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The University of Oklahoma • Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Comunication

Features

Board of Visitors redefines role
Board of Visitors strives to help the college become one of the nation’s best journalism programs

PATTYE MOORE

STEVE TROLINGER

JIM DOLAN

HOWARD PRICE

GRACELYN BROWN

ROGER FRIZZELL

DON COGMAN

PHIL CAUDILL

ED KELLEY

HARRY SHERMAN

PAMELA CARTER

ALEX ADWAN

BILL HANCOCK

MICHAEL LIMON

WELDON WATSON

JOANNE ORR

DAVID STRINGER

By DAWNDEE HUDSON

When you walk into Gaylord Hall, the first thing to catch your eye might well be its busy central lobby where students gather to work and play. As you wander farther in, you might also see its classrooms with state-of-the-art equipment or members of its diverse faculty with expertise in all the mass media fields.

Had you entered the building on a certain Friday morning in spring 2006, you might also have noticed a group of 22 alumni and college supporters, led by Dean Joe Foote, who have returned to play a vital role in shaping the future of the college and the students who attend it.

What is now the Gaylord College Board of Visitors began in the 1990s as the Professional Advisory Council under the leadership of David Dary, then director of the H.H. Herbert School of Journalism. Today, under Foote’s guidance, the Board of Visitors has undergone more than just a name change. It has been reconstituted to better aid the College, Foote says.

Pattye Moore, former president of Sonic Corp., serves as president of this board that met for the first time in spring to discuss its goals. She leads a group of journalism professionals that includes Alex Adwan, senior editor of the Tulsa World; Gracelyn Brown, programming director for KTLA in Los Angeles; Forrest Cameron, publisher of GTR News; Pamela Carter, president of Synergy Marketing Associates; Phillip Caudill, business development and brand management consultant; Don Cogman, chairman of CC Investment LLC; James Dolan, chairman, president and CEO of Dolan Media Co.; Roger Frizzell, vice president of corporate communications and advertising for American Airlines; Bill Hancock, Bowl Championship Series administrator; Ed Kelley, editor of The Oklahoman; Kathleen Leonard, president of The Integer Group; Michael Limon, business editor of the Salt Lake Tribune; Joanne Orr, beautification coordinator for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation; Howard Price, president of Multi-Net Marketing Inc.; Harry Sherman, owner of Sherman Media Co.; Dean Sims, president of Public Relations International; David Stringer, publisher of the Norman Transcript; Steve Trolinger, president of Community Publishers Inc.; Chris Turner; Weldon Watson, who retired from ONEOK Inc. as a corporate officer; and Doug Williams, owner of KWOX in Woodward.

The board’s new bylaws state its mission as to “provide advice and counsel to the leadership of the college as it strives to improve the academic and research quality of the college, advance the quality of the professional programs within the college and increase the stature of the college in both academic and professional spheres.”

Foote says the board’s transformation marks a significant change.

“It’s more of a self-governing organization rather than something we create that’s just an organ of the college,” he says. “And the goal is that they become more involved in very specific ways in the life of the college and have defined goals that they can reach and make a significant contribution to the life of the college.”

By becoming a body that takes control and creates its own agenda, the board is able to execute its plans without needing excessive guidance – and as such it becomes a much more powerful and useful entity to the college, Foote says. But the board isn’t entirely a new thing.

“Nearly all the people who were on the Advisory Council have continued on the Board of Visitors,” he says. “We have those who have served before and then we have a new group that’s mostly alumni, people who are influential in their field within one of the areas of the college. They represent these areas and they bring with them their professional experience, their philosophy in the field and their ties to the University of Oklahoma. Pattye Moore, a highly energetic, capable person, is going to provide tremendous leadership to this board. She is one of the reasons I’m confident we are going to be successful.”

Moore says the Advisory Council was remodeled to help the college continue to develop as the nationally recognized program it has become.

