Land named 2016 Distinguished Young Alumna by Darla Moore School of Business
April 27, 2016
SPARTANBURG, SC – Kim Buckner Land (USC ’98, MBA ’02), instructor of marketing at the George Dean Johnson, Jr. College of Business and Economics at the University of South Carolina Upstate, was awarded the 2016 Distinguished Young Alumna by Darla Moore School of Business at the 32nd annual Business Leadership Dinner and Awards Ceremony on April 19.
“I am proud to say that one of the Johnson College of Business and Economics faculty members, Kim Land, is recognized as one of four 2016 Distinguished Alumni of USC this year,” said Frank Rudisill, dean of the Johnson College. “This is quite an honor for Kim and we are very proud of her.”
Land is an accomplished marketing professional with a unique skill set and proven track record in leading people and organizations through process change, branding initiatives, new product launches, research projects and successful multi-media sales efforts.
Land graduated in 1998 with an undergraduate degree in Journalism and Mass Communications from the University of South Carolina Honors College. While at Carolina, she was a leader on campus, serving as president of Delta Zeta sorority. She was awarded the USC Outstanding Senior Award. She then completed her MBA at the Darla Moore School of Business with a 4.0 GPA.
For 15 years, Land served as marketing director for a group of New York Times newspapers in the North and South Carolina markets, including her home paper, the Spartanburg Herald-Journal. In August 2015, she began putting her experience in the marketing field to work in the classroom as a full-time instructor at the Johnson College of Business and Economics at USC Upstate.
Outside of the office, Land is dedicated to serving the community where she was born and raised. She has volunteered her time with numerous non-profit boards over the years including the Junior League of Spartanburg, Goodfellows and Healthy Smiles of Spartanburg. Land is currently the Board Chair for SAFE Homes/Rape Crisis Coalition as well as serving on the boards for the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium, Oakbrook Preparatory School and Quality Counts – Spartanburg County First Steps. She also chairs a United Way Investment Council committee to allocate donor dollars within the education classification.
In addition, Land recently organized the 12th Annual Upstate Regional Spelling Bee where more than 80 students from Spartanburg, Cherokee and Union Counties gathered at USC Upstate to compete for the title of Regional Spelling Bee Champion and the opportunity to represent the Upstate of South Carolina in the Scripps National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C.
Land has been recognized for her professional accomplishments over the years, being named a Direct Marketing News “40 Under 40” recipient in 2014 and a Presstime Magazine “20 Under 40” recipient in 2006. She has also received many South Carolina Press Association awards over the years, as well as numerous awards for board service.
Land lives in Inman with her husband, Jason and her 7-year-old daughter, Kelsey.
