Past Projects
Soldier Spotlight News-Column
In Fort Hood, Texas, the largest Army base in the world, I worked with the Army’s newspaper, the Fort Hood Sentinel. My passion was to find ways to recognize hard work and effort form the people that work on base. That is why, as an Army Public Affairs Specialist, I pushed to create the first Soldier Weekly Spotlight. This is my first article for that column, featuring SSG Jennifer Simmonds, an Army Healthcare Specialist, excelled as the All-Army Softball Team’s athletic trainer. While this article was just the beginning, the positive responses from readers on base solidified the Soldier Spotlight column where it is still weekly staple in the paper today.
Crisis Communication Project
The principles of crisis communication absolutely fascinate me! This sample I created during my Master’s in Strategic Communication at Drexel University shows how I break down situations that require crisis communication into diagnosable events where both the organization’s intent and the public’s perceptions are clear. Then I show how I design action steps to fix key problems while crafting a public message that builds trust and positivity with the public.
JEMX Feature Story
One of my key jobs as a Public Affairs Specialist in the Army was taking large, complicated events and breaking them down into digestible articles so that anyone effected or interested can easily understand.
In 2024, Fort Hood hosted the largest medical training event in the world, JEMX 2024 (Joint Emergency Medical Exercise). This event hosted thousands of military members from 12 countries, took place over nine days and nights, and was spread out across a training area the size of road island.
With a lot of detailed logistical planning, miles on the Humvee, and great insights from the participants, this article came to fruition. Featured on the front page of the Fort Hood Sentinel, this piece is now used as a teaching example for military article writers.
My last position in the Army was being an OC/T (Observer, Coach/Trainer) . My job was to train, advise, and approve Public Affairs Units for deployment over seas. One of my training events we decided to mix with the “Best of the West” OC/T competition where 26 Soldiers form around the country gathered to compete in the 72 hour event. The work form the unit I was training was published nationally in the Army Times and earned them 15 awards.
A common thread of leaders who make mistakes of turning bad events into full blown crisis is ambiguous communication. This paper I wrote for Drexel’s Master’s in Stragegic and Digital Communication program analyzes the communication used during a food shortage in Fort Carson CO. What was done well, what was done poorly, and the effects of both.
In the Project Communications course, given in Drexel’s Mater’s in Strategic & Communication Program, we learn how to create, plan for, communicate, and execute complex projects in corporate environments. This project example shows how I would plan everything form budgeting, tasks and timelines, to risk contingencies and scope creep. This course was an amazing higher education level addition to what I have learned from the NCO academy and OC/T academy in the Army.
Best Of the West OC/T Competition
Analysis on Ambiguity in Communication
