cv

Director of Communications and Business Development

• Spearhead comprehensive communications, branding, digital media, and media relations strategies for 300-person research center with $250 million in grants over five year period.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams to develop and implement content strategies across digital, social, and print platforms, showcasing the achievements of faculty, staff, and students to internal and external stakeholders while amplifying the center's impact.
• Provide strategic communications and digital support to faculty and senior leadership, ranging from preparing for congressional testimony to crafting social media strategies for longitudinal studies, and leading UX and content strategies for website redesign initiatives.
• Led successful rebranding and content overhaul of flagship websites, resulting in 300% increase in traffic and enhanced user engagement.
• Achieved a tenfold increase in media mentions of faculty and student research accomplishments, bolstering the center's reputation and influence in academic and public spheres.

Director of Communications

• Expanded demographic newsletter readership to 9,000 digital subscribers with a 70%+ open rate, targeting North Carolina leaders for informed decision-making.
• Orchestrated communication efforts to boost Census participation, collaborating with journalists, non-profits, and libraries to amplify outreach efforts.
• Successfully secured and managed a $100,000 grant from Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, contributing to the center's societal impact and academic excellence.
• Established and managed a pro bono demographic research hotline for journalists covering North Carolina, facilitating accurate reporting and community engagement.

Senior Audience Development Manager

• Led a team of accomplished communications professionals to expand Wikipedia's audience and deepen relationships with existing audiences, leveraging the platform's position as the 5th largest website globally.
• Managed the Wikimedia Foundation blog and directed the social media team, collaborating closely with product and global teams to drive digital traffic growth, enhance search and social reach, increase donations during fundraising campaigns, and develop outreach tools to engage new audiences.
• Designed and executed a campaign to encourage individuals to freely license their solar eclipse photos to Wikimedia. Educated over 2,300 participants on Wikipedia and Wikimedia Commons, resulting in the uploading of photos capturing the August 2017 solar eclipse.
• Spearheaded an interdepartmental audience research project to enhance understanding of the Wikimedia Foundation's audience perception and development strategies. Identified gaps in audience comprehension and devised a unified framework for audience development and segmentation.
• Developed educational modules for journalists and researchers to better utilize Wikipedia as a source and research tool, fostering greater collaboration between the Wikimedia Foundation and trusted intermediaries.
• Served as the communications lead for brand strategy initiatives related to Wikipedia, ensuring alignment with organizational objectives and maintaining brand integrity across digital platforms.
• Authored and curated blog content, which was widely recognized and picked up by prominent media outlets including the Washington Post, The Guardian, and El Pais.
• Managed and led internal team for content and editorial strategy for multilingual flagship Wikimedia Foundation website, overseeing a diverse team of more than 40 internal and external stakeholders. Successfully completed the project 50% under the estimated budget.

Co-Founder

• Research, prototyping and measurement of big ideas and revenue-generating projects for media companies across the United States. H+F advocated for and created sustainable, diverse journalism with a focus on the health of the American democracy. Clients include StoryCorps, the Ashoka Foundation, Kaiser Health News, KQED and the Knight Foundation.

Communications Director

• Served as a communications lead on term appointment within technical digital services team.
• Directed comprehensive communications and content strategy for various products, notably including rollout of Federal Web Design Standards and the White House's Social and Behavioral Sciences Team (SBST)
• Co-led onboarding initiatives for 18F and other components of the federal government, facilitating smoother and faster transitions and fostering collaboration across diverse teams.

Editor and writer

• Served as a writer and editor for National Geographic, contributing to both the print magazine and its digital platforms.
• Produced compelling and thought-provoking content under tight deadlines that drew upon in-depth research and a keen eye for detail.
• Collaborated with a diverse team of photographers, researchers, and designers to bring stories to life, ensuring alignment with National Geographic's mission of exploration, education, and conservation.
• Shaped editorial direction, identifying emerging trends, and crafting narratives that resonated with readers across various mediums.
• Used digital storytelling techniques to engage audiences in immersive and interactive experiences, driving increased readership and engagement across digital channels.

