Charlotte Parks, former senior associate vice president for development at the University of South Carolina, will become the inaugural vice chancellor for development at the University of Mississippi on Sept. 1.
The position was created to meet fund-raising goals established by Chancellor Jeffrey Vitter in November 2016.
“Philanthropic support from our alumni and friends is the key factor in achieving and maintaining our success as a flagship university,” said Vitter.
“Charlotte Parks is an innovative and experienced development executive who brings a fresh perspective to this tremendously important and newly created position,” he said in a news release.
As a direct report to Vitter, Parks will lead development officers on the Oxford campus, in athletics and at the Medical Center in Jackson. Private support for the university has exceeded $100 million in each of the past five years, and Parks hopes to continue to advance that unprecedented support in her new role.
“It is exciting to see the incredible support from alumni and friends,” Parks said. “We will build on that generosity to help fund the university’s aspirations to become an even greater public international research university and to ensure that every qualified student admitted can enroll and gain an exceptional education.
“The support is also important for providing superb health care to Mississippians and taking care of those far beyond Mississippi.”
Before joining the University of South Carolina, Parks directed a $300 million comprehensive campaign for Georgia State University and led all fund-raising efforts for the university’s Robinson College of Business. Earlier in her career, she served as vice president for resource development at Roanoke College and associate dean for external affairs in the School of Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.