Office of the President

President and CEO of The University of Toledo Foundation

JR Blackburn

JR Blackburn is President and CEO of The University of Toledo Foundation, a role he began on October 12, 2026. He brings more than 30 years of leadership experience across higher education, institutional advancement, private enterprise and community engagement, with a career focused on building relationships, advancing institutional priorities and bringing people together around shared goals.

Prior to joining the Foundation, Blackburn served as chief of staff in the Office of the President at The Ohio State University, advising two university presidents and one acting president. As a principal advisor and enterprise integrator, he provided strategic coordination and operational leadership across the university. Blackburn helped shape and advance Ohio State’s university-wide strategic plan, Education for Citizenship 2035, and led the university’s enterprise scorecard and performance framework. His leadership reflected a strong commitment to shared governance and broad institutional engagement, including collaboration with the President's Cabinet, college deans, faculty, staff and student leaders.

Previously, Blackburn served as associate vice president for University Development at the University of Maryland, where he led a 138-person advancement organization and supported the university’s $1.5 billion Fearless Ideas campaign. During a decade at Ohio University, he held progressively senior advancement roles, culminating as assistant vice president for Development and associate campaign manager. He helped lead The Promise Lives Campaign, which concluded with more than $500 million in philanthropic support.

Earlier in his career, Blackburn led college relations and advancement at Hocking College, helping expand its fundraising, marketing and institutional partnerships. He also spent nearly a decade as chief operating officer and general manager of Blackburn Home Furnishings, his family’s multigenerational business in Nelsonville, Ohio.

Blackburn has a longstanding commitment to civic and community leadership, including service with the Nelsonville City Planning Commission, Athens County Foundation, Nelsonville-York City Schools and Nelsonville’s Parade of the Hills Festival. He currently serves on The Ohio State University Alumni Association Board of Directors and previously served two terms on the Board of Governors of The Ohio State University Marching Band Alumni Club. In 2003, he became the youngest recipient of the Nelsonville Area Chamber of Commerce’s Victor R. Oakley Person of the Year Award.

A graduate of The Ohio State University, Blackburn also holds a Master of Business Administration from Franklin University. A former Ohio State Marching Band squad leader, he remains active with the alumni band as a trumpet player.