“We reconstituted the board to better position itself to help the college grow,” she says. “As the Gaylord College continues to expand, we needed to ensure that we had the mechanism in place for the board to do the same. To do that, we needed to have bylaws and a process for bringing in new board members and for terms of service. There are a lot of experienced OU journalism graduates out there, and we want to give them a lot of opportunities to help.”

The board’s job is to create a vision for the college, Moore says, and with its diverse membership, the board will no doubt be successful.

“We have very talented, experienced and dedicated board members who sincerely want to use their knowledge and expertise to help the college,” she says. “We can share our work experience, help the college move in new directions and provide important contacts and internships for the students.”

In its first meeting, the board voted to establish a position for a business management professor, an individual who would be able to teach students the business side of the multi-disciplinary field of journalism.

While the details for funding the new position are not worked out, the board discussed working with the Price College of Business as an option and is making the action a top priority for its meeting in fall 2006. This action indicates, Foote says, that the board is willing to step up to bat for the college when it sees that changes need to be made to better serve the student population.

Kelley says that supporting Foote is a primary charge for the board.

“We can assist the dean and his team in being a strong voice in the professional community for the Gaylord College,” he says. “[We can] tackle any assignments, particularly concerning interaction with students, faculty and other professionals, that the dean would have for us.”

Kelley says the board as it is now constituted can also do a better job helping students.

“The board’s membership is much broader now, with people who have varied backgrounds in public relations, advertising, broadcasting and print,” Kelley says. “Some of them work in media markets other than Oklahoma City and Tulsa. That’s important because many OU journalism grads will seek work out of state.”

Carter agrees that the board now is better able to help all elements within the college.

“We have been in the trenches and have excelled in the careers to which OU journalism students aspire,” she says. “Some of us also have had experiences with other colleges and universities. Bringing this experience to the table should yield interesting ideas and perspectives. We have developed a myriad of contacts in the field of journalism, business and government both nationally and internationally. This could help generate internship opportunities for students, contributions, joint ventures on key projects and more.”

Members of the Board of Visitors have at heart a simple but profound goal.

“We want the Gaylord College to be one of the top journalism programs in the country,” Moore says.

