Friday, October 25, 2002

WILMINGTON, NC – Former Philip Morris and Dupont executive John E. Stair Jr. was named placement director for the Cameron School of Business at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. In announcing the appointment, Larry Clark, dean of the business school, said Stair has strong industry experience to provide vision and knowledge of how to best prepare and place today’s business graduates.

As the school’s first placement director, Stair said his focus is to develop more recruitment and internship opportunities for students.

“Internships are a winning situation for all involved,” said Stair. “The business gains first-hand knowledge of the students’ capabilities, and students get a meaningful learning experience for academic credit. Because most internships lead to permanent positions after graduation, they are an important hiring tool.”



Stair said he plans to work with faculty to expand the business school’s existing relationships with recruiting companies in the area. In addition to the school’s annual Business Week events, he said the school would host various functions for civic and professional associations to promote the hiring of Cameron School graduates.

“We’re also planning presentations to take to Raleigh and Charlotte to increase internship and job opportunities for students in these areas,” said Stair.

Prior to moving to Wilmington four years ago, Stair worked two years with Philip Morris Co. in New York as director of international benefits. Before that, he spent 26 years with DuPont in Wilmington, Del., where he managed financing of various employee benefit programs. He received a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA from the University of Alabama.

For more information, contact Mr. Stair at 910/962-7291. A photo of Stair is available to download from the Web at www.uncw.edu/news/headlines/2002/oct/20021025-02.html.