Ad agency chairman donates $500,000 for UF to teach integrated marketing communication

February 5, 2008

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Peter C. Barr Sr., who received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications in 1957, is donating $500,000 to make sure his training ground keeps up with the times.

“Today, in my business, the effort to brand a product or to brand a service or to promote the sale of a product requires the full force of communications,” said Barr, chairman of Orlando’s largest advertising agency. “You can’t say, ‘It’s just public relations or advertising.’ ”

Fry Hammond Barr incorporates public relations into nearly every effort. It’s not alone – most advertising agencies offer their clients integrated marketing. To make sure UF’s advertising and public relations students realize this trend to the fullest extent and develop the necessary skill set, Barr recently pledged $500,000 to bring in speakers who specialize in integrated marketing communication.

“It will be an enlightening process,” Dean John Wright said. “Students will become even more highly skilled and aware of the various professional possibilities.”

The Peter C. Barr Integrated Marketing Communications Endowment is eligible for a state match of $250,000.

The college must continue adjusting to a fast-changing world, said Barr, an alumnus of distinction. “It’s what’s being demanded in the profession today.”

Bringing together advertising and public relations students is a familiar concept at the college, a national leader in the professional education of future journalists and other communication practitioners. “We work across department boundaries in all our endeavors,” Wright said.