ATLANTA, GA, October 4, 2001-- Dr. Pat McCarthy, Chair of Economics at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), has been appointed the Associate Director of Research for the Center for Paper Business and Industry Studies (CPBIS), a Sloan Foundation Industry Center. Dr. McCarthy will provide a vital link between the CPBIS and the needs of the pulp and paper industry with the Economics Department at Georgia Tech. Dr. Gail Pesyna from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation says, "The Sloan Industry Centers really benefit from the perspective that economists can provide on the problems that face an industry. We are extremely pleased that Dr. McCarthy has joined this valuable team."

Dr. McCarthy will assume the role formerly played by Dr. Steve Vallas. Dr. Vallas, who is in the midst of completing a major research project of his own that is funded by the Sloan Foundation, will be continuing his affiliation with the Center as Senior Research Associate. Tom McDonough, Director of CPBIS, says, "Many people at Georgia Tech and the Institute of Paper Science and Technology (IPST) have worked to establish the CPBIS, and Steve Vallas has been there from the very beginning. He has worked tirelessly to establish the research program, and we are pleased that he will continue his involvement with the CPBIS in an advisory role."

The objectives of the Sloan Foundation Industry Centers' program are to create an academic community that understands a particular industry and to encourage a direct approach to data collection and observation through contact with the companies and people from that industry. The Sloan Foundation has determined that observation-based work by well-informed academics will, in the long run, lead to practical contributions to the industries studied. The CPBIS was formed last year and has been diligent in establishing research and education programs and a community that understands the pulp and paper industry.

Dr. McCarthy recently came to Georgia Tech after 22 years at Purdue University. Since 1998, he has held a joint faculty appointment in Economics and Civil Engineering. Previously, he was Professor of Economics in the School of Management. He began his career at Purdue as an assistant professor in 1978. Dr. McCarthy's first academic appointment was at Concordia University in Montreal, Canada.

"Dr. McCarthy is a widely respected scholar and teacher in his field, " said Dr. Sue Rosser, Dean of Ivan Allen College. "In addition, he brings a breadth of interdisciplinary and international experience very much in concert with the mission of the CPBIS. He will be a valuable asset to CPBIS. "

Dr. McCarthy has held a number of academic appointments including visiting professor at the Athens Laboratory of Business Administration in Greece, visiting senior teaching fellow at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, and visiting associate professor economics at the University of Southern California.

The CPBIS is concentrating the business and liberal arts skills at Georgia Tech on the needs of the global paper industry and will generate focused research and produce experts in the industry. Direct industry-based funding and substantial in kind financial support from both Georgia Tech and IPST have complimented the initial Sloan Foundation grant of over $2 million. The Center will create an academic community that studies business issues and needs central to the paper industry. To date, 22 companies have pledged over $350,000 to support the Paper Industry Center's research and education programs in the worst times this industry has ever seen.

Dr. Jim McNutt, Executive Director of the CPBIS, says, " We are sorry to lose Dr. Vallas as the Associate Director of Research, but we will value his advice in the years to come, much as we have his tireless effort to help us begin this new journey of the CPBIS. At the same time, I am extremely pleased that Dr. McCarthy will join our management team. He will be instrumental in guiding our research program and he will be a very valuable addition to the team."

The Center for Paper Business and Industry Studies research program is currently focusing on five areas of vital interest to the paper industry. The CPBIS community is currently studying issues of globalization, commercialization, community interactions, workplace transformation, and enterprise effectiveness. Faculty from the Georgia Tech DuPree College of Management, the Georgia Tech Ivan Allen College, and IPST, as well as partner universities such as the University of Georgia, will all contribute to the success of the CPBIS.