FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Feb. 14, 2005

CONTACT: Lisa Lacher, 515-271-3119, lisa.lacher@drake.edu

DRAKE RECEIVES $27,000 GIFT TO LAUNCH CAREER SERVICES OFFICE

Drake University has received a $27,000 gift from alumnus Dwight "Joe" Dollison and his wife, Diane, to help launch a career services office in the School of Management and Communication.

The school is a new joint venture between Drake's School of Journalism and Mass Communication (SJMC) and College of Business and Public Administration (CBPA). The career services office will help business and journalism students secure internships, develop career skills and conduct job searches.

Dollison, a Polk City resident who graduated from Drake in 1968 with a bachelor's degree in accounting, retired in 2001 as vice president and treasurer at Pioneer Hi-Bred International Inc.
"We are grateful to Dwight and Diane for this wonderful gift," said Charles Edwards, dean of the SJMC and CBPA. "Their generosity will help business and journalism students take advantage of new resources related to their career development and planning. Career services is a crucial component of the college experience and it is certainly an area in which we should strive to excel for our students and graduates."

"Diane and I are honored to have the opportunity to participate in the career development of Drake graduates entering the business field," Dollison said. "I was fortunate to have the opportunity to work with graduates looking for a career at Pioneer and thoroughly enjoyed it. Careers are built on opportunities and companies that nurture this concept will be the beneficiary of satisfied and innovated employees."

The new office will be located in Aliber Hall near the dean's office. A new career services manager will be hired to oversee internship programs and career services activities for students in business and journalism majors.

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