April 16, 2002

Contact: John Augusto, Graduate School, (785) 864-4141.

Spring graduate school workshop to focus on non-academic careers

LAWRENCE -- The University of Kansas Graduate School Spring Workshop this Friday will focus on helping graduate students prepare for non-academic careers.

The event, which is open to any KU student or faculty member, will feature three people who completed their doctoral training and took their experiences into a non-academic setting. It will provide information and insight on the possibilities outside academic employment with a doctoral degree.

The workshop begins at 10:30 a.m. Friday, April 19, at Adams Alumni Center, 1266 Oread Ave. Participants must register to attend by noon Wednesday; call Sherry Michael at 864-4141.

The keynote presenter will be Jackson Harrell, who has doctorate in communication studies. Harrell, with more than 20 years of experience in public relations and public affairs, is a generalist with broad experience in crisis communications, issue management, public issue campaigns, reputation management, litigation support, investor relations, and product and service marketing. He earned a bachelor's degree at Southwest Missouri State University, a master's degree at the University of Arkansas and a doctorate at KU.

Harrell also will participate in a panel discussion with computer consultant Paul Fairchild and data manager Kristin Letourneau.

Fairchild, who has more than 30 years of experience in the computer consulting field, has been active in numerous citizen initiatives, including the Colorado public utility reform movement of the 1980s, the South Lawrence Trafficway dispute, and Citizens for Public Transportation. He holds a law degree from Loyola University of Los Angeles and a doctoral degree in philosophy from KU, where he concentrated on legal and political philosophy.

Letourneau graduated from KU in 2000 with a doctorate in social psychology and a concentration in quantitative methods. She is the senior data manager for the marketing research department of Primedia Business, a New York-based publishing company with an office in Overland Park.

"In today's economy, earning a doctoral degree opens more doors than just those in education," said Diana Carlin, dean of the graduate school and international programs. "The skills our graduate students develop are in demand in the public and private sectors. We have a responsibility as a graduate school to help students identify and pursue these opportunities."