Bulletin Board
 

Assistant Dean for Development named
In September, Joe Youngblood began work as the LBJ School's assistant dean for development and external affairs. In this capacity he is in charge of developing funding for the School's priority initiatives.

Before coming to the School, Youngblood was associate director of foundation relations with the UT Austin Development Office, where he managed fundraising strategies for major interdisciplinary and international initiatives.

Throughout his career Youngblood has worked extensively in government and international relations. He has been a program manager with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission and the U.S.-Asia Environmental Partnership in Washington, D.C. He has also served as senior financial analyst with the Federal Reserve Board and as an international economic analyst with the U.S. Department of Commerce.

Since coming to the LBJ School, Youngblood has assisted in the development of the School's two new centers--the RGK Center for Philanthropy and Community Service and the Center for Ethical Leadership--as well as the new Technology and Public Policy Program.

School plans 30th anniversary celebration
To commemorate the first 30 years of the LBJ School's history, plans are underway to celebrate from September 2000, which marks the 30th anniversary of the enrollment of the first class, to May 2002, the anniversary of the first class's graduation.

Professors Elspeth Rostow and Max Sherman, both former deans of the School, are chairing the anniversary planning committee. At the March 24th meeting of the School's Advisory Council, several ideas were discussed, including:

• establishing a "30 Committee" composed of graduates from the classes of 1972 through 2002;
   
• holding a reunion of all graduates to coincide with the May graduation convocation in 2001;
   
• establishing fellowships and projects to be identified as 30th anniversary ventures; and
   
• producing a written history of the School as well as a videotape that would include footage of such people as Lyndon Johnson, Barbara Jordan, Wilbur Cohen, and Susan Hadden.

All members of the LBJ School community are invited to offer suggestions for the celebration to Max Sherman (512/471-2651; max.sherman@mail.utexas.edu) or Elspeth Rostow (512/471-8909; elspeth.rostow@mail.utexas.edu).

LBJ employees get UT service awards
Seven LBJ School employees were honored at the university's 39th Annual Staff Recognition Program and President's Reception on April 26. The program is for classified and administrative/professional employees who have worked 10 years or more at UT Austin.

LBJ School honorees included Shirley Beckwith (Publications Office), 30 years; Kay Albin (Dean's Office), 25 years; Cheryl McVay (faculty support group), 20 years; Leticia Jamail (Business Office), 15 years; Linda Finley (Business Office), 10 years; Cheryl Parks (Business Office), 10 years; and Jane Whitaker (Governor's Center for Management Development), 10 years.

Policy Research Institute holds forums
Faculty members discussed projects supported by the LBJ School's Policy Research Institute (PRI) during two forums held this spring. The purpose of the presentations was to enhance the visibility of work sponsored by PRI, which funds projects related to public policy issues (see related story).

The first forum was held in March and included presentations by Professors David Eaton, James Galbraith, Bárbara Robles, Victoria Rodríguez, and Peter Ward. Their individual projects focused on the Middle East, industrial wage structures, the effects of banking regulations on small business loan defaults, women in contemporary Mexican politics, and the record of one of Mexico's opposition parties.

The second forum, held in April, featured Professors David Eaton, Shama Gamkhar, Aditi Gowri, Lodis Rhodes, Richard Schott, and David Warner. Their research looked at Central Texas emergency medical services, local government debt in Texas, community policing in Austin, knowledge networks in urban communities, ethnic relations in Austin, and the integration of the U.S. and Mexican health care systems.

Staff appreciation award winners announced

LBJ School members Karen Franke, Kevin Hendryx, Bonnie Bennett, and Doug Marshall (left to right) were presented with this year's LBJ Appreciation Award. The cash award is presented annually to staff members who have made outstanding contributions to the School. Franke is an administrative assistant at the Ray Marshall Center for the Study of Human Resources; Hendryx is an editor in the Publications Office; Bennett is a receptionist in the Dean's Office; and Marshall is a computer publishing specialist in the Publications Office.

photo by María de la Luz Martínez

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