‘Praz’ Steps Down After Serving VMI For Four Decades Under His Leadership, Endowments Grew To Nearly $1 Billion
Over the past four decades, Virginia Military Institute has experienced much challenge and change, coupled with growth and opportunity. During that time, the VMI Alumni Agencies, a nonprofit organization charged with supporting the Institute’s mission and fundraising for it, has benefited from the passion, dedication and leadership of a modest individual with deep ties to the Rockbridge area. David Prasnicki, recently retired VMI Alumni Agencies chief executive officer, worked tirelessly to steer the Agencies toward greater support for the institute and the corps of cadets. During that time, the man known simply as “Praz” to many served alongside six of the Institute’s 16 superintendents.
It was an unlikely career choice for someone born in Ely, Minnesota, to a father who worked for a logging company. No one in the Prasnicki family had graduated from college, and no one had any ties to Virginia. Yet in April 2026, as he retired from the Agencies, Prasnicki was not only lauded for his exemplary commitment to the Institute, but he was named an honorary alumnus of VMI – an extraordinary and rare honor that’s been bestowed on fewer than 30 individuals over the Institute’s 187-year history.
Prasnicki’s childhood consisted of multiple moves, all connected to his father’s employment. From Minnesota, the family moved to Abaco, Bahamas, and from there, to Superior, Wisconsin. The next stop was in Jasper, Texas – and the next, when Prasnicki was 16, was to Buena Vista, where his father went to work for the Owens Illinois paper mill. Leaving Texas on July 4, 1976 – the nation’s bicentennial – the family arrived in Buena Vista four days later, where they were greeted by striking workers outside the Bontex facility off U.S. 60. A Kenney burger made things better, but soon, reality set in.
When his father drove Prasnicki and his older brother, Mark, by the then-home of Parry McCluer High School off Chestnut Avenue, the brothers weren’t impressed by the historic school’s fortress-like appearance, with a gray cinderblock wall encircling two and a half sides of an entire city block. “This place looks like a prison,” Prasnicki recalled telling his brother. At that point, the two briefly discussed a return to Texas.
Before too much longer, though, the new arrivals started to get to know some people, and Prasnicki, who had played football in Texas, not only met some PMHS football players, but also legendary Fighting Blues head coach Bobby Williams, who compiled a 198-54-4 record during his 1974–95 tenure. Along with his friend Carson Irvine, Prasnicki played on the 1977 state championship football team during the fall of his senior year, the first of five such championships for Williams.
After graduating from PMHS, Prasnicki headed to Emory & Henry University to play football there – but his father’s death from leukemia at the end of his freshman year forced a reckoning.
“My mom had three kids at home,” Prasnicki related. “They just built the house, and I didn’t want to be a burden, so I quit school.”
Two years of hot and sweaty work on pipeline construction in Texas followed before Prasnicki returned to Virginia, where he enrolled at Roanoke College. In 1985, he graduated with a bachelor of business administration degree – but the still-recovering economy of the mid-1980s was challenging, to say the least, and when a position in the VMI treasurer’s office opened up, Prasnicki accepted it gratefully.
Less than a year later, retired U.S. Army Col. James H. “Jim” King Jr., who was then head of Buildings and Grounds (today, Facilities Management), recommended Prasnicki for a position as financial controller for the VMI Foundation and Keydet Club. The next few years were happy and busy, and soon, Prasnicki became a father with the birth of his oldest child, Chase, in 1988. Shortly thereafter, he had opportunities to leave the Rockbridge area, but the excellence of the local schools made him reconsider, knowing that he’d almost certainly be paying private school tuition elsewhere.
“The number one driver was the great school systems that we had in the county,” Prasnicki recalled. “Every one of my kids went through the local schools.”
As his children – sons Chase and Tyler and daughter Lauren – were advancing through the school system, Prasnicki was likewise climbing through the ranks of the VMI Foundation. In 1992, Prasnicki was named VMI Foundation chief financial officer; in 1998, he became vice president and chief financial officer of the VMI Alumni Agencies, ultimately moving to the role of VMI Alumni Agencies chief executive officer in 2022 until his retirement.
In all those positions, he played a key role in overseeing the endowments supporting the Institute, the VMI Alumni Agencies and the George C. Marshall Foundation – and thanks in part to his wise stewardship, leadership of the endowment boards, commitment to integrity, and in-depth understanding of financial markets, the combined value of those endowments is now closing in on the $1 billion mark.
