Crisis management expert Judy Smith, the real-life inspiration for ABC’s “Scandal,” will speak at 7 p.m., Tuesday, Jan. 28, in the Cone University Center, McKnight Hall. The talk is sponsored by the Center for Leadership Development as part of its Forty-niner Forum.
In her free, public presentation, Smith will talk about striving in the midst of personal crisis and about her book “Good Self, Bad Self,” which elaborates on how people can transform their worst qualities into their biggest assets through examples of crisis management from high-profile cases.
Nadia Campbell, assistant director for the Center for Leadership Development, encourages those who watch “Scandal” to attend the Jan. 28 presentation. “If you are entertained by the show, then you’ll be enthralled by Judy Smith,” said Campbell. “People should know the real Olivia Pope.”
Smith is the founder and president of Smith & Company, a leading strategic and crisis communications firm with offices located in Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles.
She developed her crisis management expertise through historical events such as the 1991 Gulf War, Los Angeles riots, President Clinton’s scandal involving Monica Lewinsky, the Gen. Petraeus/CIA scandal and many more. Internationally, Smith has counseled several heads of state and executives of major corporations in the Phillippines, Haiti, Jamaica, Turks and Caicos Islands and Zimbabwe.
Before resolving crises around the world, Smith was appointed special assistant and deputy press secretary to President George H. W. Bush.
Prior to working in the White House, Smith worked as a writer and public affairs specialist for several publications and private organizations in Washington, D.C. She completed a Bachelor of Science in Public Relations from Boston University and graduated from the American University Washington College of Law where she was the first African-American woman to serve as executive editor of the Law Review.
A book signing and reception follows Smith’s presentation.
About the Forty-niner Forum Speakers Series
Formerly known as the Distinguished Speakers Forum, the Forty-niner Forum Speakers Series gauges the interests of the UNC Charlotte community and supplies the campus community with dynamic, diverse and engaging speakers involved in those interests.