Carol E. Oukrop

Carol E. Oukrop, 87, a long-time faculty member at Kansas State University and former director of the A.Q. Miller School of Journalism and Mass Communications, died Saturday evening, February 5, 2022, at her home in Manhattan, with loved ones at her side.

She was born Sept. 6, 1934, in Fargo, N.D., to Vic and Mildred Christensen, Watford City, N.D., and grew up on a cattle ranch in western North Dakota. She earned a B.A. in Journalism from the University of North Dakota, and an M.A. in Journalism and a Ph.D. in Mass Communication from the University of Iowa, from which she was honored as an Alumni Fellow. She worked on newspapers and in public relations in North Dakota and Iowa.

Oukrop began her teaching career at Dickinson State College in Dickinson, N.D. She taught at the University of Iowa 1965-69, and joined the faculty at Kansas State University in 1969, where she remained for 33 years. She was the first director of the A. Q. Miller School of Journalism, and served in that capacity for 11 of those 33 years. Oukrop led the school through an arduous reaccreditation process, including spearheading the naming of the newly designation A.Q Miller School of Journalism and Mass Communications. In 1983-84 she was a visiting professor at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She retired from Kansas State University in 2002.

In her career Oukrop was best known for her pioneering work on the status of women in journalism and mass communications education. She and colleague Ramona Rush conducted two national studies, 30 years apart, on the status of women in journalism education. Oukrop developed one of the first courses on gender issues in the mass media, and she co-edited Seeking Equity for Women in Journalism and Mass Communication Education: A 30-Year Update.

Oukrop’s professional and honorary societies included the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, the Association of Schools of Journalism and Mass Communication, the National Federation of Press Women, the Public Relations Society of America, Women in Communication Inc. and various editorial review boards.

Local memberships and activities included the Fairy Godmothers board, the Manhattan Library Association board, the Manhattan Arts Center, the Manhattan Area Retired Educators, the Kansas State University Social Club and Rotary International, for which she was one of the first women invite to join. She was an active member of First Lutheran Church, and was a Greater Manhattan Community Foundation trustee.

On Sept. 23, 1956, she was married to Ray K. Oukrop in Dickinson, N.D. They were divorced in 1963. For 30 years, she loved dancing with her steady partner, Ray Seemater, now deceased, at the American Legion.

Carol was a person of simple needs, living by the Ten Commandments. There is no way to accurately measure the healing and teaching she bestowed on all with whom she had contact. She was a wonderful cook, and every holiday she hosted anyone she knew needed fellowship and a home cooked meal, with many becoming regulars. Her life experiences were channeled into an enormous compassion and empathy for anyone who was suffering or in need of comfort. Her emotional intelligence was unmatched.

Survivors include two children, Michael C. Oukrop of Austin, Texas, and Patricia J. Talbot, Manhattan, a grandson, Matthew Oukrop and his fiancé Jisel Blasi, Atchison, KS, a sister, JoAnne Banta, and nephew, Joe Banta and family, Anchorage, AK.

A memorial service will be held at 3:00 p.m. Friday, February 18th, at the First Lutheran Church, 930 Poyntz Avenue, Manhattan, with Reverend Stephen Haverlah, officiating. Inurnment will be at a later date in the Dickinson Cemetery in Dickinson, N.D.

Memorial contributions may be made to the First Lutheran Church, Manhattan, KS, or to the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, 234 Outlet Pointe Blvd, Suite A, Columbia, SC 29210-5667 for the Outstanding Woman Award fund. Contributions may also be left in care of the Yorgensen-Meloan-Londeen Funeral, 1616 Poyntz Avenue, Manhattan, KS 66502.