Senior Olivia Hicks is graduating twice this semester with a bachelorā€™s degree in mass communication and a bachelorā€™s degree in professional and technical writing.

Hicks has spent the fall semester working part-time for MHP/Team SI, a full-service performance marketing agency, learning skills in public relations, social media development and management, and news and editorial writing. After graduation, she plans to begin a full-time public relations position with the company.

ā€œI am very excited for this next step,ā€ Hicks said. ā€œI really love campus, and it will be hard to leave, but I will make sure to come visit.ā€

Hicks joined ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock in 2020, citing affordability as the key reason she chose the university.

ā€œWhen senior year rolled around, I had to look deep and figure out what was most important to me,ā€ Hicks said. ā€œI realized that being close to home and close to my family would give me many opportunities both personally and academically. Because of the scholarships and grants I have gotten from this school, I am graduating debt free!ā€

Hicksā€™ mother also played an important role in her decision to attend college. Hicks grew up watching her mother earn two degrees, which inspired her to work hard in her own college career.

ā€œMy mother is also an alum of the university,ā€ Hicks recalled. ā€œShe is a single mother who went to school while raising me. She graduated when I was 11 with a bachelorā€™s degree in history, and then she went back for her masterā€™s degree in secondary education and graduated in 2019. My entire childhood was surrounded by higher education. I grew up on this campus. I remember going to swim in the pool and sitting in on my momā€™s history lectures. I loved this campus and the faculty. Itā€™s like home to me.ā€

Hicks learned key skills while attending ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock. Through the Federal Work-Study Program and Trojan Works, she worked for two years as an editorial assistant in the Office of Communications and Marketing.

ā€œI would say that my time as an editorial assistant is what prepared me the most,ā€ Hicks said. ā€œNot only did I get to know the staff at my current job through that position, but it gave me connections, led me on a path to writing stories that won national awards, and gave me confidence in my skill set. A lot of my college career I credit to that time. It gave me a lot of opportunities to hone my skills, be involved in campus, meet a lot of people, and that was the highlight of my college career.ā€

Meaghan Milliorn, director of digital strategy, described Hicks as an asset to the Communications and Marketing team.

ā€œHer creativity and enthusiasm were valuable as she created content and videos for the universityā€™s social media platforms,ā€ Milliorn said. ā€œIā€™m so proud of her growth and that she gets to build her career and utilize what sheā€™s learned at the university.ā€

Along the way, Hicks has also completed internships in marketing, public relations, and social media with the ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock Trojan Food Pantry, Stone Ward, and Wildwood Park for the Arts. She has been honored for her writing skills with multiple awards in education sports writing and education feature writing by the Arkansas Press Women and the National Federation of Press Women.

Another important part of Hicksā€™ college experience was being involved in the Chancellorā€™s Leadership Corps (CLC), which helped her pay for college and learn valuable leadership skills.

ā€œI started CLC as a freshman and immediately found a home there,ā€ Hicks said. ā€œCorrigan Revels and Tiffani Silvey were very integral to my college experience. Theyā€™ve been wonderful mentors, and Iā€™ve learned a lot from them. I was a peer mentor for the arts and communication student group for two years. My mentees were amazing, and I loved getting to help them through their early college experience.ā€

As this part of her life comes to a close, her advice for new college students is to get involved in campus and professional opportunities.

ā€œGet out of your comfort zone because you never know who you might connect with, who might have job opportunities, and who might be your friend,ā€ she said. ā€œThere are so many opportunities here that people donā€™t know about, and itā€™s a matter of putting yourself out there and knowing the right people.ā€

The post Next Chapter Unfolds: Hicks Celebrates Graduation and New Career appeared first on News.

He brings that same passion to his after-hours pursuits. Revels, an alumnus of the School of Mass Communication, is continuing to make strides in his filmmaking career.

This summer Revels debuted his most recent project, ā€œFreedomā€™s House,ā€ at ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock. The short film tells the story of Amari, a middle-aged Black man who seems like heā€™s living the American Dream with a great career and family, but Amariā€™s life is not as perfect as it seems.

