Resume

Strategic Communications Manager

Digital Media Strategist · Integrated Communications Marketer · Graphic Designer

Integrated marketing communications professional with a notable track record leading internal and external communications, redesigning websites, and increasing social media presence. Innovative and strategic business partner with 6+ years of experience in higher education, science communication, public policy, and non-profits.

Areas of Expertise

·     Communication Strategy
·     Social Media Management
·     Website Content Management Systems

·     Digital & Print Content Development
·     Brand Management
·     Project Management

·     Writing & Editing
·     Adobe Creative Suite
·     Developing Digital Audiences

Proficient Skills

· Search Engine Optimization
· Google Analytics & Adwords

· Photography
· Video Production, Editing, Shoot Management

· Digital Advertising
· AP Style, Chicago Style, APA Style, & MLA Style

Professional Experience

University of Florida | Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS),
College of Agricultural and Life Sciences | October 2016 – present | Gainesville, FL
Strategic Communications Manager

Manages the college’s digital, print, and creative properties while forming marketing and communications strategies to attract new students, meet the needs of current students, and connect with alumni and parents.
Part of the team that increased the number of admitted freshmen who selected a major in the college by 138%.
Part of the recruitment team where efforts led to more than 6k enrolled students – a record.
In conjunction with UF senior communicators and IFAS communicators, proactively identified and managed potential issues and opportunities impacting Florida agriculture, current and prospective students, faculty, staff, general public, and campus. Issue management included Covid-19, two major hurricanes, controversial public figures, among others.
Led college website redesign and reorganization as project manager.
- 3% increase in views on the homepage, 16% increase of average time on a webpage from previous year, and 21% decrease in bounce rate from previous year.
- Added webpages for ease of access, including a prospective student page which saw 16k+ visitors, an undergraduate student page which saw 40k+ views, and a graduate student page which saw 13k+ views within a year.
- 2,500 downloads of the transfer student guide within a year.
Part of a team that developed a Majors Quiz as a resource for prospective and current students. Implemented a social media and marketing strategy for the quiz.
- 4,689 visits to and interactions with the Majors Quiz webpage (a little over 5% of total website visitors).
- 368 link clicks from Facebook/Instagram Ads; reached 25k+ high school students with a total of 80k+ impressions and a cost per click of $1.36.
Provides strategic thought leadership to college Dean and administrative team regarding college communications strategy.
Identifies key topics, stories, and statistics for UF and IFAS public affairs teams.
Develops and implements internal and external strategic communications plan with stakeholder input for the college.
Serves on college team that implements and plans events ranging in size from thousands to small groups, including graduation ceremonies, annual awards banquet, alumni tailgate, student organization fair, among others. Roles include script writing, marketing and promotion of events, presentations, and logistical planning.
Utilizes internal and external communications tactics to achieve marketing and communications goals, such as forming a regular monthly meeting of department/unit communicators to share college updates and professional development activities.
Collaborates with development officers on communications materials and messaging with alumni, professors, staff, and friends of the college, such as launching a campaign raising $10k for the college ambassador program.
Supervises 1-3 graduate assistants at a time.
Handles sensitive material regarding Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).
Manages college social media accounts for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, YouTube, Snapchat.
- 142% increase in Instagram followers, 73% increase in Facebook page likes, 94% increase in Twitter followers, nearly 14 million total social media impressions, 685k+ total social media engagements, and 48k+ total social media link clicks from October 2016-April 2020.
- 1-2% average annual engagement rate higher than industry average.
Edits and writes press releases, media advisories, opinion pieces, and website and blog content, garnering an annual average of 170 media hits and covering health/science, technology, philanthropy, and teaching excellence topics.
Partners with IFAS designers, videographers, web team, and photographers to create promotional materials for the college.
Manages an annual budget of $34k.
Developed a recruitment project with an IFAS department to create student-produced videos.

The James Madison Institute | July 2014 – September 2016 | Tallahassee, FL
Director of Creative & Digital Strategy, 2016 · Digital Strategist, 2014 – 2015 · Intern, Summer 2011 & 2013

Played a digital communications role in state-wide legislation reforms including the repeal of Florida’s civil asset forfeiture law and the passing of personal learning scholarship accounts for children with unique abilities.
Increased Facebook followers by 33%, Twitter followers by 45%, and website visitors by 22% since July 2014.
Set the strategy for digital marketing and advertising campaigns, managing a budget of $10k.
Earned $15k in grants in addition to a monthly recurring Google Adwords grant.
Designed publications, promotional materials, and ads, as well as conceptualized graphic design projects as the design project manager when using vendors.
Wrote press releases, media advisories, Journal articles, and email and newsletter content covering education choice, healthcare, energy and the environment, criminal justice reform, property rights, and thrift-ethic topics.
Shot, edited, and produced video projects, including a Constitution Day event promotional video receiving 18,682 views – the Institute’s most-viewed video.
Served as co-project manager on the launch of the Institute’s website redesign, which included detail-oriented content migration from the previous site, vendor selection, and design and organization of the site.
Garnered thousands of impressions for the 2015 “Sharp Mind, Noble Heart” education choice video with other communications/policy team members and coalition partners including placement at local Florida media outlets, Oscars, Super Bowl, CNN Español, blogs, and social media outlets.
Supervised the workflow of interns in the communications department.

Education

Master of Science in Integrated Marketing Communications – WEST VIRGINIA UNIVERSITY (2018)
Bachelor of Science in Journalism (Summa Cum Laude) – UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA (2014)
Bachelor of Arts in History (Cum Laude) – UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA (2014)

Credentials

Managing at UF Certification: The Supervisory Challenge – UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA (2020)
Board Member and Communications Track Chair – NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL AND ALUMNI DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION “NAADA” (2018-2020)
Best Practices for Teaching Online Certificate – UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA (2019)
Strategic Communications Academy for UF Leaders & Scholars – UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA (2018)

Awards

2nd Place Publications and Projects Competition, Society Programming Division – NAADA – 2019
1st Place Publications and Projects Competition, Campaign/Series Division – NAADA – 2018
2nd Place Publications and Projects Competition, Multimedia Division, Video – NAADA – 2017
2nd Place Publications and Projects Competition, Print Media Division, Newsletter – NAADA – 2017
Social & Interactive Media Award – Spark Freedom National Trendsetter Awards – 2015