Alumni Profile: Kathy Eddy

Kathy Eddy never thought about teaching as a career until she was asked to do so by a professor friend in 1996. Now, 10 years later, she loves being a professor of public relations at California State University, Bakersfield.

Eddy graduated from Fresno State in 1975 having completed both the public relations and news editorial sequences of the Journalism department (as it was then called). Eddy attributes her teaching style and love for Public Relations to Fresno State professors.

“I appreciated that my Fresno State professors, especially Bernie Shepard and Roger Tatarian, took a special, individualized interest in me and my classmates,” Eddy said. “I hope to do the same for my students.” She enjoys working individually with students to help them reach their career goals.

Eddy is also the owner and practitioner of her own consulting business called Eddy Communications. She specializes in the design and implementation of public relations strategies.

Before teaching, Eddy held many public information and public relations positions for local government agencies. Her first job out of college was with the Kern County Superintendent of Schools’ Public Information office. “I was lucky enough to work for an excellent editor who honed what I had learned at Fresno State,” Eddy said. She then worked for a county supervisor and a couple of other government agencies including airports, which she named as one of her favorites.

“I love PR because, as Dr. Shepard taught us, you get to do everything,” Eddy said. “It’s never boring.”