Patrick Cliff
Co-Counsel

Before joining the Alexander Ross Group, Patrick worked for over a dozen years in various development roles at Chicago Public Media – home to WBEZ, Vocalo and the Chicago Sun-Times -- and the University of Michigan. He most recently served as Director, Major Gifts at CPM, leading and coaching a team of major gift officers who met ambitious fundraising goals and collaborating with colleagues across several other teams to shape new giving opportunities. He also co-authored the organization’s most recent Code of Ethics. At CPM, where he was promoted from Major Gifts Officer to Director, he was part of the development team that completed a record-setting campaign for the organization. 

Patrick was also the inaugural Major Gifts Officer for the Institute for Healthcare Policy & Innovation (IHPI) — a cross-campus health policy institute at the University of Michigan. Before fundraising at Michigan, Patrick worked in development communications, serving as editor of the Medicine at Michigan alumni magazine and co-leading communication efforts for the university’s health system $1 billion fundraising campaign. In his communications work, Patrick also partnered with principal giving officers to write compelling proposals that helped lead to some of the campaign’s largest gifts. 

Before transitioning to a career in development, Patrick was a journalist for eight years at various media outlets, most recently at The Bulletin in Bend, OR. Patrick earned his B.A. from the University of Kansas and his M.S. from Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.