By Jeff Murphy,
September 21, 2017
WARRENSBURG, MO – Having grown up on a farm outside the British community of King’s
Lynn, Norfolk, Ruth Dickson’s earliest influences in education came from her parents
who were both teachers. The strong appreciation they instilled in her about the value
of an education not only led to a job at the University of Central Missouri, but also
has contributed to a prestigious honor among individuals working in UCM’s Office of
University Relations.
Dickson is the recipient of the 2017 Foster/Inglish Award for Outstanding Achievement
and Service in Public Relations. She becomes the 15th person to receive the award,
announced this month by Kelly Waldram Cramer, who serves as director of marketing
and promotions while overseeing University Relations.
The Foster/Inglish Award is named for two individuals who pioneered institutional
public relations at UCM. The award was established in 2000 to honor achievement and
service by members of the university’s public relations staff, which today also is
integrated with marketing and promotions. John Inglish, director emeritus of public
relations, established an endowment for the award through the UCM Alumni Foundation
the year he retired to honor his longtime friend and mentor Carl Foster, who retired
as director emeritus of public relations in 1986 after 19 years of service to UCM.
Inglish devoted 27 years to the university’s public relations efforts before he retired.
“The Foster/Inglish Award means a great deal to our office. We are grateful to be
in the unique position of being able to reward our staff for their achievement and
service,” said Kelly Waldram Cramer, director of marketing and promotions. “Ruth is
such a deserving recipient. She is someone who is always up for a challenge and is
excited for new opportunities. She is deeply invested and dedicated to UCM and has
passion for a job well done. Every UCM employee has the ability to make a positive
mark and in the year and a half Ruth has been here, she certainly has done that.”
Dickson, assistant director of marketing, joined the university staff in April 2016
with over a decade of professional experience, mostly in the Kansas City area, but
also in London, leading creative teams in the development of printed and digital marketing
materials for industry and education. In University Relations, she works with clients
to develop marketing strategy, design, and vision and advisement regarding UCM brand
and best practices. She benefits from a degree in creative writing and American literature
that she received from the University of East Anglia in Norwich, Norfolk, which also
led to completion of a thesis project at the University of Kansas in 2005.
“I came to UCM because I felt like it was a good place to be,” Dickson said. “I have
no tie to the university, but from the moment I applied and learned about UCM and
the type of students who come here - their passion for what they learn, the passion
of our faculty and staff for those students and the institutional commitment to those
students - it really spoke to me. It’s what I personally believe higher education
should be.”
She said University Relations and UCM have proven to be a good fit for “who I am
as a person and as a professional,” and appreciates the opportunity to serve as part
of the team that is shaping the institution’s identity. Dickson also values the opportunity
to be recognized and associated with individuals who blazed an early trail in the
university communications arena.
“Obviously, it’s a huge honor to receive the Foster/Inglish Award, especially given
the caliber of people who have received it before me,” Dickson said. “I think the
legacy that both of those individuals (Foster and Inglish) have left on this campus
is one that is to be commended. We are a campus that takes public relations and student
relations incredibly seriously.”
While Dickson’s personal touch has contributed to high-quality marketing and public
relations pieces ranging from print publications and video to social media posts over
the past year, she takes great pride in helping to spread the word about new partnerships
and initiatives at UCM that are not being accomplished anywhere else. One such effort
is The Missouri Innovation Campus (MIC), a joint initiative of UCM, the Lee’s Summit
R-7 School District, and Metropolitan Community College in partnership with nearly
50 corporations. A milestone in this five-year partnership was experienced in September
with the grand opening of the new MIC building, a project between UCM and the school
district. Dickson was part of the planning committee that met monthly to prepare for
this successful event.
“When I think about the last 12 months, one of greatest accomplishments as an institution
has been the opening of The MIC in Lee’s Summit. Being part of the group that helped
build a communication plan, and how we talk about affordability with students in that
area, and how we learn from our partners in the Lee’s Summit School District, that’s
definitely a great opportunity for me to personally grow and develop. It’s also an
opportunity to work with current students on developing a message that really resonates
and will help more students moving forward.”
Dickson added that continuing to tell the university story is important to her work.
This includes her hand in many communication efforts that demonstrate what learning
to a greater degree strategic position means, “not as a statement, but something students
live and breathe and walk through, and the stories that support it. My job is to piece
all of that together.”
