In Larry Pearlman’s field of study, getting quality one-on-one time with a professor was rarely an issue.
“I graduated from the smallest program on campus — the Institute of Labor and Industrial Relations, now the School of Labor and Employment Relations. I was one of 15 people in my class to graduate. So my experience with the 40,000-plus student campus was very intimate," says the senior VP at Chicago's Marsh Risk Consulting.
“We would sit in the lounge of the building on Fifth and Armory and talk with the faculty, debate labor relations policy, tell stories and wonder if the Cubs would ever do it.
“With such small classes, we could take over a bar like the White Horse and no one would know that the entire program was hanging out there. In our Labor History course, we had a unit on folksongs about the labor movement. We would adjourn the class and head down to Murphy’s, with Professor John Lawler in tow.
"We took road trips together for spring break. When we graduated, we stuffed seven people in a Toyota MR2 and headed to get Haystacks.
“The program is an amazing place. It churns out 90 or so students every semester. I find graduates at almost every company I consult with. They are typically in, or leading, the HR function at the world’s greatest companies. I’m proud to serve as an adjunct professor there.”
