Inside INdiana Business is reporting that Ivy Tech Community College Foundation President John Murphy, who has led the foundation for the last eight years, will retire at the end of the month. The foundation says Becky Miller has been appointed interim president.
Miller, who will start August 1, has been with Ivy Tech for more than 22 years, 15 of those leading the foundation’s fundraising efforts.
“It has been my highest honor to serve the Ivy Tech Foundation,” Murphy said. “My priority was always our students and their needs. Ivy Tech is a special place and our students are making such an important difference in our state. I want to thank our Board of Directors for their tireless pursuit and guidance on our fundraising initiatives to support our students.”
Murphy began at Ivy Tech more than 26 years ago serving in various roles as a board member, adjunct professor, and donor. He served as the chair of the foundation board from 1999-2001.
“John Murphy has taken every opportunity he can to tell the story of Ivy Tech in a way that has inspired people and organizations to invest in our mission,” Ivy Tech Community College President Sue Ellspermann said. “He has been one of our biggest cheerleaders, first as a Foundation board member, and then most recently, its President. John has grown the Ivy Tech Foundation more than three-fold allowing us to ever better serve our mission to students and our communities. We will miss John’s leadership and enthusiasm.”
Under Murphy’s leadership, Ivy Tech says the foundation created a metrics-driven culture raising more than $365 million to support students and programs throughout the state. The college says it increased overall annual fundraising from an average of $15 million in his first year as president to an average of $55 million in recent years.
“Our organization has grown and become more robust thanks to John’s commitment to our mission, vision, and values,” Ivy Tech Foundation Board Chair Mike Harmless said. “The impact he has made goes beyond measure. The Foundation has never been in a better place than it is right now, and our fundraising successes have continually reached record numbers under his leadership.”
The foundation says a national search will be conducted for Murphy’s successor.