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NEWS RELEASE

10-11-01

Contacts:
Giles Fowler, Greenlee School, (515) 294-0502
Steve Sullivan, News Service, (515) 294-3720

LOUIS THOMPSON TO RECEIVE ISU'S SCHWARTZ AWARD

AMES, Iowa -- Louis M. Thompson, Jr., president and CEO of the National Investor Relations Institute in Washington, DC, will receive the 2001 James W. Schwartz Award from Iowa State University's Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication.

Thompson earned B.A. and M.A. degrees from Iowa State. The Schwartz Award, the Greenlee School's highest honor, was established in 1977 to recognize outstanding service in journalism. It is named for James W. Schwartz, who was chairperson of ISU's journalism department from 1965 to 1977. Schwartz will present the award to Thompson during a Homecoming weekend event on Oct. 20.

"Lou Thompson has a world-wide reputation for his expertise on accurate and effective reporting of the financial and non-financial performance of companies," said John Eighmey, Greenlee School chair. "Top-level business and government leaders seek his advice on how the latest information technologies and business practices are transforming capital markets and the investment process."

A recognized expert on the subject of corporate disclosure, Thompson joined the National Investor Relations Institute in 1982. Prior to this, he served as assistant White House press secretary under President Gerald Ford. He also held key positions for the U.S, Command in Vietnam and the Office of the Secretary of Defense.

Thompson is the author of two NIRI publications on corporate disclosure and investor relations and is the winner of national awards from Investor Relations Magazine, Barron's and the Investment Education Institute.

Thompson began his career in 1960 as a news anchor for WOI-TV and radio in Ames. He is the son of Louis M. Thompson Sr., a longtime associate dean of Iowa State's College of Agriculture.

Twenty-six Schwartz Awards have been presented since 1977 to leaders in journalism and related fields. They include four Pulitzer Prize winners, distinguished broadcast journalists, authors, advertising and public relations executives, newspaper and magazine publishers and leading writers in a variety of specialty areas.

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