New Crisis/Litigation Studies Center at Lehigh University to be Launched March 8

The new Center for Crisis Public Relations and Litigation Studies at Lehigh University will be launched on March 8 at a black-tie-optional dinner with the CEO of Dow Corning Corp. "An Evening with Gary Anderson" will be held at the Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, Pa.

         The new Center for Crisis Public Relations and Litigation Studies at Lehigh University (Bethlehem, Pa.) will officially be launched on March 8 at a black-tie-optional dinner with the CEO of Dow Corning Corp.
         "An Evening with Gary Anderson," who also is Dow Corning's president and board chairman, is being held to raise awareness of the center's mission and activities. The $150-a-plate dinner will be held at the Saucon Valley Country Club in Bethlehem, with master of ceremonies Victor Schwartz, prominent Washington, D.C., attorney and frequent guest on CNN and Court TV.
                                                                                                                                                    
                                                                                
         Anderson joined Dow Corning in 1967, moving up in the ranks in a number of different divisions of the company until becoming vice president of Dow Corning Europe in 1980. From 1983 to 1984, he took a leave of absence to serve as acting deputy assistant secretary for basic industries for the U.S. Department of Commerce. After returning to Dow Corning, Anderson moved up quickly from corporate vice president to director to executive vice president in 1993. A year later he was elected president, and in 1999 he was named CEO. Last year he was elected chairman of the board.
         A graduate of Michigan Technological University with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering, Anderson received a master's of business administration in finance from Central Michigan University.        
         In his prepared remarks, Anderson will comment on recent legal developments in the silicone breast implant lawsuits, and review "lessons learned" by a corporation faced with the some of the most massive civil litigation in American history.
         The Center for Crisis Public Relations and Litigation Studies was established to promote the study and professional practice of crisis public relations, especially where the crises stem from civil litigation, according to center director Carole Gorney. "Lawsuits represent nearly a third of all crisis news in the U.S. media, yet a preponderance of both large and small organizations do not have crisis plans of any kind, let alone for handling potential litigation," Gorney said. "That's disturbing given the fact that most experts agree that advance planning is the key to successfully managing most crises."
        
                                                                                                                                                                
         Besides providing consulting and in-house executive training, the center sponsors workshops and seminars conducted by nationally recognized experts. The center also wants to become a clearinghouse for 'best practices' and cutting-edge research in crisis public relations and litigation management, Gorney said. "Our aim is to help organizations 'do it better' when it comes to managing problems, working with the media and communicating with their publics. When that happens, everyone wins."

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