Driving community engagement and brand consistency through strategic design and storytelling.

The University of Illinois Research Park is a hub for inventive startups, technology commercialization, and corporate innovation centers.

Working within a highly collaborative marketing team, I helped amplify Research Park's voice through digital storytelling and redesigned communication channels that served a diverse stakeholder base of students, entrepreneurs, and corporate partners.

TIMELINE

May 2025 - Aug 2025

ROLE

Communications and Social Media Intern

SKILLS & TOOLS

Communications Design, Copywriting, Stakeholder Collaboration, WordPress, Canva, Planable, LinkedIn, Instagram

COMMUNICATIONS DESIGN

Restructured public-facing communications for maximum impact

Research Park's digital channels reach thousands, making them powerful tools for community engagement, promoting career opportunities, and celebrating local achievements. I redesigned these touchpoints to improve consistency and ensure our audience has a reliable, engaging source of information.

Efficiency

Created an easy-to-use template so the team can build newsletters faster and with fewer mistakes.

Accessibility

Updated the layout and button sizes so the emails are easy to read and click on a phone.

Cohesion

Fixed inconsistent fonts, tones, and colors so every message feels like it’s coming from the same brand.

general announcements newsletter

Before
After
Before
After

Clear hierarchy

Improved information architecture by using bold headers and larger thumbnails to guide the user's eye through the content.

Distinct call-to-actions

Replaced inline links with high-contrast, accessible buttons to drive conversion.

Mobile-first layout

Transitioned to a single-column stack to eliminate text compression on mobile devices.

View redesign on desktop

Before ↗After ↗

job board stories

Before
After

Safe zones

Aligned content within "safe zones" to ensure no content is obscured by Instagram's UI elements.

Recognizability

Utilized bolder fonts and high-contrast colors for better legibility of text and branding, even when users quickly tap through stories.

Before
After
Before
After

Reduced clutter

Removed redundant decorative elements (e.g., the Research Park logo) that competed with the UI, shifting focus to clear CTAs and people-centric imagery.

social media STRATEGY

Wrote, edited, and published social media content

I translated technical milestones into accessible, on-brand copy. By monitoring activity across 120+ companies, I identified key stories — from intern achievements to startup breakthroughs — and collaborated with the multimedia team to curate a human-centric, cohesive social feed.

Grew to 21.7k+ followers across platforms

Up 658 users from the previous month.

Generated 213.5k+ impressions

A 168% surge in content visibility compared to the month before.

Saw an 8% engagement rate

17,487 total interactions, marking a 267% jump from a month ago.

INSTAGRAM

LINKEDIN

annual report content

Co-authored the 2024-25 Year-in-Review

The Year-in-Review is an annual impact report documenting innovations and milestones at Research Park. Working with the graphic design and multimedia teams, I helped compile technical data and event highlights into clear, engaging spreads.

Synthesized data and content from 150+ Research Park events to showcase the intersection of agriculture, startups, and student innovation.


Curated expert testimonials in finance, management, and professional development to add social proof and humanize technical achievements.

Collaborated with cross-functional teams to articulate Research Park's value proposition, undergoing multiple design iterations and feedback rounds.


Helped enforce visual consistency across all spreads by aligning them with Research Park's brand identity.

takeaways

→ Thinking outside of myself
I balanced creative autonomy with brand alignment, putting aside personal preferences to embrace feedback as a tool for growth and collaboration.
→ Communicating stategically
I learned how branding consistency and user experience design shape audience perception and trust.
→ Adapting to limitations
I had to figure out proprietary and at times outdated software to build certain projects (e.g., the newsletter redesign), all while meeting deadlines and juggling different projects or tasks.
Shoutout to the other interns! An office wall full of polaroids and many good-natured lunchtime debates later, I’ve learned that the team you work with truly makes all the difference.
UP NEXT

While you're here, check out some of my other work!

Illini 4000

Bridging cross-country cycling for cancer awareness with community and adventure

The Daily Illini

Shaping how campus media tells stories of music, film, and literature

Let's keep in touch!

LinkedIn ↗Email ↗