Staff Directory
Ryleigh Gordon
- Title:
- Assistant Athletic Director of Development
- Email:
- Phone:
- 419-530-5316
Ryleigh Gordon joined the Toledo staff in July of 2022 as the associate director of athletic development and was promoted to her current role as assistant athletic director for development in July of 2024.
In her current role, Gordon manages a portfolio to grow donor giving levels to the Rocket Fund, 1923 Society, and Rocket Fund Legacy Society through phone calls, emails, and in-person appointments.
She also directs the department's premium seating inventory in both the Glass Bowl and Savage Arena to increase revenue and generate new business. This includes the sale of 40 suites and 300 club seats at the Glass Bowl along with 12 suites and 100 courtside seats (for each men’s and women’s basketball) at Savage Arena. Requiring meeting with the ticket office (Playfly) to train on premium seating and manage inventory while being their point of contact throughout the seasons.
With the launch of the 1923 Society (Toledo Athletics major giving society) in 2022, Gordon oversaw the design of the website (1923Society.com) in collaboration with Toledo marketing staff and SideArm website developers. She also managed the refresh and rebranding of the Rocket Fund website (supportutrockets.com) with the marketing staff. Gordon oversees the Toledo Athletics Rocket Fund X account on social media to share updates on new major gifts and highlight donor events throughout the year and works with the Toledo creative team to post on other social channels.
For the campus-wide Day of Giving campaign, Gordon leads all Athletics fundraising efforts and coordinates closely with the University of Toledo Foundation. This includes communication and collaboration with all 17 head coaches, along with marketing and sponsorship partners, to ensure the overall success of the campaign. During the 2025 Day of Giving, Athletics accounted for 32% of overall giving dollars and 42% of total university donors during the 36 hour period. In 2026, athletics generated 30% of overall giving dollars and 51% of total donors. In addition, 12 of the 17 teams achieved 100% roster participation, with 72 percent of student athletes making a gift in support of Toledo Athletics in 2026.
In addition to her fundraising responsibilities, Gordon manages the operations of the Rocket Fund and supervises annual team fundraising activities and departmental events such as the Reverse Raffle and Rocket Golf Classic. She also oversees the assistant director of development operations and two graduate assistants, supporting day-to-day operations and departmental initiatives for the Rocket Fund team.
Prior to arriving in Toledo, she spent three years at the University of Tennessee with Learfield IMG College Ticketing. Gordon achieved 110% of revenue sales goals in 2018 and 2019, generating just shy of $1 million in ticket revenue in 2019. While in Knoxville, she was a consistent property and company leader in revenue, earning two promotions during her tenure and winning LIMG’s Salesperson of the Year in 2019. She coordinated with the Tennessee Fund on ticket sales initiatives and attended weekly meetings to relay information to the ticket staff.
Selected as an “Emerging Leader” in the Toledo Athletic Department in 2023, she helped lead a breakout group of community stakeholders during the department's strategic planning process.
Gordon is an active member of NACDA and was a 2024 NAADD (National Association of Athletic Development Directors) Diversity Stipend recipient.
She was selected as one of 17 members of the Bobby Purcell Mentorship Program in 2025, an opportunity for NAADD members to develop a mentor-mentee relationship for 1 year with a member of the NAADD Executive Committee.
During the 2026 NACDA convention, Gordon will serve as one of 40 FOAD (Fundamentals of Athletic Development) table hosts and lead conversations for the 10 person group.
A native of Okemos, Mich., Gordon graduated from Trine University 2017 with her bachelor’s degree in sport management and was a four-year member of the varsity golf team. She earned her master’s degree in sport administration from the University of Cincinnati in 2022.
Professional Experience
University of Toledo
Bachelor of Science, Sport Management, Trine University
Master of Science, Sport Administration, University of Cincinnati
In her current role, Gordon manages a portfolio to grow donor giving levels to the Rocket Fund, 1923 Society, and Rocket Fund Legacy Society through phone calls, emails, and in-person appointments.
