Aug. 15, 2012

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. - University of Illinois Director of Athletics Mike Thomas announced Wednesday that former Baylor fundraiser Rick Darnell has joined the Fighting Illini administrative staff as senior associate athletics director for development and Loren Israel has joined the UI compliance staff as an assistant director of athletics.

"Rick is a native of Southern Illinois, and has played a significant role as a lead fundraiser during the recent extraordinary success at Baylor," Thomas said. "His experience during a monumental period in Baylor athletics will be a huge benefit to the I FUND and for many of the major projects in the coming years."

Darnell served Baylor as executive director athletics fundraising since 2007, helping with the "Victory with Integrity Campaign" that raised more than $90 million for athletics and the current "From Here, We Build" Baylor Football Stadium Campaign. The Baylor Bear Foundation has seen a 133.3 percent increase in revenue growth over the last five years. Darnell also was recently selected to serve on the NAADD Executive Committee this past July.

"As a sixth-generation Illinois native, with ties from Chicago to Cairo and St. Louis to Robinson, the "ILLINOIS. OUR STATE. OUR TEAM" theme has a special meaning to me," Darnell said. "My family and I are excited and honored to be asked to return to our home state and look forward to joining the Illini Nation. The UI Division of Intercollegiate Athletics has a legacy of leadership within the Big Ten Conference. Mike Thomas' vision, track record of success and championship approach is inspiring. I look forward to serving under Mike, and together, with the I FUND team and our fans, our goal is to generate the revenues necessary to provide a life-long championship collegiate experience for our student-athletes and alumni.

Prior to his stint at Baylor, Darnell was the associate athletics director for development at Idaho from 2004-07. He also coached men's basketball at McKendree University in Lebanon, Ill., as an assistant under the legendary NAIA Hall of Fame coach Harry Statham from 2002-04. Darnell also coached high school basketball part time in Texas from 1993-2002 while working for Chevron, Monsanto and Accenture.

A native of Salem, Ill., Darnell graduated from the United State Merchant Marine Academy with a bachelor's degree in marine transportation and logistics in 1992 and from Washington University with a master's degree in business administration in 2000.

Darnell is married to Cindy (Clifton) Darnell, and the couple has two sons, Nate and Alex. Darnell's grandfather, Harlan Hodges, is an Illinois State High School Basketball Coaches Association Hall of Fame inductee selected in the late 1980s for success at Frankfort Community High School in West Frankfort, Ill. He coached Top 20 teams at Murray State University (KY) and later in the Pacific Coast Conference (now Pac-12) at the University of Idaho.

Israel will oversee quality control and risk management for the DIA. He is an attorney who is currently admitted to the bar in Kansas, Missouri and Ohio. His main responsibilities for the DIA will be to develop programs, educational initiatives and monitoring systems to ensure compliance with federal, state and university laws and regulations, and to act as the liaison to other university departments such as the Office of General Counsel, University Risk Management and the Office of Equal Opportunity and Access. He also will assist with personnel and compliance issues with the DIA.

Israel comes to Illinois from the University of Cincinnati, where he served as assistant general counsel since 2009, focusing on contracts and labor issues. He previously spent time as assistant general counsel in the Missouri Department of Health and as an assistant attorney general in Kansas City, Mo. Israel earned his J.D. from the University of Kansas School of Law and his bachelor's degree from Houston.

His wife, Maya, is an assistant professor in the UI College of Education.

Darnell and Israel both will start at Illinois on Aug. 27.