Her Campus UIC’s very own Kia Travis is this week’s Campus Celebrity- she’s a bright young woman helping out a great organization. Check her story out below!
Name: Tikia Travis (Kia for short)
Major: English with a minor in Business Management
Year: Sophomore (2nd)
Hometown: Chicago
Dream Career: To be honest I have no idea. I originally wanted to be a Cardiothoracic Surgeon when I came to UIC, but then I changed my mind. Now I’m looking into careers in Business and Media.
HC: How long have you been on the Her Campus team and what made you join?
I have been on HC for 6 months now! I was interested in seeing what it would be like to write professionally online and for a magazine so I looked into what HC was all about, I liked it, then I contacted UIC’s chapter president Nicole Jacobs. I was ultimately amazed by the national webpage because it caters to everything that a collegiate would need from school, family, and relationship issues. I actually wound up visiting the website a lot just to see new postings or see if they had any articles related to my issues, and they always did. I really wanted more experience in blogging and journalism.
HC: What section do you write for Her Campus UIC?
I actually just started a new section called Her Campus Her Story! I am really excited about this section because I have been able to meet new girls on campus who want to share some of their personal experiences with other girls who read articles on our website. My goal for this feature section is to bring together the different ethnic and cultural women on our campus so we can actually have an idea of who some of these girls are and how we may have all shared similar experiences. It’s just an all-around great way to connect with people on campus and promote our HC website and receive more traffic and hopefully future HC team members.
HC: Explain to us what The Elephant Pants is and how you work with them?
The Elephant Pants (TEP) is an organization geared towards raising awareness about Elephant extinction and poaching. We are trying to gain exposure worldwide by marketing and selling these comfy yoga pants! TEP is also partnered with the African Wildlife Foundation (AWF) to provide funds from our sales to save the elephants. For every pair of pants that are sold, $1.00 is donated to AWF to help the “Say No To Elephant Extinction Campaign”. My job working with TEP is to promote the company via my social media pages and word of mouth. I have actually really enjoyed promoting the company on my social media pages. I really want to boost my sales up, so you can visit the Elephant Pants and use my code (TKIA) for 10% off your order!
HC: How did you become involved with The Elephant Pants org?
I received an email about an opportunity to work with TEP and looked into the company. As a result, I applied for the ambassador position expressing how interested I really was in the company and all that they stood for and had my fingers crossed to get the position. A few weeks later I received an email from the CEO Nathan Coleman welcoming me to the Elephant Pants family! They showed so much #Elephalove!
HC: What made you choose to help with this organization and not another?
I really believe that elephants are really beautiful mammals. Before I became involved with this company I would do my own research on elephants across the globe and became really engaged in the research that was being conducted on them and would watch different elephant documentaries. After realizing how much I love and care for the lives of elephants I knew that this company was the best company to be a part of. They are connected with other organizations who have a common goal of saving the elephants and that was most important to me when looking into this company versus other ones.
Tell us about the awesome partnership Her Campus UIC currently has with The Elephant Pants?
Her Campus UIC and The Elephant Pants have partnered up this semester to help promote our campus chapter, but also to promote TEP and our goal of reaching out to as many people as possible. TEP has extended a special offer to our chapter girls to receive 50% off our entire order as a group when we purchase gear! They have also provided our chapter with its own personal discount code: HCChicago to extend to our readers. 10% of the proceeds with the use of the code will go to a charity of our chapters choosing.
What’s your favorite ideal outfit, with the elephant pants of course!
I am totally into this total boho relaxed look with my black diamond pants. They are literally the comfiest pants I have ever worn (I’m not just saying that for promotional reasons, I’m serious!). So far I love wearing my pants with my black combat style boots, cami tops, and a button up shirt over. These comfy pants will inspire you to get creative with your outfits!
Lastly, what’s your favorite part about going to UIC?
I love the atmosphere! I have joined so many different organizations and met so many amazing people that have contributed to me having such a great experience thus far. Also, campus is 10 minutes away from downtown and there is always something to do. Being so close to downtown is really the icing on the cake! I mean who doesn’t want to participate in the awesome festivities they have year round? Especially the summer!