Jan. 20, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. - UCF Athletics on Tuesday announced the hiring of Maura Murphy as Assistant A.D. for Development / Annual Fund. In this newly-created role, Murphy will oversee the daily operations of the Golden Knights Club and assist with annual and major gift fundraising efforts. Among her supervisory duties with the GKC, Maura will play a major role in developing and managing the new volunteer-based membership recruitment program as well as coordinating the annual renewal and new membership solicitation programs and priority points system.
Murphy joined the UCF Athletics staff after two and a half years at Ohio University. She served as the Bobcats' Director of Development for her first two years in Athens before being promoted to Assistant A.D. for Development in June. In her role, she was responsible for solicitation, cultivation, recognition and stewardship of major gifts, capital projects and endowment while also overseeing all aspects of OU's annual giving program.
Prior to her time in Athens, she worked in the events department for the Orange Bowl Committee alongside several of her current UCF co-workers. For the 2006 FedEx Orange Bowl, which pitted Florida State against Penn State, Murphy coordinated Orange Bowl Festival ancillary events including the team site visits, welcome receptions and beach parties, Kickoff Party, Coaches' Luncheon, Rhapsody In orange and the Sponsors' Pregame Party. As a part of her role in the 2005 FedEx Orange Bowl, matching USC and Oklahoma for the national championship, Murphy served as the primary liaison to the team host committees and participating team hotels which assisting with the operation of a slew of official Orange Bowl Committee events.
While an undergraduate student, Murphy worked for four years as a student assistant in the football office at Notre Dame. Murphy helped plan and manage official recruiting visits, create information for mailings and maintain the Fighting Irish's recruiting database. She also spent the summer of 2003 as an operations intern for the Cleveland Browns, helping the team's marketing, new media and operations departments and helping with the general public's viewing of training camp.
After graduating cum laude from Saint Mary's College in Notre Dame, Ind. In May of 2004 with a bachelor's degree in education, Murphy received her master's degree from Ohio's renowned sports administration program in August of 2008. She is a native of Greensburg, Pa.