Mrs. Jade Abernathy, Program Assistant in the Department of Advertising and Public Relations

Responsibilities

Mrs. Abernathy joined the APR department in March 1987 as a secretary. In 1991 she was promoted to Program Assistant, serving as the senior secretary and principal intermediary between the department chairman, University officials, and a wide array of business executives at the national, state and local levels. She assists the department chair in serving more than 650 undergraduate and approximately 25 graduate students on a daily basis.

Mrs. Abernathy serves as departmental liason to the Records Office and the Purchasing Department. She is in charge of all departmental expenditures and reimbursements and manages department records. She relieves the department chairman of various administrative duties. Additionally, she is in charge of scheduling all APR courses each semester and handling room use for the APR department, working closely with other departments in the College of Communication and Information Sciences. The APR department staff handles registration and drop/add for its majors as well.

Awards

Mrs. Abernathy was named the 1998 recipient of the Knox Hagood Award for College of Communication and Information Sciences Staff Members. The award recognizes outstanding job performance and willingness to go above and beyond the call of duty in service to the University. She was nominated for this award by the APR faculty.

Personal Interests

Outside of the APR department, Mrs. Abernathy likes to spend time with her family and friends. She is married and has two grown children. Her son, a local lawyer, is married and has 2 children (a boy and a girl). Her daughter teaches deaf and hard-of-hearing students in Mississippi, and lives there with her husband and new baby girl. Mrs. Abernathy says being a grandparent is a very precious gift. Both of Mrs. Abernathy's children and their spouses are Alabama graduates.