National Executives to Discuss Consumer Advocacy

Sept. 28, 1999
MEDIA CONTACT:
Beverly Makhani, 509.335.3957, [email protected]

NATIONAL EXECUTIVES TO DISCUSS CONSUMER ADVOCACY

PULLMAN, Wash. -- If you shop online, do you have any consumer rights? Can the elderly be protected from financial scams? Do direct selling organizations have responsibilities?

On Oct. 12 and 13, the Washington State University Department of Marketing will host a cadre of executives from corporations and consumer groups who will address those and more questions as part of a "Consumer Advocates on Campus" program. The Direct Selling Education Foundation (DSEF) of Washington D.C. is co-sponsoring the event.

The guest line-up includes DSEF business executives W. Steven Coggin, CEO of Changes International, Inc.; R. Bradley Glendening, general counsel and secretary of Mary Kay Holding Corp. and general counsel of Richmont Corp. portfolio companies; and Erin L. Rowe-Graves, government affairs manager of Amway Corp.

Consumer advocate guests are Kathy Brooks, customer service specialist for the Washington State Attorney General's Office; Walter T. Dartland, special counsel of the Florida Office of the Attorney General; Linda F. Golodner, president of the National Consumers League; Stephen D. Hannan, administrator of the Office of Consumer Affairs in Howard County, Maryland; Pastor Herrera Jr., director of the County of Los Angeles Department of Consumer Affairs; and Robert J. Schroeder, assistant director of the Northwest Region of the Federal Trade Commission.

The executives will attend 24 marketing and management classes in the WSU College of Business and Economics, and in the Murrow School of Communications.

They will also be panelists in a special session titled "Internet Commerce and Consumer Protection" from 3-5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 12 in the auditorium of Todd Hall. The session is open to the public.

"It is a great opportunity to have these national business leaders and respected executives from some very significant U.S. enterprises visit with our students one-on-one," says Marketing Chair Darrel Muehling. "We are very pleased to be chosen as just the eighth university to host such a tremendous educational program."

Other institutions that have held Consumer Advocates on Campus programs include Colorado State University, San Diego State University, the University of South Carolina, the University of Utah, the University of Alabama, the University of Missouri at Columbia, and Baylor University.

Editors and reporters note: individual interviews with program participants may be arranged through Beverly Makhani, 509.335.3957, [email protected]