott then spent three and a half years as a part of the Focus on the Family’s ministry which involved “going out and being friends to their donors. It was just a natural way for them to raise money,” Knott said.
His transition to fundraising was unconventional.
“I actually kind of came in through the back door,” Knott said. Through his experiences, Knott has gained a local mentality through working with a local church, working on national level with Focus on the Family and then a global level with World Vision. Knott said that God had provided a unique set of skills because of the different opportunities and experiences.

Joe Stowell, president of Cornerstone, viewed Knott’s previous work as beneficial to the institution.

“The fact that [Knott] has worked in Advancement here in West Michigan for 15 years, both with Focus on the Family and World Vision, is a real ‘plus,’” Stowell said in an e-mail. “It means he understands the philanthropic pulse of West Michigan and is highly networked in terms of donor potential.”

Stowell said that Knott has already fit well into the CU Cabinet and his leadership position within advancement.

“Bill stood head and shoulders above other candidates in terms of our profile for the job,” Stowell said. “I’m thrilled that he’s on the team! I’m looking forward to working with Bill, not just on the fundraising front but as a friend and colleague.”

Although Knott has worked with fundraising before, he acknowledged that money can be a sensitive topic but offered solutions.

“Basically all our lives in the kingdom of God are lived in relationships with other people,” Knott said. “We have a responsibility with those relationships to bring our spiritual lives to them in a holistic way. In that, one of the most difficult things to talk about is our financial lives.” Knott said that work in advancement brings together the spiritual side and practical part of financial giving.

Looking toward the future, Knott shared his vision for the future of advancement at Cornerstone.

“From where I sit, what I see is just that a group of dedicated friends of Cornerstone who would come along financially and that God would just use them to give financial help on this extraordinary journey,” Knott said. “That we would be known as a place where generosity is encouraged and that life in Christ is found.”

In order to accomplish this hope for the future, Knott said that it requires students, faculty and staff to communicate what God is doing in their lives. He said that whether someone gives $10 or $10 million, everyone deserves to hear the story about what God is doing.

Five to ten years down the road, Knott hopes to have vibrant, involved alumni that are doing social networking and sending back stories about what God is doing through them.

Despite economic difficulties and political instability, Knott said that now is still a great time to come on board.

“To make a change and be a part of what God is going to do at Cornerstone. This is a faith venture,” Knott said. “Dr. Stowell has very great leadership skills, other people on staff and faculty have excellent skills. It comes down to are we going to rely on our faith in God and see how he works.”

Knott’s new job in advancement offers him a welcomed change with new challenges.

“I think what excites me is what I see in the student life,” Knott said. “I see a great a group of excited men and women who see all the opportunities the world has to offer and how they can contribute to that in the world.

“For me to come in and help them equip their vision, through the great group of friends and donors who have come around Cornerstone over the last 67 years, that is what excites me – to facilitate the dreams, hopes and aspirations of a generation of young adults.”