WGU Hires Amy Shivvers as Regional Manager Strategic Partnerships

CHICAGO (April 15, 2020) – Western Governors University (WGU) is pleased to announce that Amy Shivvers has joined the nonprofit, online university as Regional Manager, Strategic Partnerships. In this new role, Shivvers will lead a six-person team and work to expand WGU’s partnership network across Illinois and eight other states throughout the Midwest in an effort to increase awareness and student access, improve affordability and enhance student experience, and form meaningful workforce development partnerships with businesses throughout the Midwest.

Shivvers brings more than 30 years of management, marketing and development experience to WGU, with success in building brand awareness, identifying strategic partnerships and nurturing professional and corporate relationships. Before joining WGU, she spent the last decade serving as the managing director of executive education and events for Crain’s Chicago Business. In this role, she helped create and launch Crain’s Academy, an executive education ecosystem, which offers full-service, experiential leadership development training, as well as custom executive education, built in partnership with client organizations. Under her direction, the academy grew from one to four offerings in less than two years and enjoyed a 30% annual growth in its alumni base. In her position, she also grew the publication’s conference business from the ground-up to a seven-figure business, featuring a portfolio that included 20 events, attracting more than 3,500 paid attendees.

Shivvers’ experience also includes serving almost 10 years as director of marketing for Crain’s Chicago Business and serving six years in an agency setting with Cramer-Krasselt and Frank C. Nahser, where she managed top-tier clients and developed and implemented campaigns for more than 27 CNA trade divisions, as well as corporate planning and branding initiatives.

Shivvers will use her background experience to expand WGU’s network of academic and employer partnerships across Illinois, Wisconsin, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota. She will build and grow relationships with large employers, as well as with state and local entities, to increase support of student access throughout the Midwest region.

“We are thrilled to have Amy join our team and know that her leadership and expertise will be integral in raising awareness about WGU’s programs and expanding the university’s partnerships across the Midwest region,” said Dr. Angie Besendorfer, Regional Vice President for WGU. “Our partnerships empower corporations, school districts, healthcare facilities, associations and other organizations to create new educational opportunities for their employees to pursue and are vital in supporting the development of a highly skilled workforce. Amy’s background experience will help drive these efforts as we continue to work toward expanding access to high-quality, affordable higher education for working adults across the Midwest.”

Shivvers resides in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood and serves many professional organizations around the city. She is currently serving as strategic partnership chair of the Chicago Society of Human Resource Management, and is has been involved with the Executives’ Club of Chicago, the Arts & Business Council of Chicago, the National Association of Women Business Owners, the Indiana University Alumni Network, Elevate Women’s Professional Network, UIC Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, the Civic Leadership Exchange and Corporate University – Professional Development Network. Shivvers holds a Bachelor of Science in Apparel Merchandising and Business from Indiana University.
For more information, visit www.wgu.edu.

About WGU

Established in 1997 by 19 U.S. governors with a mission to expand access to high-quality, affordable higher education, online, nonprofit WGU now serves more than 117,000 students nationwide and has more than 157,000 graduates. Driving innovation as the nation’s leading competency-based university, WGU has been recognized by the White House, state leaders, employers, and students as a model that works in postsecondary education. In just 22 years, the university has become a leading influence in the development of innovative workforce-focused approaches to education. WGU is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, has been named one of Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies, and has been featured on NPR, NBC Nightly News, CNN, and in The New York Times. Learn more at www.wgu.edu.

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