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Jean Merritt Gianfagna   Jean Merritt Gianfagna's designation in 1976 as the University's Outstanding Journalism Graduate could be compared to earning the high school yearbook label "most likely to succeed." That's because with the title comes pride -- and also some public and personal pressure -- but she lived up to the expectations. In 1992, Gianfagna, BSJ '76, founded Gianfagna Marketing & Communications Inc. as a one-person consulting business in Cleveland. Nine years later it is a full-service advertising, direct marketing and public relations firm with such clients as IBM, First USA Bank and Cleveland State University. As a student at Ohio University, Gianfagna was managing editor of the yearbook, worked at The Athens Messenger and served as a U.S. House of Representatives communications intern. Today, she resides in Westlake, Ohio, with her husband, Jim, and their children, Jimmy and Mary. She recently took a few moments to talk about her career and her time in Athens. What's most memorable about your days in Athens? "Professor Robert Baker. He was my mentor. He urged me to go into advertising and to compete for internships and scholarships. He showed me how fun advertising could be. Also, meeting fellow journalism students who are now lifelong friends." How about highlights from your stint as managing editor of the yearbook? "I have the dubious distinction of being one of the editors who changed the name of The Athena in 1975 to make it more relevant to students. We called it Spectrum Green and made it more magazine-like. It was a good approach for the mid-1970s, but fortunately, someone in later years realized the importance of sticking with tradition and restored the original name." How has your college experience helped you succeed? "I came in with no money, and OU gave me an extraordinary financial aid package of grants, scholarships, loans and work study. It really opened doors for me and laid the foundation for my entire career." In 1976 -- if you could have seen yourself now -- what would have surprised you most? "Though I always hoped to succeed in an advertising career, I pictured myself ending up as a successful, wacky, creative type rather than the ad agency president I turned out to be." What motivated you to start your own firm? "I had always wanted to try it. I'm pretty goal oriented and was confident I had a skill worth selling. I also wanted the flexibility to raise my children and to spend more time with them. Of course, that didn't work out as I had planned. In the first year, I was working 40-plus hours (a week) because we landed so many clients." Katie Fitzgerald