Resume


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Experience
Education
Skills
Recognitions

Experience

Communications and Marketing Associate | Paul Simon Public Policy Institute
March 2021-Present
Public relations and advertising for nonpartisan public policy think tank at Southern Illinois University 

  • Rebuilt email marketing strategy; increased average open rate from 10% to 35%
  • Launched weekly podcast “Simoncast”; secured distribution deal with NPR affiliate
  • Launched op-ed series; secured distribution deal with Illinois Press Association
  • Oversaw marketing strategy for new award that attracted over 100 nominations from government, academic and community leaders around the state
  • Created internship marketing strategy that doubled applicant pool over prior year
  • Edited and promoted research papers, one of which was among Top 10 most downloaded in university’s online library system

Local News Editor | The Southern Illinoisan
October 2014-March 2021
Led award-winning 12-person newsroom in planning and development of daily news and long-term watchdog stories for regional newspaper

  • Hired as digital editor in 2014; promoted to managing editor in May 2018; promoted to top editor in September 2020
  • Coached reporters in story development, reporting and writing for impactful investigative stories that made demonstrable change in community; award-winning watchdog projects about higher education, public housing and child welfare led to public accountability, leadership changes and government investigations
  • Guided newsroom toward digital-first culture; trained reporters and editors in SEO, data analytics, social media management for newspaper and personal brands; launched and edited series of newsroom blogs
  • Grew social media audience; doubled follows for entertainment guide Facebook page in five months following rebrand of section
  • Consistently exceeded corporate goals for digital subscribers, pageviews and unique website users
  • Launched and hosted “The Southern Radio Hour” weekly radio talk show and podcast
  • Wrote award-winning column and newspaper editorials; wrote “From the Newsroom” email newsletter to subscribers

Fundraising Manager | USA Rugby Trust
May 2014-October 2014
Communications and marketing for philanthropic arm of USA Rugby

  • Retooled donor communications strategy, focusing social media posts, newsletters and emails on narrative storytelling that demonstrated financial impact
  • Created fundraising video with submissions from clubs from around the country
  • Collaborated to plan foundation’s first formal fundraising gala

Creative Director | Emriver, Inc.
June 2011–May 2014
Creative direction for web and print projects to increase sales and brand recognition for company that manufactures river models for education and research

  • Oversaw 2011 website redesign, including overhaul of SEO practices and online advertising strategy
  • Started email marketing program
  • Shot, edited and narrated promotional videos; a favorite used stop-motion animation
  • Organized national and international academic conference demonstrations, including creating and ordering giveaways and training staff in messaging
  • Wrote and edited posts for company blog “Riparian Rap”
  • Wrote product user manuals; shot and edited instructional videos

Translator and Transcriber | Center for the Study of Mathematics Curriculum, University of Missouri-Columbia
September 2009–May 2011
Undergraduate research assistant for research project on math curricula for English language learners

  • Translated Spanish interviews to English
  • Transcribed Spanish interviews
  • Transcribed English interviews

Reporter, Enterprise Beat | Columbia Missourian
August 2009–December 2009
Intern for daily newspaper in Columbia, Missouri

  • Covered two long-term local government stories about public funding and proposed changes to city ordinance

Education

Bachelor of Journalism | University of Missouri-Columbia
> Emphasis in magazine writing
> Cum laude graduate

Bachelor of Arts in Spanish Language & Literature | University of Missouri-Columbia
> Cum laude graduate

Minor in Women’s & Gender Studies

Attended University of Missouri-Columbia 2007–2011

Skills

Other languages: Spanish
Apps: Parse.ly, Chartbeat, Google Analytics, Google Ads, Google News Lab, Knight Lab storytelling tools, Caspio, Adobe Creative Cloud, Final Cut Pro, iMovie, Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, WordPress, Cascade CMS, TownNews Blox TCMS and CMS, Blogger, ActiveCampaign, MailChimp, WhatCounts, Canva, Omny Studio Audio Management, Zoom, Highrise Client Relationship Manager
Social media: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, Tumblr, Pinterest, Flickr, Snapchat, LinkedIn, CrowdTangle, Buffer, Reddit, Discord
Photo & Video: Digital SLR cameras and film SLR cameras, iOS
Styles: AP, APA, Chicago Manual, MLA

Recognitions

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