LOS ANGELES, Nov. 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Kathryn Kranhold has been appointed UCLA's associate vice chancellor for university communications and marketing, effective December 1. She will report to Vice Chancellor for External Affairs Rhea Turteltaub.
Kranhold brings to UCLA three decades of experience as a reporter for both the Wall Street Journal and Hartford Courant, a senior public relations and corporate communications executive and a seasoned specialist in crisis, litigation and financial communications.
"I am excited by the innate curiosity, keen analytical skill and engaging leadership style that Kathryn will bring to campus, and I have every confidence that her composure in crisis and reputational management and her creativity in brand management will serve UCLA extremely well," Turteltaub said. "I look forward to welcoming Kathryn to campus and I know her experience will be an enormous asset to UCLA."
Kranhold is currently an executive vice president in the Los Angeles office of Edelman, a leading global communications marketing firm. She specializes in reputation management, financial communications and corporate positioning. Previously she was senior vice president for corporate communications at Disney.
"I'm thrilled to be joining one of the world's leading universities at a critical time to help drive communications around the campus's important teaching and research mission as well as its $4.2 billion Centennial Campaign," Kranhold said.
The units that Kranhold will oversee are responsible for helping to shape the conversation about UCLA through a wide range of communication channels and events. Collectively, the staff of 90 manages the campus's overall branding, marketing and online presence; plans and executes events for prospective students, parents, alumni and other constituencies; and enhances and protects the campus's reputation through strategic engagement with external news outlets.
Kranhold returned to California in 2011 after 25 years on the East Coast. For a dozen years, she distinguished herself as a reporter for the Wall Street Journal, covering a wide range of issues and industries including energy, law, advertising, finance and health care. During the late 1990s, Kranhold was the paper's lead public utilities reporter and was part of the team covering California's energy crisis and Enron's rise and fall.
Her journalism career began at the Harford Courant, where for 10 years she was a staff writer focused on the state and federal courts and the political arena. She is a graduate of the University of Southern California and the University of Missouri School of Journalism.
Kranhold honed her strategic communication skills working for New York consulting firms Brunswick Group and Sard Verbinnen & Co. Over the years, her broad and deep portfolio of clients has included Fortune 500 companies as well as higher education and nonprofit organizations.
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SOURCE UCLA
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