Dean's
executive assistant retires
Kay
Albin served three deans
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At a school picnic organized by students last fall to celebrate the School's 30th anniversary, Kay Albin (center) is shown with LBJ School graduates DeAnn Friedholm (LBJ Class of 1979) and Office of Student and Alumni Programs Director Courtney Brown (LBJ Class of 1983). Photo by Megan Scarborough |
Kay Albin, whose name and calm presence have been associated with the LBJ School Dean's Office for 24 years, will retire in August. Having served as executive assistant to three deans--Elspeth Rostow, Max Sherman, and Ed Dorn--Albin has provided the continuity and support necessary to keep the Dean's Office running smoothly over the years.
According to Albin, one of her main tasks throughout her tenure at the School has been to keep the dean on track. "The person in this position relieves the dean of the little stuff and sometimes not-so-little stuff, allowing the dean to focus on the more complex issues involved in the operation of a graduate school," she said about her job.
That "stuff" includes everything from organizing faculty meetings and dean-hosted special events to coordinating the dean's liaisons with the faculty, staff, students, UT Austin administration, professional associations, and distinguished visitors. It also includes participating in a range of LBJ School and campus activities--community service days, committee meetings, and university-wide campaigns and open houses, to name a few.
"If my only vision of the LBJ School came from inside the Dean's Office, I would be doing myself and the dean a disservice," she offered as explanation. "The Office of the Dean is only a small part of the School. Besides, it's fun to participate either by action or observation in the various activities throughout the year."
Albin was a close friend of Judy Caskey, who headed the Business Office until her retirement in 1998. She says that until Caskey's death last year she would have responded to the usual question about her post-retirement years with a "litany of things that I plan to do." Now, she said, "my list is short. I am going to spend lengthy periods of time with my parents in New Mexico and with my grandson Max. I'll make up the rest as I go along."
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Kay Albin (right) poses with Judy Caskey, former Business Office director, at a 1994 staff party. |
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May 13, 2002
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