Major:
Communication
Year Graduated:
2008
Hometown:
Lexington, KY
Current City:
Lexington, KY
Current Employer:
Marketing Director, Fayette Mall (CBL & Associates Properties, Inc.)
Top played song on your playlist?:
“Soulshine” by the Allman Brothers
Where has your CI degree taken you?:
After I graduated from UK, I attended law school at Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University and obtained my law degree. After passing the Kentucky Bar, I was searching for law firm jobs only to come across a marketing position that someone referred to me. I took the interview, because I felt like it might play to my extracurricular interests and strengths, and it turned out to be the perfect job for me. I have the opportunity to use my analytical law-brain along with my creative side every day. I’ve been the Marketing Director for Fayette Mall in Lexington, KY and Jefferson Mall in Louisville, KY for over 8 years now, along with working on dozens of other shopping centers in the CBL portfolio nationwide.
What is your favorite thing about your job?:
Marketing, particularly in the shopping center industry, is constantly evolving based on fashion, social media, culture and consumer shopping trends. That keeps my job interesting because no two days are ever the same, and no two years or seasons are marketed exactly the same. I really enjoy the opportunity to constantly use my creativity to create regular fashion segments on local TV, develop new content, campaigns and events to promote the brands in the shopping center, and bring new experiences to the community. I am very proud to have been recognized by the International Council of Shopping Centers with two U.S. Gold MAXI Awards for Marketing Excellence over the past several years; one for marketing excellence with television fashion segments, and the other for Fayette Mall’s wonderful partnership with UK Athletics.
What¹s the most valuable thing you learned in CI?:
My Communication and Information classes helped prepare me for how to best present myself in business and interpersonal relationships, and most importantly, how to build success into relationships through developing mutual influence by respecting and understanding different communication styles.
What advice would you give to current CI students?:
When deciding on a career path, think about what you enjoy spending your time doing outside of your classes. What are your extracurricular activities? Seek out a career that marries both your academic classes with the things you like to do in your spare time and as a result you will shine in your company and enjoy your job as well.