She also directs the department's premium seating inventory in both the Glass Bowl and Savage Arena to increase revenue and generate new business. This includes the sale of 40 suites and 300 club seats at the Glass Bowl along with 12 suites and 100 courtside seats (for each men’s and women’s basketball) at Savage Arena. Requiring meeting with the ticket office (Playfly) to train on premium seating and manage inventory while being their point of contact throughout the seasons.
With the launch of the 1923 Society (Toledo Athletics major giving society) in 2022, Gordon oversaw the design of the website (1923Society.com) in collaboration with Toledo marketing staff and SideArm website developers. She also managed the refresh and rebranding of the Rocket Fund website (supportutrockets.com) with the marketing staff. Gordon oversees the Toledo Athletics Rocket Fund X account on social media to share updates on new major gifts and highlight donor events throughout the year and works with the Toledo creative team to post on other social channels.
For the campus-wide Day of Giving campaign, Gordon leads all Athletics fundraising efforts and coordinates closely with the University of Toledo Foundation. This includes communication and collaboration with all 17 head coaches, along with marketing and sponsorship partners, to ensure the overall success of the campaign. During the 2025 Day of Giving, Athletics accounted for 32% of overall giving dollars and 42% of total university donors during the 36 hour period. In 2026, athletics generated 30% of overall giving dollars and 51% of total donors. In addition, 12 of the 17 teams achieved 100% roster participation, with 72 percent of student athletes making a gift in support of Toledo Athletics in 2026.
In addition to her fundraising responsibilities, Gordon manages the operations of the Rocket Fund and supervises annual team fundraising activities and departmental events such as the Reverse Raffle and Rocket Golf Classic. She also oversees the assistant director of development operations and two graduate assistants, supporting day-to-day operations and departmental initiatives for the Rocket Fund team.
Prior to arriving in Toledo, she spent three years at the University of Tennessee with Learfield IMG College Ticketing. Gordon achieved 110% of revenue sales goals in 2018 and 2019, generating just shy of $1 million in ticket revenue in 2019. While in Knoxville, she was a consistent property and company leader in revenue, earning two promotions during her tenure and winning LIMG’s Salesperson of the Year in 2019. She coordinated with the Tennessee Fund on ticket sales initiatives and attended weekly meetings to relay information to the ticket staff.
Selected as an “Emerging Leader” in the Toledo Athletic Department in 2023, she helped lead a breakout group of community stakeholders during the department's strategic planning process.
Gordon is an active member of NACDA and was a 2024 NAADD (National Association of Athletic Development Directors) Diversity Stipend recipient.
She was selected as one of 17 members of the Bobby Purcell Mentorship Program in 2025, an opportunity for NAADD members to develop a mentor-mentee relationship for 1 year with a member of the NAADD Executive Committee.
During the 2026 NACDA convention, Gordon will serve as one of 40 FOAD (Fundamentals of Athletic Development) table hosts and lead conversations for the 10 person group.
A native of Okemos, Mich., Gordon graduated from Trine University 2017 with her bachelor’s degree in sport management and was a four-year member of the varsity golf team. She earned her master’s degree in sport administration from the University of Cincinnati in 2022.
Professional Experience
University of Toledo
- Assistant Athletic Director for Development 2024-current
- Associate Director of Athletic Development 2022-24
- Manager, Premium Sales and Service 2021-22
- Sales Manager 2020-21
- Senior Account Executive 2019-20
- Account Executive 2018-19
- Sales Representative 2017
Bachelor of Science, Sport Management, Trine University
Master of Science, Sport Administration, University of Cincinnati
A Year of Firsts - Part III
Wednesday, April 29
A Year of First - Part II
Wednesday, April 29
A Year of Firsts - Part I
Wednesday, April 29
Tom Moreland Introductory Press Conference
Wednesday, April 29
