Ms. Jennifer Parr Piercy, ’94, has been named Executive Director of the Pulp and Paper Foundation at NC State University where she will also lead recruiting and alumni relations activities for the Paper Science and Engineering Program in the College of Natural Resources. Piercy will be working with this respected paper program during its transformation into a biomaterials leader in a growing natural resources-based economy.
Piercy is a product of the Paper Science and Engineering program at NC State. She was recruited as a student in Owensboro, Kentucky by long-time former foundation director, Ben Chilton. Alumnus John Pritchard issued the invitation to the recruiting session in Hawesville, Kentucky where she was introduced to the world of paper. Following her first student work experience in the paper industry in the summer of 1989, Piercy worked five internships. She later served as Operations Manager for a tissue machine for P&G in Albany, GA and five years in the MBA Career Services Center at the University of Virginia.
The Paper Science and Engineering program at NC State is now almost 60 years old and has approximately 1400 alumni working throughout the world. Ms. Piercy recently told a group of incoming freshmen, “You are beginning a life-long relationship with the most exciting, innovative and hard working people you can imagine. There is no place like NC State and no place like the paper industry.” Sounds like just the right philosophy for the position!
Piercy is excited about working for her alma mater, reconnecting with old friends and meeting the challenges ahead. She can be reached by phone at 919-515-7709 or by email at jmpiercy@ncsu.edu .