Rate My Professor Murray Lopdell-Lawrence

Murray Lopdell-Lawrence serves as the Development Manager for Bequests in the Development and Alumni Relations Office at the University of Otago. He was appointed to this newly formed position in August 2019, with a focus on building and managing the university's bequest program. The University of Otago, established in 1869 as New Zealand's first university, has received legacy gifts from its earliest days, and Lopdell-Lawrence oversees processes related to planned giving and bequests through the University of Otago Foundation Trust. His role involves supporting donors interested in making posthumous contributions to advance the institution's missions across various academic disciplines.

Lopdell-Lawrence brings over three decades of international experience in educational advancement, private school leadership, and performing arts administration. Born and raised in New Zealand's North Island, he was trained as a teacher there before teaching in England and the United States. He held head of school positions at four private schools across four different U.S. states, dedicating 40 to 60 percent of his time to fundraising and advancement efforts. He later served as Vice President for Institutional Advancement at the American Boychoir School in Princeton, New Jersey, followed by Director of Planned Giving at Princeton Theological Seminary in the same city. His background also includes arts organizations such as Chamber Music New Zealand (formerly Music Federation NZ) and the San Francisco Opera Center. Throughout his career, he has supervised comprehensive advancement activities, including donor cultivation and solicitation, annual appeals, major gift campaigns, planned giving with specialization in bequests, capital campaigns, endowment building, event planning, marketing, branding, publications, and strategic planning. After 30 years overseas, he returned to New Zealand with his wife to take up his current role.