Dean Tim Gleason, Jonathan Wanderstock, Jennifer King, MA '83, and Tom Dempsey, Law '68, enjoy Hollywood Ducks, an event coordinated by King, June 11, 2003. Photo: Silvia Mautner Photography

Jennifer King is not easy to forget, as anyone who knows her will acknowledge. She leaves an impression on almost everyone she meets—alumni, students and faculty.

She left a huge mark on the School of Journalism and Communication, having participated in some way in almost all of the significant changes in the school during the past fourteen years. And then she left—but she has not gone far. When King, MA ’83, decided in fall 2002 to leave her position as assistant dean for external relations, it was for a new position with the UO’s Office of Development.

In her new office in Agate Hall and on the road in Los Angeles as a regional director of development, King continues her work forging new relationships with UO alumni and strengthening old connections, now for the University as a whole. Meeting with alumni from all the UO’s schools and colleges has made her life “more interesting and challenging,” she says. It has also enabled her to work with development officers in each of the schools and colleges. “I know more about the entire University now. And I haven’t met a person who hasn’t valued their time at UO.”

King’s new job is a perfect mesh with her penchant for the film and communication industries and her love of travel—she’s in Southern California at least five days every month meeting with UO graduates. A J-school graduate, King says that one reason she was able to make the change with such enthusiasm is she knew she wouldn’t be losing her affiliation with the School or its alumni. She still works closely with Assistant Dean Jonathan Wanderstock to secure major gifts for the J-school for academic programs, scholarships and endowed chairs and professorships.

Dean Tim Gleason calls King “a wonderful advocate for the School and a great friend.”

“Jennifer King played an important role in building the J-school’s development and external relations program over nearly 14 years at the School,” he says. “Fortunately, in her new position Jennifer continues to be a champion for the School and the UO in Southern California. While we miss her presence in Allen Hall on a daily basis, we look forward to our continued partnership in Southern California.”

For King, the feeling is mutual. “I loved working with the faculty in the J-school. It’s unusually collegial for a group with such diverse interests. As a graduate, I also felt a strong affinity for what is taught there. It was always exciting to follow student successes so that I could share what they were working on with alumni. It still is.”

King also enjoyed the diversity of her position at the J-school. Some of her fondest memories are laying out Slugline by hand with Assistant Dean Greg Kerber—“I learned so much working with Greg,” she says—and guiding the publication through its evolution to Flash.

As Flash editor, King worked with GTFs to produce each issue, doing everything from layout to photography. King, an avid portrait photographer who has had her work shown in Eugene galleries, also took many of the photos that appear in the faculty profile book and the School’s brochures. King even chose colors and furniture for many of the new facilities.

But it is her behind-the-scenes work at the school that she found most rewarding. “One of my proudest accomplishments is working with three deans to raise the money to renovate Allen Hall and to secure funding for valuable new programs.”

King says her greatest satisfaction was in keeping connections with the School strong. “I enjoy helping alumni develop a legacy for themselves and finding a way that they can contribute to something they feel passionate about so they can leave a mark on the School.

“I like working with donors so that they are able to achieve their personal giving goals by contributing to something that is important to them.

“The evolution of the University’s development program has been a wonderful thing to be part of. We’re now recognized nationally.” Indeed, the Oregon Campaign was the largest public fundraising campaign in Oregon’s history.

”I am so pleased that Jennifer was willing to take on this new and exciting opportunity,” Allan Price, the UO’s vice president for advancement, says. “In the short time she has been in LA, we have already seen remarkable results. Besides, she is so LA!”