As a Program Coordinator on the Professional Development and Experiential Initiatives team, I have the opportunity to serve as the Coordinator of the Career Outfitters program, which provides students with access to free gently used or new clothing to keep. The goal is to help students be able to gain confidence and dress the part to increase their access and participation in experiential learning opportunities. Through this role, I supervise our Career Outfitters Student Coordinator. Together, we build relationships with local organizations and companies, organize donation drives, manage closet inventory, develop marketing and social media efforts, execute pop-up shops, and conduct shopping appointments. I also serve as the primary instructor for our Cooperative Education and Internship Program's (CEIP) part-time course, while assisting my supervisor with our full-time CEIP course's Coaching initiatives, managing discussion boards, assisting our with CEIP Fellows, etc., as well as managing enrollment for our on-campus internship program, Campus internEXP.I helped develop and facilitate our new Internship Hot Takes series, which consist of short, interactive workshops and the development of our new Student Internship and Co-op Network (SICN) to provide students access to special alumni and industry panels, networking events, etc. to boost their access to experiential learning opportunities and internships.

Within Virginia Tech's office of Career and Professional Development, I served as a Career Advisor and Program Assistant on the Professional Development and Experiential Initiatives Team. As a Career Advisor, I supported the career development of students through one-on-one advising and group presentations on career related topics, such as selecting an academic major, career exploration, job and internship search strategies, interviewing, resume and cover letter design, professional competency development, salary negotiation, and researching companies. In addition to building relationships with students through one-on-one advising and group presentations, I served as our office's Liaison to Fraternity and Sorority Life. Together, we collaborated on how to best provide opportunities for professional development and experiential learning to this specialized group of students in order to best support their career journeys. I was also able to utilize my event coordination skill set by serving as the Experiential Programs Assistant, where I was able to assist with the planning and management of professional development and experiential programming. In this role, I was able to develop my strategic thinking skills, while utilizing my creativity in a solutions focused environment to produce best results.I have assisted with Coordination of the WRP program that assists students with disabilities on federal jobs and Career Outfitters which provides professional clothing to students free of charge. I have taken advantage of trainings for micro aggressions, students who have experienced trauma, and students in crisis, in addition to participating in training to become a recovery ally, to provide resources for students struggling from a substance abuse disorder. Through this role, I was also able to plan an event, "Experience Local," a local job shadow program targeting first-generation students, along with conducting research on on-campus internship programs.

As an Event Coordinator, I planned and managed a diverse range of events; however, I primarily specialized in weddings and wedding related events. I am passionate about filling each client's special day with unique touches, while ensuring that their event runs smoothly through a combination of strategic planning and adaptability. This role allowed me to engage with clients in a captivating way, while utilizing a detail oriented approach. I was able to collaborate with clients in a variety of ways including day of coordination, "home stretch" planning a few weeks to months prior to the event date, or full event coverage where I work with the client from event conception, through the design phase, all the way to the event execution. As a fashion stylist, my goal was to implement organizational strategies while discovering a client's unique, individual style. I was able to support each client through assistance with sizing, style exploration, closet clean-outs, and personal shopping on their timeline. Whether we collaborated on a particular event, an overall wardrobe refresh, or seasonal trends, I was able to help each client express themselves through their wardrobe choices, and in turn, feel comfortable in their own skin!

With the support of an incredible team, I worked with venues + caterers to develop the best marketing plan to ensure growth within their wedding business. I did this by creating customized advertising packages, suggesting updates and improvements across their online presence, and often times consulting on their personal wedding packages as well. Our goal was to connect quality wedding professionals with engaged couples, actively planning their weddings to ensure business growth for the vendors + the perfect "dream team" for the couples. I further developed skill sets in building relationships, strategic analyzing and planning, and effective communication.

I was able to bring fresh style trends to both male and female clients through interactive, relaxing styling appointments in the Charleston, SC clubhouse, as well as through trunks that would come right to the client's door! I eliminated the stress and time constraints often associated with updating client wardrobes by selecting pieces that best fit their style preferences while developing outfits especially paired for the individual client. I also consulted on custom men's wear! As a Stylist, I focused on building and maintaining client relationships, determining and meeting client needs, as well as creating my own marketing content for keeping my book of business up to date on all events and promotions to assist company lead marketing efforts.

As a Peer Career Advisor, I conducted walk-in advising where I provided students with resources to aid them in career exploration and preparation. I did this in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to, critiquing resumes and cover letters; assisting with internship and job search strategies; discussing appropriate job offer acknowledgement, deadline extension, job offer acceptance, and job offer decline etiquette; and providing information on appropriate, professional dress and interview tips! In addition, I led workshops for students on some of those same topics, as well as presented to groups across campus.In addition to my advising responsibilities, I assisted my supervisors in a variety of project areas. Most significantly, I acted as the Career Outfitters Coordinator, through which I coordinated the preparation, planning, and execution of the event, along with managing year round donations. I acted as the assistant to this event for two years before taking over as student coordinator. For the 2017 event, I worked on collaborating with local businesses who sell professional attire and accessories or offer tailoring services so that we could raffle off prizes for students who were unable to leave the event with a gently used outfit or accessory, while promoting the idea of shopping local. I also built relationships with Virginia Tech Alumni Chapters and other campus organizations and representatives through the various donation drives. After exhibiting a strong passion for this unique service related, professional opportunity, we were able to turn the work I put into this event into an internship position, which I was able to participate in the interview process for. In previous years, I acted as the Veterans Liaison Assistant, Job Search and Graduate School Prep Area Assistant, Marketing Assistant, and Assistant Family Weekend Coordinator.

I primarily worked within the Home Department and Intimates sections. Along with executing ad sets, markdowns, and assisting customers, I was able to assist with event setup and merchandising departments.

Through Belk's Store Management Internship Program, I was able to cycle through several different management positions including: Sales Team Managers, HR Manager, Store Manager, Loss Prevention Manager, Visual Merchandising Manager, Operations Team Manager, and Event Coordinator. During this process, I was able to shadow each position while assisting them with different tasks and projects. During this program, I was also able to work on a project that focused on my placement store's Young Contemporary Department. Through this project, I analyzed monthly and annual department sales, along with examining the competition in comparison to what our store currently offered. My primary goal was to develop a plan of action to better reach resources in the community that would better connect our store to nearby universities, primarily Virginia Tech and Radford University.

Through my internship with Caryn's Bridals, I developed relationships, updated and maintained the website, added an additional page, "Caryn's Brides," to the website, and expanded their social media presence. This position is where I truly found my passion for small business marketing. I was also given the opportunity to coordinate details and logistics for both the bridal show and fashion show. By managing the company's marketing strategies, I was able to design new promotional pamphlets and assist in scheduling in-store events, such as trunk shows!

As the Special Events Intern, I assisted with the set up and take down of events, layout design, and vendor coordination. I was able to learn more about the wine making and distribution processes while also assisting the event coordinator in managing the events. This experience helped me to further develop my skill set, particularly in areas of adaptability, customer service, and conflict management.