Psychology Department Homecoming Tailgate 2016

From left to right: Fred Aeilts (spouse of Lloyd), and University of  Michigan Psychology alumni - Jacqueline (Lillis) K. Lloyd (A.B. 1967),  Dr. Wayne R. McCullough (Ph.D. 1982), and Dr. Allen I. Kraut (Ph.D. 1965)

Did you attend our 2016 Psychology Department Homecoming Tailgate? If so, you may remember the great food, the good conversations, or maybe you even ran into some friends you haven’t seen in 35 years! That is the case for some of the alumni above.

When asked about the Tailgate, McCullough said, “I always enjoy having coffee and a meal with Allen (Kraut) when he comes to town and it was a special treat seeing Lillis after almost thirty-five years.”

Dr. Kraut received his Ph.D. in Social Psychology in 1965, and then went on to a three-decade career at IBM, followed by a Professorship at the City University of New York.  Most of his IBM work concerned employee attitude surveys, using many of the skills he learned at the Institute for Social Research during his studies.  Since then, he has put together and edited two well received books on Organizational Surveys.

According to Kraut, “A decade or two after I left the University, Professor Robert Kahn invited me back to speak at a Career Day for psychology students and I met a doctoral candidate named Wayne McCullough.  That led to Wayne coming to IBM as an intern and later going on to a well-regarded career at IBM and some other companies.  He is standing next to me in that photo!  We have stayed in touch ever since and the Tailgate party was a great way for us to catch up again.”

When asked what he enjoyed most about his time in the UM Psychology department, Kraut commented “the Social Psychology program then was headed by Professor T. M. (Ted) Newcomb and the faculty was truly sterling.  My fellow students were an amazing collection of standout talents and warm hearted collegiality.  It was one of the few times I felt that the different spheres of my life were well integrated.  We would attend classes, study, and party together.  Nearly all of us went on to meaningfully contribute to our professional fields and to our communities.  In recent years, it’s been a special treat for me to visit Ann Arbor because my daughter (who was born there when I was in Grad school) lives there with her family.  And it always brings back wonderful memories of my student days at the University.”

Who might you run into at our 2017 Psychology Homecoming Tailgate? Save the Date and join us on October 27, 2017!