Vice President Parker announces retirement from Auburn University

Jane DiFolco Parker, Auburn University’s vice president for development and president of the Auburn University Foundation, has announced she will retire at the end of 2019.

Parker was named to her role at Auburn in March 2012 and led Auburn to record-breaking fundraising success. She led the most successful fundraising campaign in school history: Because This is Auburn — A Campaign for Auburn University, which raised more than $1.2 billion through more than 467,000 gifts and concluded Dec. 31, 2017.

Auburn received its largest philanthropic gifts to date—$57 million from John and Rosemary Brown and $40 million from Raymond and Kathryn Harbert— during Parker’s tenure. Also, in 2015, Auburn raised more than $202 million in a single year, the most in school history.

In addition to breaking university records, Because This is Auburn — A Campaign for Auburn University surpassed previous state efforts, making Auburn the first university in Alabama to raise more than $1 billion in a fundraising campaign.

“For many years to come, Auburn University will benefit from Jane’s superb work and unwavering dedication,” said Auburn President Steven Leath. “Under her great leadership, the philanthropic spirit has flourished at Auburn, helping better position our beloved university as a world-class academic, research and service-focused institution. We thank Jane for her  fervent service and wish her all the best upon a well-deserved retirement.”

During Parker’s tenure, a number of significant gifts were made in support of the construction of several new signature buildings on campus, adding nearly 1.2 million square feet of new space.  Auburn’s endowment portfolio nearly doubled on her watch, and new initiatives for donors at all levels were started, including the crowd-based Tiger Giving Day, now held annually.

“Jane will continue to lead our fundraising efforts proactively and strategically,” Leath said. “Much work needs to be done and will be done prior to her retirement to advance Auburn and AUM.”

According to Mike McLain, chair of the Auburn University Foundation Board, Parker has provided strong leadership during her time at Auburn. "Jane embraced the monumental task of leading Auburn to raise $1 billion for the future of our university and she has continued to maintain our philanthropic momentum even after the conclusion of the campaign,” he said. “She has been a true asset to the Auburn Family.”

Prior to arriving at Auburn, Parker served as the executive vice president and managing director of development for the Arizona State University Foundation and before that she served for more than 30 years at Emory University, ultimately as vice president for operations for the university’s office of development and alumni relations.