Megan Larocque's Unique Perspective

IT WAS AN INTERNSHIP FROM 800 MILES AWAY. But the distance didn’t keep Megan LaRocque from delivering her unique perspective to the world-renowned advertising agency Leo Burnett Chicago during her summer 2022 internship.

LaRocque, a senior graphic design major from Cawker City, chose the internship with Leo Burnett because it offered her an excellent learning opportunity to further her design skills and future career. Participating in a remote internship meant that LaRocque would not have to relocate to Chicago for the summer, which would have entailed finding housing and many other expenses.

“The remote option gave me the opportunity to pursue this great experience without taking on a major financial burden,” she said.

LaRocque was offered the internship and a $5,000 scholarship opportunity after winning the 28th annual Pencil Project Portfolio review. The Pencil Project is a talent development and recruiting program established by Leo Burnett at FHSU in 2018. Agency representatives, among them Kerri Soukup, FHSU graphic arts graduate and executive creative director at Leo Burnett, reviewed student portfolios for the project in April of 2022.

Soukup, with a 23-year tenure at Leo Burnett, said the Pencil Project provides a non-traditional pathway to a career in advertising. Typically, large ad agencies draw their talent from portfolio reviews or directly from advertising schools, Soukup said. To invest in students from a small graphic design program on the High Plains of western Kansas is a unique and innovative approach to identifying and nurturing talent, and one that aligns well with her company’s culture.

“Every time I can come back to Fort Hays, it’s easily the most fulfilling day of my year,” Soukup said. “It’s really important for me to help students of all ages see how graphic design is one way to use their creativity along their career path.”

After winning the Pencil Project, LaRocque started her internship on June 6, working with Soukup’s creative team. During the last few weeks of her internship, she worked with a group of other interns on concept pitches for Wingstop, a chain of chicken wings restaurants that is a Leo Burnett account. LaRocque said the interns focused on how best to influence people to choose Wingstop over other brands in a very competitive marketplace where inflation is rising.

Interns for Leo Burnett provide the company with fresh perspectives.

“We did a lot of Gen-Z advertising,” she said.

For LaRocque, that Gen-Z perspective can be found by looking for relevancy among her generation.

“What are young adults watching, viewing,” she said. “We did a lot of social listening. What are they tweeting about? You get ideas based on what people are saying about the products. That’s how we formulated our ideas.”

LaRocque said she is grateful she could work with a large company such as Leo Burnett. Although she had previously thought a large urban-based company would not fit her career goals, she found the personal and professional connections she experienced with Leo Burnett very appealing.

She traveled to Chicago toward the end of the internship for a presentation and to meet her fellow interns. LaRocque’s team of interns worked remotely and met for the first time in person during this trip.

“I had never been to Chicago,” LaRocque said. “It was my first time flying alone. I just exited the airport and hopped in a taxi and went straight to the office. I got there with about 30 minutes to spare before I had to make a presentation.”

LaRocque highly recommends the hands-on experience of an internship. She had hoped to see how creative ideas are transitioned into production, as well as the business side of an advertising company. She also wanted the experience of presenting her ideas to a client. Her expectations were met through the Leo Burnett internship.

“Seeing how a company functions is very beneficial,” she said. “Also, just knowing how to think creatively with other people and on behalf of clients is eye-opening.”

It was an internship from 800 milesaway. But the distance didn’t keepMegan LaRocque from delivering herunique perspective.

Although there were definite cost savings that made her remote internship experience more manageable, LaRocque said it was more difficult to forge relationships with team members remotely. In that regard, being physically in a workspace together would likely have benefited the team.

“I didn’t feel like I actually knew the people until I got there. After that, it was just fun, hanging out with coworkers. I wish I could have had more of that,” she said.

LaRocque is in her final semester at FHSU this fall and uses her design skills working for the FHSU Foundation. She hopes to reach out to Leo Burnett or perhaps a design company in Kansas City when she starts her career path after graduation.

KERRI SOUKUP

Nurturing the relationship between FHSU and Leo Burnett has long been a passion for Kerri Soukup, ‘97, executive creative director for Leo Burnett and graduate of FHSU’s graphic design program. She is immensely thankful for what she calls the “gem of a design program in my own backyard” that she found at FHSU.

Soukup grew up in Ellsworth, Kansas, about an hour from FHSU, and never envisioned herself as a graphic designer in a major city.

“I didn’t know that graphic design was something I could study,” she said. “So, it’s really important for me to help students of all ages. To show them that graphic design is one way to find their path forward and use their talent to break into a creative industry.”

“I didn’t even know how to dream big enough about what I could be.”

During her time at FHSU, Soukup learned conceptual design, resourcefulness, and the importance of discipline and work ethic. The collaborative atmosphere at FHSU instilled in Soukup the tools to succeed in a highly competitive career path.

Her passion for connecting FHSU students to careers with Leo Burnett continues. With her guidance and experience in the industry, Soukup has the following advice for art and design students:

“Stay curious and humble. Stay open to critique. Use it to make yourself and your work better. Always be open to learning because that never ends.”