They've got connections
Alumni make team players of students and employees

By Colleen Carow Girton

B.D. Colen PR professional Bob Chandler.

They say that blood is thicker than water. But family ties don't just bond siblings and parents - they also bond Bobcats.

Alumni around the country have established relationships between their employers and Ohio University through charitable gifts, research partnerships and recruiting programs. The links benefit the university and its students as well as the participating organizations and corporations, which reap rewards by supporting potential future employees and through the recognition such philanthropy brings.

Everybody wins.

That's what a longstanding research collaboration has shown Mark Arnold, BSISE '81, vice president for national engineering and government affairs for Advanced Drainage Systems Inc., the world's largest manufacturer of polyethylene pipe. In February, ADS made a $50,000 gift to create an endowed scholarship in the Russ College of Engineering and Technology's Department of Civil Engineering.

ADS, civil engineering faculty and staff and researchers at the Ohio Research Institute for Transportation and the Environment have worked together for years.

"Over the last decade, the Ohio Research Institute for Transportation and the Environment and the Department of Civil Engineering have been providing technology transfer on pipes to this industry and others," explains Gayle Mitchell, chair of the department. "ADS was the primary pipe manufacturer working with us on the structural performance of plastic pipe and technology transfer."

Arnold believes ADS's gift to Ohio University will have lasting rewards.

Rick Fatica ADS President Joe Chlapaty (center) discusses university drainage issues with Russ Professor of Civil Engineering Shad Sargand (right) and College of Engineering Dean Kent Wray.

"Our investment in this profession's future will benefit Ohio University and future engineers who will design our nation's infrastructure," he says.

A professional sports team also has created a scholarship in recognition of what Ohio University has provided its industry: top-notch sports administration professionals. As director of corporate partnerships for the Chicago Bulls, Greg Carney, MSA '88, facilitated a $25,000 scholarship for a minority student in the Sports Administration Facilities Management Program. The program's graduates hold leadership positions at top sports entertainment and marketing companies, including the Denver Broncos, where Carney is now senior director of marketing.

"Developing the scholarship was an opportunity for me and the Bulls to assist a minority student who was deserving of a chance in the sports industry," Carney says. "I was a recipient of the Chicago White Sox Scholarship, and without that assistance, I may have never been given the opportunity to attend the program and establish a career in sports."

Another Sports Administration Facilities Management Program graduate helped establish a corporate relationship between his company and Ohio University that also assisted hundreds of Athens County schoolchildren. As vice president of global sales at Nike, Tim Joyce, MSA '79, facilitated an in-kind gift of sneakers and socks to participants in the Kids on Campus summertime and after-school program. Nike donated 600 pairs of shoes and socks in 1998 and 1999.

"Tim is an outstanding example of the relationships that exist among the program, its graduates and the university," says Andy Kreutzer, Sports Administration Facilities Management Program coordinator. "Tim's support through Nike serves as a great example for us all."

Joyce, the 1998 recipient of the program's Distinguished Alumnus Award, is now president of FogDog Sports, an e-commerce sporting goods retailer.

Alumni also can involve their employers with Ohio University by suggesting or assisting with recruiting, internship and co-op programs.

Last fall, Procter & Gamble executives collaborated with students in the Global Learning Community, a joint venture of the colleges of Arts and Sciences, Business and Communication. Coached by P&G research and development staff in Latin America, the students proposed new products for a Latin American test market. The project culminated with students making formal presentations to P&G leadership at the company's Cincinnati headquarters.

Junior Anya Rao, BSJ '01, says the assignment was one of her favorites.

John Halley Kids on Campus assistant Katie Moran helps Haley Clay of Nelsonville try on a pair of new shoes donated by Nike.

"We were working on a real-world project with specific deliverables and tangible educational benefits," Rao says. "Plus, this was an opportunity for us to practice presenting to corporate executives."

Corporations have long valued internships because they serve as a great way to get to know prospective employees - and vice-versa.

Bob Chandler, MA '72, hired a College of Communication graduate at his New York City public relations firm, Chandler Chicco Agency. Now he's asking for more students.

"The young people I'm meeting from Ohio University are some of the best people I know," he says. "They see that coming to CCA is a real opportunity to grow and learn. And I'm just thrilled to be able to provide that environment for them."

CCA's first intern, Megan Henretta, BSJ '99, was hired full time at CCA. Instead of an office divided by cubicles, CCA has created a team-oriented atmosphere - so much so that employees do not have position titles. Henretta says she loves it.

"Employees are encouraged to give everything," she says. "The more ideas, the better."

Industry rankings have placed CCA in the top tier of PR firms serving the pharmaceutical and health care markets. In addition to its record-breaking launches of Viagra for Pfizer and Celebrex for Searle-Pfizer, the agency is nationally recognized for its work with Warner-Lambert brands, including Halls, Trident and Zantac 75.

"There's a sense of family among employees," Henretta says. "We get the work done like traditional agencies. We just have a little more fun."

And with their Ohio University ties to fall back on, they have a bit more in common, too.

Colleen Carow Girton, BSJ '93, MA '97, served until recently as director of development communications for Ohio University.