Ann Christiano introduced as nation’s first endowed professor in Public Interest Communications

Ann Christiano

Nation’s first-of-its-kind program named for Frank Karel, UF alumnus and pioneer in the field

Ann Christiano, former senior communications officer at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation in Princeton, NJ, was introduced today as the nation’s first recipient of an endowed professorship in Public Interest Communications – the Frank Karel Chair, named for the visionary and pioneering late UF alumnus who is credited with “founding the field.” The year-long search led to Christiano, who brings 20 years of experience in strategic communications, media relations and policy engagement to her role as the Frank Karel Endowed Chair in Public Interest Communications.

“This chair creates an opportunity to build a large and vibrant network of solutions-focused strategists who use communications to achieve positive social change,” Christiano said during her vision presentation to the UF College of Journalism and Communications. “There is so much that can be done to move policies in support of affordable housing, quality education, accessible health care, environmental protection, violence reduction, and generally better lives for people in this country and around the world. I am absolutely convinced that effective communications about the work and research in the nonprofit sector is – in fact – indispensible for action that can improve all of our lives.”

The chair is the nation’s first to focus on public interest communications. The Trellis Fund, which is chaired by Karel’s wife, Betsy Karel, contributed $2 million to create the position at the college, an amount that is eligible to be matched by the state of Florida. The appointment is for one five-year term, renewable for a second term.

“There’s no other endowed chair like this anywhere,” UF College of Journalism and Communications Dean John Wright said. “And yet never has the need for education and research in public interest communications been greater. Ann’s accomplishments at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and incredible enthusiasm for public interest communications make her the ideal person to carry out the vision of the Frank Karel Chair.”

Karel, a ’61 UF graduate, devoted his career to the concept of “strategic communications” – using innovative public relations, not to sell products, but to both influence and create social change. In so doing, he became the nation’s foremost advocate for the power of effective communications as a tool for fundamentally altering social policies and programs in the United States and the developing world. He and his teams at two of the nation’s largest philanthropies (Robert Wood Johnson and Rockefeller) used cutting-edge technology, advocacy and new and creative ways of communicating to effectively push for new policies to help the homeless, people suffering from AIDS, people addicted to tobacco and alcohol, farmers in sub-Saharan Africa, school children lacking access to basic health services, people facing choices about care at the end of their lives, and many others who can be the beneficiaries of effective public advocacy.

Karel, who died in 2009, served on UF’s Advisory Council for the Department of Public Relations, the Council on Foundations, was honored for his lifetime achievements by Grantmakers in Health, and was a mentor to those who worked with him and followed him in the field over the last 40 years. Christiano was one of his disciples, having been hired by Karel 15 years ago in the communications office of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

At the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Christiano most recently managed communications for the Foundation’s Vulnerable Populations portfolio, which supports up to $50 million annually for programs that address how factors outside of medical care affect people’s health. These programs include radical new alternatives to nursing homes, prevention of gun violence in some of the most violent neighborhoods in America and bringing play back to urban schools. She previously served as the Foundation’s government relations liaison, building the Foundation’s profile among policy-makers, and forging fruitful relationships between elected officials and the Foundation’s grantees.

“The position is incredibly important to the Department of Public Relations as it helps position our program as a leader in public interest communications education, while preparing our students for careers in the nonprofit and public sectors,” said Spiro Kiousis, professor and the department’s chair. “This position will enhance our contribution to the body of knowledge in public interest communications and serve as a bridge with the professional community working in this arena.”

Christiano will teach Public Relations Campaigns and Public Relations Writing in the fall.

The college is a national leader in the education of future journalists and communication practitioners and scholars. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs in advertising, journalism, public relations, and telecommunications; and graduate programs in science/health communication, media law, political communication and international communication.

Posted: September 1, 2010
Category: College News
Tagged as: Ann Searight Christiano