Digital Strategist and editor

• Served as a digital editor and strategist at NPR, pioneering innovative approaches to storytelling and audience engagement across broadcast, digital, and social platforms.
• Collaborated closely with cross-functional teams including journalists, developers, and designers to conceptualize and execute digital projects that enhanced NPR's digital presence and impact.
• Shaped NPR's digital strategy, identifying emerging trends and technologies to ensure NPR remained at the forefront of digital journalism.

Director of Digital

• Joined Fresh Air as first embedded web producer, pioneering the development of the show's digital presence and crafting a robust social media strategy.
• Acted as a conduit for audiences worldwide, providing daily insights into the behind-the-scenes work of the show and serving as a virtual guide to our broadcast.
• Wrote and produced daily radio promos for broadcast
• Profiled by Nieman Lab for efforts and strategy, which resulted in significant audience growth. Unique visitors to the Fresh Air website grew by 40 percent over the previous year, outpacing NPR's flagship news programs. The Fresh Air website attracted roughly 1 million people per month and we received the iTunes Podcast of the Year during my tenure.

Associate Producer and Director

• Contributed to various aspects of the show's production, including scriptwriting, editing, and directing talent during live recording sessions in front of a studio audience. Ensured the show remained engaging and entertaining for our audience.
• Led launch of the show's social media presence, using innovative strategies to engage with fans and grow our online community.

Kroc Fellow

• Selected as one of three journalists nationally for the prestigious one-year Kroc-funded journalism fellowship at NPR.
• Wrote and produced radio segments for national broadcast, contributing to NPR's flagship programs and bringing important stories to audiences across the country.
• Produced digital segments for npr.org, leveraging multimedia storytelling techniques to engage with online audiences and expand the reach of NPR's reporting.

Co-Founder, Managing Editor

• Co-created and served as editor of Triangle Blog Blog, a civic news cooperative with over 60 writers dedicated to covering local news in North Carolina.
• Played a key role in increasing municipal voting turnout by 30% over the previous cycle in Chapel Hill and Carrboro, NC, through comprehensive news coverage and community engagement initiatives.
• Launched social and newsletter strategies, achieving an impressive open rate increase of over 75% and reaching an audience of 250,000 individuals with timely and relevant news updates.

Vice Chair, Board of Directors

• I serve as one of the Carrboro representatives on Carrboro-Chapel Hill’s not-for-profit public service agency, delivering high-quality water, wastewater and reclaimed water services.

Advisory Council Member

Board Member

Reader, Knight News Challenge, Libraries

Python Teaching Assistant

Volunteer

• Visiting Fellow, UNC Hussman School of Journalism, Reese News Lab

• Knight-Nieman Visiting Fellowship, Harvard University
• Knight Prototype Fellowship

• Village Voice Web Awards - Best Professional Tumblr
• Shorty Award - Best Microblog of the Year (Finalist)
• Philadelphia Geek Awards - Social Media Campaign of the Year (Finalist)

• iTunes Podcast of the Year (Fresh Air with Terry Gross)

• Peabody Award

• Nora Magid Prize for Creative Non-Fiction, University of Pennsylvania
• Phi Kappa Sigma Fiction Prize, University of Pennsylvania
• Daily Pennsylvanian Columnist of the Year
• National Association of Newspaper Columnists, Columnist of the Year (finalist)
• Columbia University Scholastic Press Association, Gold Circle Awards, General Column Writing (1rst prize)

Masters of Library Science

• Successfully completed a Master of Library Science (MLS) program while working full-time, demonstrating dedication to professional development and academic excellence.
• Achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA, with coursework focusing on metadata, emerging technology trends, academic research, collection development, usability research, and information organization and access.
• For my master's project, collaborated with the Internet Archive to archive every local political candidate website in the country over two political cycles.

Bachelor of Arts

• Magna Cum Laude
• Degree in English Literature and Language, with concentration in creative non-fiction writing
• Minor in History and Sociology of Science
• Worked 20 hours/week as student page in Van Pelt Rare Books and Manuscripts Library and writing tutor in Penn Writing Center
• Member of Daily Pennsylvanian editorial staff, Penn Band, and the Punch Bowl (campus humor magazine)