Katie earned a bachelor's degree in Corporate Journalism from Auburn University in 2000 and a master's degree in Technical and Professional Communication from Auburn in 2007. She brings 26 years of professional experience in communications, writing, and editing, including more than 24 years serving in communications and marketing roles across Auburn University. Throughout her career, Katie has played a key role in advancing Auburn University's strategic communications efforts, including contributing to Because This is Auburn: A Campaign for Auburn University, the institution's historic fundraising initiative that secured a record-breaking $1.2 billion in private support for students, faculty, programs, and facilities. As a member of the campaign communications team, she helped develop and implement strategic branding and messaging that was integrated across donor communications, newsletters, proposals, event scripts, talking points, web content, and other high-profile campaign materials. Katie also served on proposal development teams that helped secure two of the largest philanthropic gifts in Auburn University's history at the time: a $57 million gift supporting both the Jay and Susie Gogue Performing Arts Center and the Brown-Kopel Engineering Student Achievement Center, and a $40 million naming gift for Auburn University's Harbert College of Business. In addition to her campaign experience, Katie has held communications leadership roles with the Tigers Unlimited Foundation in Auburn Athletics, the School of Forestry and Wildlife Sciences, and Auburn University's Office of Communications and Marketing. In these positions, she has developed compelling news and feature content, managed strategic communications initiatives, and leveraged her journalism background to successfully pitch and place stories with local, regional, and national media outlets, helping elevate Auburn University's visibility and reputation among key audiences.