Joe Petrizzi was named associate director of development at the UNC School of Social Work in 2023. In this role, Petrizzi focuses on securing major gifts for MSW scholarships and other School of Social Work initiatives.
Petrizzi joins the School after serving in several roles within the University, including admissions representative and coordinator of outreach for alumni, clubs and families with the UNC General Alumni Association. Additionally, he served as the former assistant director of scholarship giving with Carolina’s University Development Office. There, Petrizzi helped launch the annual giving program, stewarded scholarship donors and secured $4.9 million in annual gifts in FY2023. He also raised more than $1 million for scholarships in his leadership annual giving work.
Born and raised in Virginia, Petrizzi comes from a proud Tar Heel family. He earned both his undergraduate and graduate degrees studying Carolina history. He also comes from a family of social workers: both of his grandfathers were practitioners. That family history combined with Petrizzi’s love of the state of North Carolina and the School of Social Work’s mission to serve its population make him particularly excited for his role.
