What is your major?
I’m a marketing and management/entrepreneurship double major.
Where are you from?
Omaha, Nebraska.
What is UPC for those who don’t know what it is?
Basically, UPC is THE event planning organization at UNL.
UPC’s mission is to provide the university with entertaining, educational and diverse programming to enhance the UNL community. It’s our job to bring the best concerts, speakers, lectures, movies, and other events to campus with the fees that students pay. Our thirty person council researches events, proposes them at our event selection, and together we choose the top programs that we can bring each semester. Our most popular events on-going events include the Homecoming and Spring concerts and the Second Chance Cinema series at the Ross.
What is your favorite memory with UPC?
My favorite memory was running the “Spoken Soiree featuring the Strivers’ Row Poets” event that UPC hosted in the Gaughan Center in February 2012. At the time, I was the Diversity/Education Chair, and it was the first event that I was in charge of coordinating. We had put a lot of extra elements in to the event and I was super nervous as to how everything was going to come together.
The event was incredible! The poetry blew absolutely everyone away. People were crying, people were laughing, there was an emotional connection between the poets and the audience like I had never felt at any kind of event before. After the show ended, at least three fourths of the crowd stayed behind to meet the poets and just to hang out, soaking up everything that they had just seen. We received positive feedback like we never had before, with people saying this was the coolest thing they had ever seen while going to school here. I think the Strivers’ Row event made the deepest impact on students out of all the events we’ve done since I’ve joined UPC, so it was a really rewarding experience.
What is your role in UPC?
I am currently a general council member, but I was President from January – December 2013 and the Diversity/Education Chair from January – December 2012. As a general council member, I attend regular meetings, staff our events, and propose events!
How did you get involved with UPC?
During my freshman year, I was looking to get involved with an RSO that was going to be fun, beneficial to my career goals, and something that made a difference on campus. After attending the Big Boi concert in October 2010, I had a feeling UPC could be that organization. I checked them out online and then applied in September of my sophomore year!
What do you want to do after graduation?
Right now, I’m currently looking for jobs in marketing, sales, or advertising, primarily in Chicago or New York. I may or may not have had some job offers trickle in, but either way I’m looking for some meaningful experience that will challenging and rewarding.
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Man, that’s a tough question! I don’t think I’ve completely figured that out yet, haha. I imagine I will be working as a marketing executive for a tech company that’s looking to do exciting work. Maybe for a company like Amazon or a smaller startup. We’ll see!