Women's advocate will deliver commencement address

COLUMBUS – Deborah A. Ballam, associate provost for Women's Policy Initiatives and director of The Women's Place (TWP) at The Ohio State University, will deliver the autumn quarter commencement address on Sunday, Dec. 11 at St. John Arena.

Approximately 2,000 degrees will be awarded in the ceremony, which begins at 1 p.m.

Ballam is also professor of legal environment of business in the Max M. Fisher College of Business. She directed the Undergraduate Business Administration Honors Program before assuming the leadership role at TWP.

As director of TWP, Ballam oversees the university's central resource aimed at connecting and improving the quality and equality of work/life for women at the university, and serves as an advisory resource for development of University policies affecting women.

In her commencement address, Ballam plans to tell graduates about the many ways they bring honor to the university.

She is widely published on topics in employment law and the history of the government-business relationship. She has served as editor-in-chief of The American Business Law Journal and as president of the Tri-State Academy of Legal Studies in Business.

She is the recipient of the Senior Faculty Award of Excellence from the Academy of Legal Studies in Business, a national award presented annually to a senior faculty member who has demonstrated excellence in research, teaching, and service. The Academy also has presented her with two outstanding research awards for articles published in The American Business Law Journal.

Ohio State has recognized Ballam's scholarship and teaching with several awards, including the University Distinguished Affirmative Action Award, twice with the College of Business Pace Setters Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, and the Association of Faculty and Professional Women's Mary Ann Williams Leadership Award.

In recognition of her commitment to women's rights, Ballam was honored as one of the Franklin County YWCA Women of Achievement for the class of 2002 and with the 2003 Nettie Cronise Lutes Award, presented by the Ohio State Bar Association for dedication to the advancement of women in the legal profession.

Ballam is a four-time graduate of Ohio State, earning her B.A., M.A., J.D., and Ph.D. degrees at the university. She joined the Ohio State faculty in 1982.

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