With my background in Marketing and Media, my interest in volunteering and politics, and my aspirations in law it is often difficult to physically show people what I can do. Some of these things are abstract but not necessarily visual enough to make for an interesting perusal on my website. Let’s face it, most people do not enjoy reading my 55 page undergrad senior thesis on “Advertising and the Media Literate Experience.” But, I thought I’d try. This page shows some of the different projects I have worked on (ordered by date) and what was most important about them to me. I look forward to any questions or comments you might have!
Freelance Writer for The Counter Project – 2011
The Counter Project is an online magazine devoted to providing commentary about Dearborn, MI. I discovered it during my 2009 City Council campaign and have been following the stories and participating in discussions ever since. In early 2011, The Counter Project announced they were going to print! They were looking for freelance writers and I quickly brought some story ideas to the table. I was proud to write two great stories highlighting the efforts of some incredible people in Dearborn. My first story made the front page of the first edition! Unfortunately, a major funding source was lost and The Counter Project had to go back to an online-only publication. They are still going strong as they look for more opportunities to be a voice for our great city and I am glad to have had the chance to work with this organization. A link to each of my stories can be found below:
April 7, 2011: Individuals Embrace Grassroots to Bring Big Change for their Community
April 27, 2011: Save Our Pools: Year Two
Student Attorney for Michigan Unemployment Insurance Project – Winter 2011
As a student attorney for the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Project (MiUI), I work with a partner and currently manage two cases. One of our clients is challenging the amount granted to her in benefits because her employer misstated information, and the other is appealing the decision to deny her benefits because the court believed she voluntarily quit. Although I have quickly learned that much of this area of law requires you to “hurry up and wait,” I know that we have already brought peace of mind to our clients because they know someone is on their side, constantly calling the Board of Review to follow-up, and is there for them if they have any questions. Already, this has been a rewarding and educational experience.
George Darany for State Representative – Volunteer 2010
During 2010, I volunteered for George Darany’s campaign for State Representative in the 15th District of Michigan. My work on the campaign included developing strategy, building a campaign plan, conducting literature drops, phone banking. None of us worked harder than George and we were proud to congratulate him after the polls closed on as he was named the next Dearborn State Representative.
VAA Program Development and Management at M&O Marketing – 2009-2011
The biggest part of my job duties at M&O Marketing is to “create and manage programs.” This involves re-working programs that already exist, and creating some out of scratch. All of our programs are designed to address a need that our clients, independent insurance agents, have in marketing and building their business. One of my biggest programs and greatest undertakings was the Veterans Assistance Association. This program provides education and marketing assistance to insurance agents who want to help wartime veterans apply for the Aid and Attendance Benefit with the Veteran’s Administration. We worked closely with a local law firm to educate ourselves on the benefit and develop a comprehensive and easily-implementable system. Since the beginning, I have managed all aspects of this program and grew it to over 50 trained and activated members. I developed and sustained libraries of information, marketing materials, a social network for communication, countless reporting and analytical tools, client “help” materials, member plans and guidelines, benchmarks to success, monthly collaboration among members, and more so that we were able to make the program a success for everyone involved.
Write-In Candidate for Dearborn City Council – 2009
In 2009 I decided to run for Dearborn City Council. It was time to be heard and try to shake-up a council that has had some of the same people on it for 10 or 20 years.
I didn’t make the 1 year residency requirement (by 3 weeks) and was unable to file my petitions for the ballot, so I ran as a write-in. I worked incredibly hard to maintain a budget of less than $1,000 yet still get my name out there to the city. This blog came out of the race, as well as different handouts and a million (ok 1,000) pencils with my name on them. I got 100 votes, stayed under budget, and made an impact on the conversations in the election. It was an incredible experience and I have been blessed to be able to continue moving forward with building relationships and strengthening my voice in my community.
Bayside Presbyterian Church IMC Plan – Volunteer 2008
I lived in Virginia for a year right after completing my Bachelors degree. Immediately I got involved with and joined a local church; Bayside Presbyterian Church. I started singing with the choir, playing bells, and singing with the praise band that played about once a month. Then, the pastor approached me and said they were working on creating a third service of Praise worship. He asked me to join the committee and work on making this service a reality. The committee had a great group of people and I loved working with them. Together, we were able to dream a foundation for the service, present it and get buy-on from the church elders and deacons, and implement a sustainable addition to the church. I began my Masters work in Integrated Marketing Communications as we were in the middle of this process and decided to create a plan for the implementation of the third service.
I moved about a month after our service began so was unable to personally implement much of the plan. However, I worked closely with certain people who stepped up to carry out the ideas and goals formed in this plan and through the service planning committee. This was one of the most rewarding projects I have ever worked on and I was proud to have the opportunity to utilize my skills and serve my church and community in that way. To see an overview and executive summary of my plan, click the link below. If you are interested in more details about the plan, just let me know! Sail on Service Intro and Executive Summary
“Advertising and the Media Literate Experience” EMU B.S. Honors Thesis 2007
I entered EMU as an undergraduate already a part of the Honors College. In addition to my goal of graduating in three years, I set my sights on achieving “double honors” – both University and Dep
artmental. University Honors required 24 credit hours in Honors class or coursework, 3 honors experiences, and 24 hours of community service. The Departmental Honors required an additional 12 credit hours completed in my department, an honors experience related to my degree, 24 hours of community service, and the completion of an honors thesis. Needless to say, I accomplished all of these goals and graduated in just three years with my Bachelors in Electronic Media and Film and Double Honors from Eastern Michigan University. If you actually would like to read my thesis, you can download it here.
Undergraduate Student Symposium – EMU B.S. Honors Experience 2007
One of my Honors Experiences for satisfying the Departmental requirements was giving a 15 minute presentation in the Undergraduate Student Symposium. I was strongly encouraged to participate and supported by my mentor and sponsor, Geoffrey Hammill. I presented on my Thesis topic, Advertising and the Media Literate Experience and was able to show clips of current advertisements, breaking them down for the audience. It was a great experience talking to a group of people about something that mattered to me and might matter to them too. My boyfriend still makes references back to some of the things I said! I was able to get a recording of this presentation and I will upload it to YouTube and link it here very soon!
“The Muse” A Greek Letter Organization Newsletter – EMU B.S. 2006
In 2006 I was considered a veteran in Sigma Kappa sorority and Greek Life. I knew how it worked and I had a ton of ideas for how we could improve and become the true va
lues driven community we were striving to be. Elected as Vice President of Education on the Panhellenic Council, I had the opportunity to act on these ideas. One of the things I saw missing was a catchy way to communicate within the community and to non-Greeks about who we were and what we were about. So, The Muse was born. It was a newsletter designed to speak to all students and staff at EMU about and by the Greek Letter organizations. It took a lot of work and dedication but we were able to get our first issue out in the middle of Greek Week. It was a big hit! Unfortunately, the time it took to get one issue out made The Muse a one-hit wonder but the idea has continued and has been attempted by Greeks after me who have used it as a jumping off point for a version of their own. Click here to see the full edition: The Muse-April 2006 pdf