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					The University of Oklahoma • Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Comunication
					Features Board of Visitors redefines role Board of Visitors strives to help the college become one of the nation’s best journalism programs PATTYE MOORE STEVE TROLINGER JIM DOLAN HOWARD PRICE GRACELYN BROWN ROGER FRIZZELL DON COGMAN PHIL CAUDILL ED KELLEY HARRY SHERMAN PAMELA CARTER ALEX ADWAN BILL HANCOCK MICHAEL LIMON WELDON WATSON JOANNE ORR DAVID STRINGER By DAWNDEE HUDSON When you walk into Gaylord Hall, the first thing to catch your eye might well be its busy central lobby where students gather to work and play. As you wander farther in, you might also see its classrooms with state-of-the-art equipment or members of its diverse faculty with expertise in all the mass media fields. Had you entered the building on a certain Friday morning in spring 2006, you might also have noticed a group of 22 alumni and college supporters, led by Dean Joe Foote, who have returned to play a vital role in shaping the future of the college and the students who attend it. What is now the Gaylord College Board of Visitors began in the 1990s as the Professional Advisory Council under the leadership of David Dary, then director of the H.H. Herbert School of Journalism. Today, under Foote’s guidance, the Board of Visitors has undergone more than just a name change. It has been reconstituted to better aid the College, Foote says. Pattye Moore, former president of Sonic Corp., serves as president of this board that met for the first time in spring to discuss its goals. She leads a group of journalism professionals that includes Alex Adwan, senior editor of the Tulsa World; Gracelyn Brown, programming director for KTLA in Los Angeles; Forrest Cameron, publisher of GTR News; Pamela Carter, president of Synergy Marketing Associates; Phillip Caudill, business development and brand management consultant; Don Cogman, chairman of CC Investment LLC; James Dolan, chairman, president and CEO of Dolan Media Co.; Roger Frizzell, vice president of corporate communications and advertising for American Airlines; Bill Hancock, Bowl Championship Series administrator; Ed Kelley, editor of The Oklahoman; Kathleen Leonard, president of The Integer Group; Michael Limon, business editor of the Salt Lake Tribune; Joanne Orr, beautification coordinator for the Oklahoma Department of Transportation; Howard Price, president of Multi-Net Marketing Inc.; Harry Sherman, owner of Sherman Media Co.; Dean Sims, president of Public Relations International; David Stringer, publisher of the Norman Transcript; Steve Trolinger, president of Community Publishers Inc.; Chris Turner; Weldon Watson, who retired from ONEOK Inc. as a corporate officer; and Doug Williams, owner of KWOX in Woodward. The board’s new bylaws state its mission as to “provide advice and counsel to the leadership of the college as it strives to improve the academic and research quality of the college, advance the quality of the professional programs within the college and increase the stature of the college in both academic and professional spheres.” Foote says the board’s transformation marks a significant change. “It’s more of a self-governing organization rather than something we create that’s just an organ of the college,” he says. “And the goal is that they become more involved in very specific ways in the life of the college and have defined goals that they can reach and make a significant contribution to the life of the college.” By becoming a body that takes control and creates its own agenda, the board is able to execute its plans without needing excessive guidance – and as such it becomes a much more powerful and useful entity to the college, Foote says. But the board isn’t entirely a new thing. “Nearly all the people who were on the Advisory Council have continued on the Board of Visitors,” he says. “We have those who have served before and then we have a new group that’s mostly alumni, people who are influential in their field within one of the areas of the college. They represent these areas and they bring with them their professional experience, their philosophy in the field and their ties to the University of Oklahoma. Pattye Moore, a highly energetic, capable person, is going to provide tremendous leadership to this board. She is one of the reasons I’m confident we are going to be successful.” Moore says the Advisory Council was remodeled to help the college continue to develop as the nationally recognized program it has become. “We reconstituted the board to better position itself to help the college grow,” she says. “As the Gaylord College continues to expand, we needed to ensure that we had the mechanism in place for the board to do the same. To do that, we needed to have bylaws and a process for bringing in new board members and for terms of service. There are a lot of experienced OU journalism graduates out there, and we want to give them a lot of opportunities to help.” The board’s job is to create a vision for the college, Moore says, and with its diverse membership, the board will no doubt be successful. “We have very talented, experienced and dedicated board members who sincerely want to use their knowledge and expertise to help the college,” she says. “We can share our work experience, help the college move in new directions and provide important contacts and internships for the students.” In its first meeting, the board voted to establish a position for a business management professor, an individual who would be able to teach students the business side of the multi-disciplinary field of journalism. While the details for funding the new position are not worked out, the board discussed working with the Price College of Business as an option and is making the action a top priority for its meeting in fall 2006. This action indicates, Foote says, that the board is willing to step up to bat for the college when it sees that changes need to be made to better serve the student population. Kelley says that supporting Foote is a primary charge for the board. “We can assist the dean and his team in being a strong voice in the professional community for the Gaylord College,” he says. “[We can] tackle any assignments, particularly concerning interaction with students, faculty and other professionals, that the dean would have for us.” Kelley says the board as it is now constituted can also do a better job helping students. “The board’s membership is much broader now, with people who have varied backgrounds in public relations, advertising, broadcasting and print,” Kelley says. “Some of them work in media markets other than Oklahoma City and Tulsa. That’s important because many OU journalism grads will seek work out of state.” Carter agrees that the board now is better able to help all elements within the college. “We have been in the trenches and have excelled in the careers to which OU journalism students aspire,” she says. “Some of us also have had experiences with other colleges and universities. Bringing this experience to the table should yield interesting ideas and perspectives. We have developed a myriad of contacts in the field of journalism, business and government both nationally and internationally. This could help generate internship opportunities for students, contributions, joint ventures on key projects and more.” Members of the Board of Visitors have at heart a simple but profound goal. “We want the Gaylord College to be one of the top journalism programs in the country,” Moore says. Back to Top











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