$20 million gift to university from J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox earns “2025 Philanthropists of the Year” award

Penn State has named J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox as its 2025 Philanthropists of the Year.

The award recognizes individuals, couples or families who have demonstrated exceptional generosity in the promotion and support of the University.

The couple made a landmark gift of $20 million to endow and name the J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School at Penn State.

“Excellence in graduate education is essential to Penn State’s mission, helping us to prepare future leaders in every discipline and setting the standard for teaching and discovery,” said Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi.

“This extraordinary commitment will elevate graduate education at Penn State and enhance the University’s ability to attract and support the highest-achieving students. Through their investment in the Fox Graduate School, Jeff and Ann Marie are helping to position Penn State as a national leader in higher education, academic excellence and research — and keeping students at the center of that mission for generations to come. I am profoundly grateful for the Foxes’ partnership, and I am honored to recognize them as our Philanthropists of the Year.”

The Foxes share a strong commitment to academic scholarship and service. J. Jeffrey Fox is an EY Entrepreneur of the Year award winner whose career focused on finance and education.

Ann Marie Fox graduated from Immaculata University and earned her MBA at St. Joseph’s University, both Pennsylvania institutions. She has used her managerial skills to work with children with special needs and fundraise for nonprofit organizations.

The Foxes have served on the Library of Congress Madison Council. They also enjoy American history and the arts.

Their gift — the largest in the Fox Graduate School’s century-long history—supports merit-based scholarships, fellowships, and other direct aid to graduate students focused on exceptional academic achievement, with special consideration for military personnel and their families.

It is also helping the Fox Graduate School to support faculty, initiatives and programming intended to elevate Penn State as the preeminent academic graduate school in the country.

“The breathtaking generosity of Jeff and Ann Marie Fox is already shaping our ambitions for the future and our ability to fulfill those ambitions,” said Levon T. Esters, vice provost for graduate education and dean of the Fox Graduate School.

“Through their endowment, which will provide support for world-class graduate education in perpetuity, they have inspired us to plan and strive for Penn State’s future as a destination for leaders aspiring for excellence in countless fields.”

The Foxes are among an elite group of Penn State donors who have attached their names to high-level academic units at the university. The J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School join the Eberly College of Science, the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, the Ross and Carol Nese College of Nursing, the Schreyer Honors College, and the Mary Jean and Frank P. Smeal College of Business.

The Foxes $20 million commitment is the most significant academic commitment to date in Penn State’s current campaign, which will be publicly announced in 2026. They were welcomed to the Elm Circle of the Mount Nittany Society, the highest level of recognition offered by Penn State to its supporters, in April 2025.

Alyssa Wilcox, vice president of development and alumni relations, said, “As we begin the most ambitious fundraising effort in Penn State’s history, I am deeply grateful to Jeff and Ann Marie for raising our sights and offering a powerful example of true giving leadership. Their generosity will inspire other Penn Staters to consider how they can transform our programs and support our students through their contributions.”

The Foxes were conferred the Philanthropists of the Year award at a private ceremony. The couple said, “We are deeply appreciative of this honor, and we look forward to witnessing how our support enhances the preeminence of graduate education at Penn State in the years to come. The greatest reward for us will be the accomplishments of the scholars, scientists, and other leaders who earn their advanced degrees at the Fox Graduate School and go on to transform their fields and serve their communities. We are proud to be a part of their future achievements.”

Donors like Jeff and Ann Marie Fox advance the university’s historic land-grant mission to serve and lead. Through philanthropy, alumni and friends are helping students to join the Penn State family and prepare for lifelong success; driving research, outreach, and economic development that grow our shared strength and readiness for the future; and increasing the university’s impact for families, patients, and communities across the Commonwealth and around the world.