“With the support of incredible volunteer leaders, all experts in their fields, we grew the assets from $50 million to $950 million over the past 45 years,” Prasnicki noted.
But a successful career, of course, isn’t all about money – it’s about people, and the relationships built over time. During his four decades on post, Prasnicki worked with dozens of Agencies staff members, all of whom brought talent, skill and dedication to their positions.
“One of the things that I enjoyed most was building the team at the Agencies. They are an incredibly talented team of devoted individuals. We accomplished a lot with a small group,” Prasnicki commented. Over the years, Prasnicki kept an eye on staying relevant in the changing philanthropic landscape, including installing the Agencies’ first fundraising software, with many updates and advancements.
“Work for me wasn’t work,” he stated. “Work for me was just a love for VMI and trying to make it better every day. I never once woke up not wanting to go to work.” And that sentiment followed through to his very last day, leaving his longtime colleague, Buena Vista native and fellow PMHS graduate Crissy Elliott, Alumni Agencies chief financial officer, filling the role of interim CEO. Prasnicki is particularly pleased that throughout his time at the Agencies, he worked alongside many individuals who, like himself, were natives of the Rockbridge area and graduates of the local high schools.
The distinctive mission of VMI is what held his attention for so many decades. Developing leaders of character in all walks of life for our nation was not just a wish; it was a commitment, one he saw evidence of every day. “VMI is not an easy place to go to college,” he said. “It tests and trains the whole person to be ready to lead. If VMI’s cadets wish to take on the challenges and rewards of VMI, I want to support them.
“Having lived all over our country and in the Caribbean, there was something about Rockbridge County that was home for me: The people, the mountains, the small-town feel, and mostly, the sense of community, a community that has bolstered us time and time again. My children grew up here; this is home to me, and that is where I stayed.”
Since he retired, Prasnicki has tackled some of the home improvement and clean-up projects that working people often struggle to get done, and he’s found time to play some more golf. He also makes frequent visits to Texas to check in on his 87-year-old mother, who’s been recently widowed, and other family members who live nearby. Retirement has also brought more frequent visits with his son Tyler, a 2015 graduate of VMI now earning a master of business administration degree at Georgetown University, and daughter Lauren, an occupational therapist at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. His other son, Chase, died in Afghanistan. (See separate story.)
One place Prasnicki is not likely to be found, though, is the VMI post. His love for the Institute hasn’t dimmed, but he wants to ensure his successor, Dallas B. Clark, VMI Class of 1999, who took over as Alumni Agencies chief executive officer in June, has free rein to implement his own vision.
“Whoever stepped into the role, I wanted them to have the space to create their own plan and programs,” Prasnicki observed. “Dallas will make great strides quickly. With his vast years of experience at VMI, and the talented team to work with, they will be champions of all they set out to accomplish.”
And in his quiet moments, Prasnicki is still reflecting on the fact that he’s now an honorary alumnus of an institution that’s produced 11 Rhodes Scholars and 266 general or flag officers in the armed forces of the United States and other nations, among them Gen. George C. Marshall, VMI Class of 1901.
“It’s obviously a very proud moment,” said Prasnicki. “I’m still getting my arms around that piece of it. On a scale of one to 10 of things you thought were going to happen, that wasn’t even on the radar, and to have folks really think that dearly of me to put that honor on me – it’s truly still sinking in.”
Those who served with Prasnicki in leadership positions praise his exemplary dedication to the institute, sustained over several decades.
“David’s personal impact on advancing the mission of VMI is second to none,” said Kelly Sweppenhiser, VMI Class of 2006, VMI Alumni Agencies Board chair. “While many of his career accolades will justifiably center on his outstanding financial stewardship, it was Praz’s character – honor, excellence and humility – which are the hallmarks of his service legacy to those who had the pleasure of working closely with him and will forever call him friend.”
Lt. Gen. David Furness ’87, VMI superintendent, likewise praised Prasnicki for his loyalty and commitment to VMI and the corps of cadets.
“Arriving on post in the fall of 2025, I soon sat down with David Prasnicki,” said Furness. “Of course, I knew of his name and reputation for passionate advancement of the Institute, but I had not yet come to understand his motivation, inspiration and experience firsthand. David had a remarkable way of coming alongside his team and empowering them to do great things with an underlying commitment to integrity and purpose. The legacy he leaves behind is a remarkable group of professionals committed to his work ethic and values, all striving each day to advance VMI’s mission.”
Price is the communications officer – features for the VMI Alumni Agencies.
