As senior vice president, Milken Educator Awards, at the Milken Family Foundation, Dr. Jane Foley oversees the selection and notification of Milken Educators, and works with state agencies on state events related to the Awards. In her role at the Foundation to promote the importance of educators and learn about innovative practices and leadership roles, Dr. Foley has addressed over 300,000 students in assemblies, met with state and national government and educational leaders, visited hundreds of schools, observed over a thousand classrooms, and presented at hundreds of state and national conferences. In 1994, she was honored as a Milken Educator for the State of Indiana.
Dr. Foley is the director of the Milken Scholars, an initiative that helps outstanding young men and women achieve their academic and professional goals.
Dr. Foley is on the board for the Teachers of Promise Foundation, which provides guidance for the annual Teachers of Promise Institute, an educator-led celebration and professional development event for talented pre-service education students in universities across Virginia.
In spring 2020, Dr. Foley co-led a team of Milken Educators to create and launch the first ever contest for the newly opened Milken Center for Advancing the American Dream which is based on DC. The I, Too, Am the Dream contest is a national call to students all over and across the country to share their thoughts and vision for the future of America.
She is senior advisor for the Lowell Milken Center, a Kansas-based initiative that supports projects aimed at teaching respect and understanding throughout America and the world.
From 2006 to 2010, she was senior advisor to former U.S. Secretary of Education Dr. William Bennett and led a team of Milken Educators to develop an online curriculum and advance the use of his American History books, "America: The Last Best Hope," in schools across the country.
Starting in 2002, Dr. Foley led a Foundation project to disseminate an interdisciplinary curriculum guide based on The Children of Willesden Lane, a World War II memoir by Grammy-nominated pianist Mona Golabek that serves as a rich learning resource for schools. Dr. Foley also serves as an Honorary Director Emeritus on Mona's Foundation, Hold On To Your Music.
Dr. Foley was a public school educator for 24 years, serving at the elementary and high school levels as both teacher and principal. Before coming to the Foundation, she was principal of Flint Lake Elementary School in Indiana, which, under her leadership, attained state and national recognition in the areas of school restructuring, professional development, technology integration and student achievement. Dr. Foley received her Ph.D. from Purdue University, and her honors include the International Society of Educational Planning Outstanding Dissertation Award, Phi Kappa Phi Academic Honorary, and a 2011 Distinguished Education Alumni Award from Purdue University’s College of Education.
In February 1998, my leadership role changed from a principal at the building level to a Vice President at the Foundation. I would love to hear from other Milken Educators and get their views on how the Foundation can work with state agencies and Milken Educators to expand the impact of the Milken Educator Networks and develop the potential of our human resources.
2011 Distinguished Education Alumni Award, Purdue University’s College of Education
1998 Indiana School Improvement Award
1997 Mobil Educational Alliance Grant
2011 Teachers of Promise Foundation Board Member
2011 NIET Advisory Council
2010 Roadmap to America: The Last Best Hope. Online curriculum at www.roadmaptolastbesthope.com.
1992 Purdue University, Educational Administration and Curriculum, Ph.D.
1977 Purdue University, Master of Science, Physical Education and Health, M.S.
1973 Purdue University - West Lafayette, B.A., Physical Education, Health Education
