ANDREA GILS MULTICULTURAL EXPERIENCE
Native proficiency in Spanish and English Excellent skills in Portuguese Travel to Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Chile, France, Germany, Spain, Holland and 11 states in the United States
AWARDS | INTERNATIONAL CERTIFICATIONS
2014 Missouri College Media Association Awards - Division I 2nd. place, Best Overall Newspaper | 1st. place, Website Home page 3rd. place, In-Depth News Reporting | 3rd. place, News Writing Honorable mention, Infographic PRSA 2013 Diversity Multicultural Scholarship 2013 Tri-State Advertising and Marketing Professionals Scholarship Cert. TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) Certified by Trinity College London Certificado de Proficiência em Língua Portuguesa para Extranjeiros Certified by Universidade de Caxias do Sul
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
andreagilsm@gmail.com | @andreagils | /in/andreagils | andreagils.wix.com/andreagils
EXPERIENCE
Cata-Connector Intern, Multicultural Practice Jan. 2015 to March 2015 Golin - Chicago, Ill. Assisted in planning, researching and executing public relations campaigns in general and multicultural markets for various clients including Wells Fargo, Nestlé, Constellation Brands, YMCA, Unilever, Silk and Whitewave Foods Online community management for beer brands including Corona Extra, with 1.5M Facebook fans and 46K Twitter followers, seeing a 1.5% and 10% fan growth respectively | Conducted social listening for benchmark reporting using Sysomos Map | Created monthly social media metrics and media audit client reports for general, Hispanic and LGBT markets | Conducted Hispanic and African American influencer research and monitoring for social activations | Wrote bilingual pitches and secured placements in Hispanic and LGBT print local and online outlets, including Dallas Voice, La Opinión (L.A.), El Diario (NY) and Mamás Latinas | Developed social content calendars | Copywriting and translation English-Spanish and viceversa for social media content, press releases, Q&A and byline articles Social Media Co-Chair | Newsletter Editor April 2014 to present | April 2014 to December 2014 Public Relations Society of America - St. Louis Chapter - St. Louis, Mo. Copywriting and editing for chapter’s monthly newsletter sent to nearly 300 PRSA St. Louis Chapter members | Content creation and Twitter community management serving 2.7K followers and resulting in 17% follower growth
PRSA St. Louis 2014 Digital Communications Summit - St. Louis, Mo. PRSSA 2014 National Conference - Washington, D.C. Presenter Missouri College Media Association 2014 Conference - Kansas City, Mo. PRSSA 2013 National Assembly - Albuquerque, NM. Delegate for PRSSA-Southeast Chapter National Committee Candidate V.P. Advocacy | V.P. Professional Development 2013 American Advertising Federation Conference- Kansas City, Mo. PRSSA 2012 National Conference - San Francisco, Calif. PRSSA 2012 Regional Conference - Nashville, Tenn.
SOFTWARE PROFICIENCY
Adobe Photoshop, InDesign, Illustrator, Muse and Flash CC CisionPoint, Factiva, Bizminer, ESRI, Constant Contact, Wordpress, iMovie Sysomos, Google Analytics, Facebook Insights, Twitter Analytics
EDUCATION
B.S. Mass Communication: Public Relations B.A. Mass Communication: Journalism Southeast Missouri State University | Aug. 2011 to Dec. 2014 Magna Cum Laude | Jane Stephen Honors Scholar Cumulative GPA (courses at Southeast): 3.95 Overall GPA (with Cert. TESOL transfer credits): 3.78 Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Certificate Dickens Institute- Montevideo, Uruguay | March 2009 to Dec. 2010 Public Relations and Event Planning Course CEI Institute- Maldonado, Uruguay | March 2009 to Dec. 2009
PUBLICATIONS USA Today College | Southeast Missourian newspaper Burrelle’s Luce Fresh Ideas blog | WiRED International PRSA St. Louis blog PRSSA National’s FORUM newspaper and Progressions blog Cover design for Southeast Missouri State University Helix journal
Public Relations Intern | International Student Ambassador May 2014 to Dec. 2014 | Jan. 2014 to April 2014 Office of International Education and Services - Cape Girardeau, Mo. Led and assisted over 250 new international students from more than 48 countries | Branding, copywriting and design for website, newsletter, collaterals and event promotions for department’s multicultural audiences | Secured two placements in regional media | Facebook campaign planning and monitoring resulting in 15% fan growth Diversity and Ethics Subcommittee Sept. 2013 to May 2014 Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) National - Cape Girardeau, Mo. Wrote editorial content for PRSSA National’s blog discussing ethics and diversity topics in public relations Online Managing Editor | Copy Editor and Staff Writer May 2013 to April 2014 | Aug. 2012 to April 2013 Arrow (Southeast Missouri State University’s student-run newspaper) - Cape Girardeau, Mo. Recruited and supervised 50+ reporters and 4 editors | Redesigned award-winning website home page | Managed daily calendar of story assignments | Designed weekly pages, infographics and center spreads | Social media community management resulting in a 116% increase of Twitter followers and 131% Facebook fans| Crisis management on Facebook Public Relations Intern Jan. 2013 to May 2013 University of Missouri Small Business Technology and Development Center - Jackson, Mo. Assisted in development and implementation of public relations campaigns | Led client meetings and pitched campaigns to clients from tobacco, music and food industries |Conducted competitive market research using Bizminer and ESRI | Designed Facebook and Twitter covers for clients’ pages | Mentored clients to use social media effectively and implement social media campaigns Firm Director | Staff Member Aug. 2012 to June 2013 | Jan. 2012 to May 2012 Riverfront Public Relations (student-run public relations agency) - Cape Girardeau, Mo. Rebranded the firm and created company’s mission, values and website | Recruited, retained, led and supervised 19 members | Pitched to clients and secured six accounts, including City of Sikeston, a client resulting in the firm’s highest revenue | Proof-read client-facing materials | Assisted in research and campaign planning