Matt Arado Email & Phone Number

Chicago, Il

• Created and executed marketing/communications strategy for private Chicago school • Crafted formal communications in the voice of the head of school• Oversaw a complete overhaul of the school website, focusing on storytelling and the user experience• Managed the school's social media channels — Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, YouTube• Wrote articles for the school's website and created content for social media• Took photos and/or video of the school's people and programming• Taught grade 7 yearbook class & oversaw creation of the City Day yearbook• Led the school's paid advertising efforts, both print and digital

Chicago

• Wrote and/or edited posts for the GEMS World Academy blog that resonated with the school community and general audiences, established the school as a thought leader and drove enrollment• Working closely with the head of school and CEO, crafted communications in the school's voice• Took photos and created videos for the school's social-media channels• Wrote and posted energetic, compelling feature stories about the school to the GEMS website• Updated existing content and created new content for the website's home page and interior pages• Helped develop advertising & marketing strategy• Represented GEMS World Academy Chicago at fairs, trade shows and other events• Helped plan and execute special events• Wrote and edited copy for advertisements, the school's prospectus and other printed materials

Arlington Heights Il

• Covered northwest suburban area, writing daily news stories about local government, business, schools and people• Wrote regular features on music and other local arts/entertainment for the weekly entertainment section, Time Out• Created visual/multimedia content (photos and video) to go with stories• Cultivated and maintained relationships with news and entertainment sources• Covered breaking news on Sundays as general assignment reporter in the DuPage County office • Wrote regional big-picture/trend stories and features for weekend editions• Engaged with sources and readers via a variety of social media networks — Facebook, Twitter, Storify, etc.• Promoted Daily Herald brand via social media• Appeared on Chicago television and radio news programs to discuss articles

Arlington Heights, Il

• Covered public and private education at the local, regional and state levels• Wrote regular features analyzing education trends and performance• Organized the annual Daily Herald coverage of the state school report cards• Covered local art, entertainment and pop culture• Wrote arts/entertainment stories for news and feature sections

Arlington Heights Il

• Wrote nuanced, authoritative and entertaining feature stories on pop culture, art trends and health for multiple feature sections• Helped update and redesign the "L&E" (life and entertainment) section, resulted in fresher look and added features• Created, launched and wrote weekly DVD review column• Edited copy and wrote headlines for all feature sections• Designed front and inside pages (InDesign) of feature sections

Arlington Heights Il

• Covered northwest suburbs and wrote daily news stories about local government, business, schools and people• Wrote weekly neighborhood column about news in several northwest suburbs• Cultivated stories and generated own story ideas

Master Of Fine Arts (M.F.A.), Creative Writing

Bachelor Of Arts (B.A.), English

Honors Diploma