ā€œAs the film progresses, Amariā€™s battling some internal conflicts,ā€ Revels said. ā€œOverall, the film balances themes of mental health, being aware of your triggers, and how to carry out your emotions when it comes to sharing how you truly feel. It reminds people to make sure that those in your inner circle are those who truly support you. I tell my students that all the time.ā€

The 11-minute film was filmed on location in Little Rock and features a cast and crew of local Arkansas talent. Dylan Pojar-Weatherly served as the director of photography, and Essence Simoneā€™, another ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock alum, served as the production assistant.

ā€œWhen it comes to filmmaking, what really helped was having a great team of actors and crew to help pull it all together,ā€ Revels said.

About 50 people watched the short filmā€™s premiere at ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock, and Revels said that the crowd ā€œreally enjoyed it.ā€

Revels wrote the script back in 2020, and it made him a finalist for the Indie Memphis Black Filmmaker Fellowship in Screenwriting.

ā€œThat gave me a boost at a time when I was questioning what was my next step in my film career,ā€ Revels said. ā€œI wanted to take time to do the story justice, and Iā€™m blessed to work with a talented team to bring it all together. I believe this is my best work yet.ā€

For the next few months, ā€œFreedomā€™s Houseā€ will be making its rounds during the film festival season, but Revels plans to release the film on YouTube close to the end of the year.

In addition to ā€œFreedomā€™s House,ā€ Revels is working on pre-production for his first web series that is set to launch in the fall.

ā€œIt will be called ā€˜Black Eyed Peas,ā€™ and it celebrates and brings awareness to the Black experience in America,ā€ Revels said. ā€œItā€™s an anthology series and will be on the lighter side. A lot of the cast and crew from ā€˜Freedomā€™s Houseā€™ will be in this web series.ā€

The post Revels Debuts New Short Film Focused on Mental Health at ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock appeared first on News.

After graduating with her Bachelor of Art in applied communication in 2021, Silvey sought freelance strategic advising opportunities with businesses across the state.

ā€œI started providing knowledge and information on stuff they were struggling with, and I realized there could be a career in that,ā€ Silvey said. ā€œI started taking on new clients and working on strategic goals and expansion strategies for them. Itā€™s become a mini-source of income for me, and Iā€™m hoping it becomes a main source one day. It has the potential to.ā€

Silvey also sells scrunchies, sweatshirts, and t-shirts on Etsy through her small business, .

ā€œGrowing up, I spent a lot of time with my grandma, and she taught me how to sew and do a lot of other home-economics stuff like cooking and baking,ā€ Silvey said. ā€œI bought my own sewing machine sophomore year of college, and I started making scrunchies to sell to my sorority sisters. It took off so much that I eventually had to set up a platform to keep up with all the sales, so I expanded onto Etsy to reach more people, and it just kind of went from there.ā€

She also has deals making t-shirts with various companies and community programs across Little Rock, including a little league baseball team, and selling her scrunchies at hair salons.

Until graduation, her priorities are set on finishing up the semester and helping support and guide the scholars who look up to her. As a full-time student success coach for ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock Chancellorā€™s Leadership Corps, she guides, supports, and provides resources to students in the program, manages the Trojan Food Pantry, which can be found on the second floor of the Student Leadership Center, and teaches a personal awareness course that helps freshmen transition seamlessly to college life.

ā€œI think itā€™s a good thing that Iā€™m only 23 while in this role,ā€ Silvey said. ā€œI am able to relate to students easily, which helps me understand what types of support and resources they need. Being such a young professional in higher education has shocked a lot of people, but Iā€™m always excited to do things outside of my comfort zone!ā€

That drive and commitment has not gone unnoticed by people within the ĢĒŠÄVlog“«Ć½ Little Rock community, including her co-worker and mentor Corrigan Revels, assistant director for student leadership and development.

ā€œIā€™ve really enjoyed watching °Õ¾±“Ś“Ś²¹²Ō¾±ā€™s growth,ā€ Revels said. ā€œSheā€™s become an awesome success coach, and itā€™s been a great thing to witness and support. I just look forward to seeing the impact she makes in the future.ā€

As far as Silvey is concerned, that future involves a relocation and a career as a full-time entrepreneur of multiple successful companies.

ā€œIā€™m excited to be in a new space with a new perspective, new people, and new connections so I can continue to grow and learn,ā€ Silvey said.

The post Silvey Leaves Her Mark on School of Business and Chancellorā€™s Leadership Corps appeared first on News.