Lexington Resident Named Intern of the Month at Ashland University

2015 Nov 24

Lexington resident Tiarra Kick, who is a junior marketing major and public relations minor, was named Ashland University's November Intern of the Month after completing an internship with the Mansfield YMCA as the Marketing Specialist this past summer.

During her internship, Kick held many responsibilities. This consisted of managing marketing plans, assisting with communications and strategies with media firms, monitoring marketing results to determine effectiveness, and enhancing the ways that the YMCA utilized the Nationwide Campaign materials.

Kick did this by writing press releases, implementing social media tactics and assisting with other departments of project management. Also, she had the opportunity to grow as a marketing professional and gain experience working with teams and managing projects strategically.

Though she was brought on as an intern, she was offered a new position at the YMCA by her supervisor to fulfill until the school year began in August.

"Fulfilling the Marking and Communications Specialist position was my biggest value-added contribution. I was really excited and honored that I would be able to have more responsibility. This opportunity benefited me immensely," she said.

While filling the shoes as the Marketing and Communications Specialist, Kick had the chance to develop relationships with businesses and news outlets in the community which allowed her to gain sponsors for events. One of her major accomplishments was raising $600 for the Mansfield YMCA's Annual Car Show and Blueberry Festival Glow Run.

Moreover, she achieved all of her established learning objectives which allowed her to grow as a business professional in several ways. This included improving her written and verbal skills, gaining presentation experience, increasing project management and analytic tracking skills, as well as increasing the YMCA's Facebook engagement by 920%. Though Kick had a great experience, she stresses for students to be proactive in the internship process.

"Make the first move to introduce yourself, ask questions, and find the opportunities for improvement once you understand the processes you work with. The benefits of an internship are endless!" she added.

Kick is the daughter of Terry and Kara Kick, and she is a 2013 graduate of Lexington High School.

Ashland University, ranked in the top 200 colleges and universities in U.S. News and World Report's National Universities category for 2016, is a mid-sized, private university conveniently located a short distance from Akron, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. Ashland University (www.ashland.edu) values the individual student and offers a unique educational experience that combines the challenge of strong, applied academic programs with a faculty and staff who build nurturing relationships with their students. ###