Dawn Abel serves as the Deputy Chief Advancement Officer at the National Museum of Natural History where she leads the Major Gifts, Annual Giving, and Advancement Operations teams. Dawn also serves as the campaign manager for the museum’s capital campaign. Prior to joining the Smithsonian, Dawn served as the Director of Development at the National Academy of Medicine. In this role, she worked to develop and execute a comprehensive fundraising strategy to meet a $100M campaign goal. She previously worked on both sides of fundraising as the Director of Community Relations and Foundations for Blue Cross BlueShield of Tennessee, leading a $200M corporate foundation, and as the Director of the Alexian Brothers Foundation where she worked to build a regional fundraising program. Originally from New York, Dawn holds a BS in Electrical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and a MA in Management from the University of Maryland Baltimore County.
