Pete Mackey, Ph.D.
President & Executive Strategist
A Proven Leader in Strategic Communications
Pete Mackey brings more than 30 years of experience in leadership roles at private and public institutions across the U.S. and Europe. As the founder and principal consultant of Mackey Strategies, Pete has dedicated his career to helping educational and nonprofit institutions define their identities, sharpen their messages, and achieve their strategic goals.
With expertise in institutional planning, campaign communications, team building, and perceptions research, Pete has guided organizations to create meaningful connections with their audiences while delivering measurable returns on investment. From multi-billion-dollar fundraising campaigns to admissions marketing that drove a 40% increase in applications in one year, Pete’s impact spans every aspect of communications and institutional advancement.
Transformational Leadership
Pete has served as the top communications executive at leading institutions, including Amherst College, Bucknell University, the Jack Kent Cooke Foundation, Science Foundation Ireland, and the University of South Carolina. In these roles, he built and transformed communications operations, developing strategies that reshaped how institutions engage with their stakeholders.
Throughout his career, Pete has led initiatives that include:
Shaping communications for campaigns ranging from $40 million to $2 billion
Building admissions marketing strategies that significantly boosted applications
Overseeing website construction and redesigns for numerous organizations
Leading institutional rebrands for private companies, foundations, and colleges
Inaugurating innovative speaker series and events, such as a literary arts festival
Author and Innovator
In 2016, Pete founded Mackey Strategies to provide strategic communications and leadership services for colleges, universities, and nonprofits. As principal consultant, Pete partners closely with clients to evaluate and clarify their ideas, crafting authentic messaging that drives strategic impact.
In 2018, Pete created The Future Sessions, a three-day leadership bootcamp designed for higher education and nonprofit communications professionals. Held biannually, the program equips participants with the skills and strategies to master communications planning and execution. Participants from institutions across the U.S. leave with actionable tools to lead their teams and advance their missions.
Pete’s thought leadership extends beyond consulting. He is the author of numerous essays and two books:
How to Change the Future: Lessons from Ireland on Revolutionizing Scientific Innovation and Economic Prosperity (Strategic News Service, 2023), co-authored with Dr. William C. Harris
Chaos Theory and James Joyce’s Everyman (University Press of Florida, 1999)
Pete is a frequent public speaker for professional associations and serves as a senior investment partner in EdTech Connect, America’s leading source for educational technologies.
Education and Expertise
Pete earned his Ph.D. in 20th-century British literature and literary theory from the University of South Carolina, where he taught in the South Carolina Honors College. He also holds an M.A. in film studies and a B.A. in English and legal studies from Case Western Reserve University, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa in just four years.
Grounded in a deep commitment to intellectual rigor and strategic thinking, Pete approaches every challenge with curiosity, clarity, and a results-driven mindset. His ability to connect complex ideas with real-world solutions allows him to support leaders and institutions as they navigate change, seize opportunities, and create lasting impact. At his core, Pete values thoughtful collaboration, integrity, and the transformative power of education to shape stronger communities and institutions.
“Pete Mackey served as our Interim Chief Communications Officer during a period of tremendous transition and challenge in our organization. As a new CEO, he helped me learn about the communications landscape. He also created an interim strategy that set our team on a new course to success. His knowledge of the field and willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty made him a wonderful partner in this work.”
— Angel B. Pérez, Chief Executive Officer, National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC)
“Pete Mackey is one of the finest and most discerning writers I know, and a great listener. He takes even fragmentary ideas, quickly helps you clarify your own thinking, and efficiently produces compelling texts to fit any need. But besides that, he is gifted at developing strategies and communications that fit together beautifully.”
— John C. Bravman, President, Bucknell University
“Pete Mackey guided Aurora University through a critical chapter in our institutional story. After a period of intensive enrollment growth, he collaborated with trustees, faculty, administrators and staff to fashion the communication and marketing strategies that will carry the university through the next five years. The outcomes of the process were impressive. So too was the widespread ownership of Mackey’s recommendations that emerged as a result of his ability to listen closely and then to weave a vibrant tapestry of ideas.”
— Rebecca L. Sherrick, Former President, Aurora University
“Pete Mackey is simply the best. Having seen his body of work over many years, I am convinced that no one is better in higher education communications than he. Creative and highly professional, Pete also has a unique ability to make work downright fun. From marketing and branding, video, print to social media channels and so much more, Pete is a complete expert in many categories. What I admire most is his ability to translate strategic institutional priorities into every word and action. Few people have the capacity to think very strategically while creating and implementing critical tactical plans. Having worked with many higher education consultants, I believe Pete is in a category by himself.”
— Scott G. Nichols, Former Senior Vice President, Boston University
Pete Mackey’s breadth of professional experience allows him to apply his strategic know-how to whatever the issue at hand may be. He is an innovative thinker with the ability to anticipate and respond to crises that campuses may face, to develop meaningful relationships with media, and to initiate relevant research and develop coordinated institutional priorities and corresponding messages built around it. At Amherst, Pete was an invaluable resource for Admission and Financial Aid as we developed a new family of publications and a revitalized presence on the college website, and as we commenced development of a multi-year strategic communication plan.”
— Katharine Fretwell, Former Dean of Admission and Financial Aid, Amherst College
“Dr. Pete Mackey is simply outstanding. He is a gifted writer and a person who understands strategy. I believe he is one of the most capable people I have ever had the opportunity to work with during my career. He is a person of both great vision and integrity.”
— William Harris, Founding Director General of Science Foundation Ireland; Former Assistant Director of the Mathematical and Physical Sciences at the National Science Foundation
“Pete Mackey’s talents are obvious in the field of communications and marketing. He has advised us as well as many clients on all of their external messaging. But what we realized, and what is not obvious, is that Pete is an excellent strategist on so many issues, someone who can help transform your organization.”
— Shelly Weiss Storbeck, Former Managing Partner, Storbeck Search
