User:Korvik8/sandbox/Karen Joy Erickson

Karen Joy Erickson new article content ... Karen Erickson was an American scholar, professor, author and academic dean whose career has spanned over five decades. Born in Aberdeen, Washington on September 16th, 1936 to Lloyd and Julia Erickson, Karen Joy Erickson (Orvik) grew up in Kelso, Washington, and graduated as an accomplished pianist and valedictorian from Kelso High School in 1954. A first-generation college graduate from Stanford University, she worked summers in the Senate office of Henry "Scoop" Jackson, of Washington. Upon graduation, she was awarded two consecutive Fulbright Scholarships, 1958-60. Strongly identifying with her Finnish heritage, at the 22 she conducted interviews with all 264 members of the Finnish Parliament, including then Prime Minister Urho Kekkonen. This research was pioneering in the study of Finnish politics. The value of her work is particularly relevant at a crucial point in the Cold War, and would later serve as the basis for her doctoral thesis on Finnish foreign policy at Harvard University.