Sean Terrell: Director of Grants Management

Where did you grow up and what was it like?

I grew up in Kentucky. I was born in Owensboro (Western Kentucky) and moved to Lexington when I was two years old.

KY is beautiful. Green. Lots of great outdoor space to enjoy. Great sports. Great food. Great music. Great people!

What attracted you to Reynolds?

My wife, son, and I moved to Richmond from Ohio in September to be closer to family. I worked in higher education in Ohio and loved it. When we decided to move, I looked for higher ed. jobs in Richmond and found Reynolds. I applied for the grants position and really enjoyed my interview with Bess and the advancement team.

How as the grants field changed over the last ten years?

More organizations are investing in scaling their project development and grant writing efforts, making most large federal grant initiatives very competitive. Funding priorities have shifted too, as you would expect with administration changes. Apprenticeships have become a central component of many workforce development funding opportunities.

What are some of your early goals for the Grants Office?

Thankfully I was able to help pull together two large grants during my first two weeks at Reynolds. Working on these projects gave me a great introduction to the college. My early goals for grants is to increase the number of proposals submitted from the Advancement Office by working with faculty and staff to create a culture of grant cultivation at Reynolds. 

If faculty and staff could remember one sentence about why grants are important it would be?

Grants are a critical component of expanding and enhancing opportunities and services for our students.

I understand you enjoy hiking. Have you had time to explore any of Richmond’s parks and trails? Have you visited any of the many great hiking sites all around Virginia?

Unfortunately, we have not had a chance to do much hiking, but we have enjoyed getting to know Richmond and our neighborhood. We live in an area that has a lot of great walking trails and bike paths. I also enjoy the metro parks in Richmond, especially Maymont.

I also understand you have a degree in music education. Tell us more about your background in music.

My bachelor’s degree is in music education. I spent my 20’s thinking I would be a professional trumpet player when I grew up. I had some great opportunities performing, including year-long runs on the west end of London and on Broadway. Ultimately, I decided that education was a better-fit and I went back to school and changed my major from music performance to education. I spent seven years teaching high school orchestra in Atlanta before moving to Ohio and pursuing administration.