In July 2016, Marvin Dewey, EdD remembers receiving an email he almost didn’t open. “Somehow, in God’s providence, I not only opened the email, but I inquired as to the position,” he remembers. That position was the open role as the vice president of institutional advancement at Geneva College.

As the process continued, Dewey was invited to interview in person and to have a conversation with recently hired President Calvin Troup ‘83, PhD. When first meeting Troup, Dewey noted that he was the kind of scholar-president with whom he was interested in working.

Dewey, Troup, and the College and Foundation boards recognized a clear need. “There was some semblance of a philanthropic culture at Geneva at the time, but it was certainly not at the level that the committee wanted it to be,“ says Dewey. As part of his final interview, he presented on both building a philanthropic culture of giving and relationships.

Dewey was uniquely prepared for the role of VPIA at Geneva. With 35 years of development experience, he had also served as a college president, twice as a university vice president, and had worked with a portfolio of donors in each role. He felt prepared to accomplish the goals that were set before him having worked “the full gambit of the development office” through these previous roles.

The position at Geneva not only utilized his skillset but captured his faith commitment.

“Geneva’s commitment to Scripture is very important to me,” says Dewey. "From the documents I saw, Geneva is anchored first in Scripture, and then in its confessions and relationships. All these things anchored Geneva in a way that I was confident the College would remain faithful to God and to Scripture. There were stakes in the ground that were firm, and I wanted to contribute to something that would last.”

The Last 10 Years

While well-equipped for the role, Dewey stepped into a season of focused development. During his decade at Geneva, Dewey helped cultivate a culture of generosity.

Under his leadership, the Geneva College Foundation was established on June 1, 2021, as a separate, not for profit 501(c)3. Dewey’s staff has grown from three to nine and this team has worked over the past years to effectively cultivate relationships with more than 800 alumni and friends. The College’s endowment has doubled since 2016, and the recent, successful completion of the Advancing Faith and Learning campaign is another clear marker of the Foundation’s flourishing work.

Clearly, Dewey has been successful in his key initiative of cultivating a culture of generosity, expanding the reach of Geneva’s alumni engagement through long-term connection and trust.

“We have expanded and deepened the relationships between alumni and friends, which is a critical part of the process for generosity to flow,” says Dewey. “People give to organizations that they know and trust and to people that they know.”

Dewey works diligently to keep his network updated about the happenings of the College while also getting to know those he meets, learning about their families, interests, and priorities. This two-way relationship is key to his work in the Foundation. “Meeting people gives me joy,” he remarks. "It reenergizes me.”

Passing the Baton

Dewey retired from his role in the Geneva College Foundation on May 31, 2026, confident in the new leadership and in the enduring mission of the College.

"Marv’s work has been institutionally transformative,” says President Calvin Troup, PhD. “With quiet confidence in the Lord, a steady hand, and a relentless heart, he has cultivated a vital philanthropic culture. Marv worked with the Board of Trustees to establish a foundation for the College, and developed leaders at every level who now understand the value of inviting alumni and friends to invest in the ministry of education at Geneva.”

With plans to serve part-time throughout the following year in a supportive capacity, Dewey has dedicated his time and energy towards facilitating a smooth transition, prioritizing the transfer of traditions, key reference documents, and relational trust. The Foundation continues to faithfully serve the institution with consistency and clarity under the new leadership of Jonathan Tencza and continues to grow in stability and reach. “I happily accepted the baton in 2016,” Dewey reflects, “and now I’m happily extending it to the next person to carry on.”

The Foundation Board, Board of Trustees, and Board of Corporators continue to serve the College through their giving leadership, reflecting the importance of institutional developments. There is more work to be done at Geneva, and the emergence of significant generosity and leadership in recent years at the College casts a vision for what can be done in the future.

“The biggest movement by far is the Advancing Faith and Learning campaign,” Dewey says. “Within a campaign there are big, exciting projects, a distinct story, and a clear invitation to participate. This is a really joyful time. God invites us to be part of what He’s doing here, and He chooses to use us. God is the one who blesses donors with capacity and nurtures their generosity.”

Dewey notes that, in the Lord’s grace, the College can accomplish what it sets out to do. Plans are discussed and created as genuine goals rather than hypothetical or tentative ideas. Geneva’s long-term vision is a source of stability, most notably identified in the 10-year strategic plan adopted in 2021. College leadership is already evaluating priorities for the next capital campaign. Over the past decade, Dewey has faithfully and effectively strengthened the Geneva community, inviting members into deeper relationship with the institution.

"The Geneva chapter of my life was never in my career plan,” reflects Dewey, “but it was in God's providential purposes. This has been the most productive time of my career, and I'm thankful for it."