Board of Trustees

Don Dea

Title

Co-founder, Fusion Productions

Education

MBA, Fuqua School of Business, Duke University

Senior Executive Program, Sloan School of Management, MIT

BA in Economics, McDaniel College

About Don Dea

Don Dea serves as board chair of America’s VetDogs and the Guide Dog Foundation, founder and chair of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE) AAPI Advisory Group, board chair emeritus of Excelsior University, and as a strategic and business advisor to associations, nonprofits, and start-ups.

Dea has served in the private, nonprofit, and government sectors. He served as special assistant to the attorney general, Department of Justice, in the President’s Executive Exchange Program. Dea is an advisor to the John H. Graham IV, FASAE, and CAE Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Fund. He has authored several books and articles published by the ASAE Foundation on digital transformation and online education, as well as on technology, healthcare, mobile, digital innovation, association leadership and governance, and innovation.

He co-founded Fusion Productions and co-produced digitalNow, an executive summit for association/nonprofit leaders. Dea has served in senior executive roles in global technology, sales and marketing, and real estate, including at the Xerox Corp. He is a co-founder of several high-technology companies and construction firms.

Dea previously served as past treasurer of America’s VetDogs and the Guide Dog Foundation, and past treasurer of Excelsior University. He served on the board of directors of HIMSS Media. Dea has served as board chair of the Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired, on the board of directors for the Salvation Army and the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE). With ASAE, he is past chair of the Industry Research Advisory Council, the Membership Section Council, and the ASAE Executive Management Section Council. He was chair of the advisory board for Educators Serving Educators at Excelsior University.

Dea was elected to the American Society of Association Executive Fellows (FASAE). In 2021, he received ASAE’s Academy of Leaders Award for serving the association profession. Dea was recently recognized by his alma mater, McDaniel College, as the 2022 Alumni Association Community Service Award recipient.