Dr. David (Dave) Ortendahl currently serves as Executive Director, Corporate Partnerships for WPI. In this role, Dave oversees the central Office of Corporate Partnerships (OCP) team and corporate collaborations for the university. OCP fosters strategic collaborations and serves as a catalyst for work between industry and academia at WPI. The team generates holistic partnerships that encourage agile solutions and positively impact faculty research and student development.
Over the years, Dave has served at both private & public institutions in Higher Education. He has served in divisions of student affairs, academic & corporate engagement, and university advancement teams. After a decade of leading employer relations for the WPI Career Development Center (rated Top 5 in the US by Princeton Review during his tenure), Dave began leading the WPI Corporate Relations Office in 2020. In 2023 the office was rebranded and restructured into to the "Office of Corporate Partnerships," and now serves as the designated ’front door’ to the university.
He is active in personal and professional communities. He served as a Co-President for the Network of Academic Corporate Relations Officers (NACRO) and received NACRO’s inaugural “Rising Star Award” in July 2019 and NACRO’s "Presidents’ Award" in 2021. He also supports youth sports and faith organizations as a volunteer in his hometown.
Pronouns: he/him/his
EDUCATION
EdD, Higher Education Leadership, Regis College
MBA, Marketing, Suffolk University
BS, Business Administration, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA)
BA, Fine & Performing Arts, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA)
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