The list of alumnae who are making their mark in this world is endless. To commemorate, inspire and highlight these former FAMU women, we’ve created a new segment under Features: “Alumnae in the Light.” The purpose of this is to highlight alumnae who are successful in their current careers across the nation. We hope this feature will motivate you as these women have motivated us!
The next Lady Rattler we’ve chosen to highlight is a graduate who loves to share her curls and natural hair care tips with her Instagram following. She’s a 2008 graduate of the School of Business and Insdustry and former member of the Beta Alpha Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Name: Jardan Paige Doneghy
Instagram: @jardanp
Hometown: Frankfurt, Kentucky
HC FAMU: When did you attend FAMU?
JP: I studied business administration from 2004 to 2008. I was originally in the five-year MBA program and decided to go to four years undergraduate instead. I went to FSU for integrated marketing & communications in 2009 and then moved to Atlanta.
HC FAMU: Please describe your current job/career.
JP: I work at Delta Airlines as a Senior Analyst in Marketing. I work on various analytical reports around Delta Sky Club operations and marketing.
HC FAMU: How did you end in a career in marketing?
JP: In 2007 I interned in New York at Saatchi & Saatchi Marketing Company. It’s a healthcare advertising and print company that gave me an eye into advertising/marketing and really peaked my interest. That’s when I returned to FAMU and decided to switch majors. After that I declared a minor in graphic design and started to do flyer and web development where I managed social media for different non-profits. When I moved to Atlanta I worked from home for a non-profit.
HC FAMU: What (or who) inspires you?
JP: I get inspiration from different people. My mom definitely inspires me as far as becoming a woman and developing certain values I want to possess as far as wanting to cook, keep my home nice and work ethic. Then, I would say my friends inspire me. Each of my friends has different qualities that I find valuable. Being around them helps me work on myself. And I love Beyoncé she inspires me all of the time!
HC FAMU: What advice would you give your college senior self?
JP: Get a head start on networking. Understand what you want to do, and even if you don’t know, figure out your career path and what you want your life to look like after graduation. Reach out and build relationships with different people who you can look after. That’s one thing I learned after interning — some people see things as not being attainable but it’s really important to put you out there and open those door. Make the first step and get in contact with people who are in positions who can help you and get a head start on the job market. Also, working with those who can help you on campus like the career center and use your resources.
HC FAMU: What do you feel is your biggest accomplishment to-date?
JP: Having two degrees.
HC FAMU: What tips would you give to an inspiring HC girl wanting to do marketing or business?
JP: I would say that they should always be presentable, you never know who you’re going to meet or run into. Don’t be afraid to start conversation. Read; stay abreast on blogs and newsletters, different publications that’ll help you understand what’s going on in that field.
HC FAMU: What’s your favorite place to shop in Atlanta?
JP: So, I’m a big online shopper. Topshop is probably my favorite website to shop off of and I like Lysp. I like Asos. I’m always looking for a deal. If I find something on a website that I like I have to have a promo code to buy it. Or sometimes I pin it and save it until the price goes down. But, when I am in Atlanta I like to shop at Bloomingdales and Express. I get all of my jeans from there.
HC FAMU: Where do you see yourself five years from now?
JP: So, five years from now I hope to have a successful blog. I’m starting a blog that’s going to be hair, beauty, cooking and travel. But professionally, I hope to be a little bit deeper in my career as far as marketing and growing that’ll take me to another level. And I want to be able to run a 5k in month. By March I want to get up to that. My goal is to be a runner.
HC FAMU: Now, let’s talk beauty. What are your favorite cosmetics?
JP: I started wearing lipsticks more. The Lip Bar got me into it. My line sister, Melissa Butler, she really got me into wearing lipsticks. I never use to wear color and now I find three in my purse at a time. It’s my go-to lipstick. Benefit mascara is also my favorite as well!
HC FAMU: You have great natural hairstyles on Instagram. What’s your go-to natural hairstyle?
JP: Right now my go-to style is flexi-twists. Everyone calls it something different. My go-to style use to be a flat twist out on my wet hair; it was fine but I like this new style because I can get more definition, it lasts longer and it takes less time.
HC FAMU: About how long would you say it takes?
JP: To twist and to roll it, 45 minutes and I sit under the dryer for two hours. But I’m able to put it in a pineapple before I go to sleep then when I wake up I pull it a part and go. This is a better look for less time and more sleep time.
HC FAMU: Do you have any favorite hair products?
JP: As far as shampoo and conditioner, I’m not really loyal on those two — whenever I’m going to wear my hair natural I’ll use something that’s a little healthier or thicker like a co-wash. I like thicker conditioners for when I’m wearing my hair natural so I use more products like that. But if it’s a straight look I’ll use a normal shampoo or conditioner that’s more clarifying because I want it super clean to straighten it. I really like the Moroccan Oil restorative hair mask. It smells so good and it’s the best. I will use shampoo and conditioner then deep condition and rinse it out. But when I shampoo and condition I won’t leave it in too long because I don’t want it to be super clean with no product. I have a detangler by Shea Moisture that I like to use as well. I use a quarter size amount of that, comb my hair out in sections and part it with fingers to prevent shedding. I also use a spray bottle to rewet it.
HC FAMU: How long have you been natural?
JP: I started going natural in April 2008 that was the last relaxer I got.
HC FAMU: Your flexi-twists hairstyle was featured online. Are you looking to create a platform where you can share your natural techniques, styles and secrets?
JP: I have been featured on some hair sites before, because they came across my picture. But in this instance I was teaming up with my childhood friend @ellescoop, she has a blog. I did the photography and hairstyle and she featured it on her site with an article. It was good because I gained followers and it drove views on her site. It also gave me some motivation to start doing more. Now, I want to add a video and YouTube element to give information and background. We posted that the night before thanksgiving and were featured on 30+ Instagram pages, two Facebook pages with over 20,000 likes combined from all the posts. I got 600 followers in 3 days, which was crazy. Her page got 1,4000 hits which tripled her views in one month’s time. It made her want to do more posts and made me as well!
Be sure to follow Jardan on Instagram @JardanP to stay up-to-date on her hair secrets and blog!