Alumni Spotlight: Karissa Schmidt '20

Monday, April 19, 2021 - 7:45am

Grad Year: 2020
Program: Bachelor of Arts, Journalism and Sports Media and Communication
Current Position: Communication & Events Coordinator, Grand Island Chamber of Commerces
Current Location: Grand Island, Nebraska 

Where are you currently working? Describe your role.

I am the communications & events coordinator for the Grand Island Chamber of Commerce in Grand Island, Nebraska. My role encompasses a variety of areas, but I can best describe it as marketing. Some of my daily tasks on the communications side include coordinating the Chamber's social media accounts, website, weekly and monthly newsletters, writing press releases, creating graphics, and other marketing materials for Chamber initiatives. On the events side, I coordinate all ribbon cuttings and Business After Hour events, along with the Chamber's annual golf outing and the Harvest of Harmony Parade, which brings around 100 high school bands from all over Nebraska and thousands of spectators every October.

Please provide a timeline of different jobs you've had throughout your career.

My first ever job was as a retail associate at Adidas in Kansas City, Kansas. I worked this job for four and a half years. I started in high school and continued to work there during summers and winter breaks in the first half of college.

I joined The Daily Nebraskan photo/video staff my first week at UNL. I worked in various roles at The DN, starting as a staff photographer/videographer, then the assistant photo/video editor, and senior photo/video editor. I took on the role of the editor-in-chief my senior year.

While working for The Daily Nebraskan, I had an internship with Hudl at the beginning of my junior year. I was a video content production intern for two years until graduation.

I also held some volunteer positions during my four years at UNL, including being the videographer for Camp Kesem for two years and the assistant media director for Cornhusker Girls State in 2019.

I took a break over the summer of 2020 while on the job search. Eventually, I received an offer at my current communications & events coordinator position for the Grand Island Chamber of Commerce in Grand Island, Nebraska.

What job do you believe helped you grow the most in your career and why?

It's tough to choose because each of my jobs taught me different things. My time at The Daily Nebraskan was truly a great experience that instilled confidence and leadership skills in me. I took on an editor role as a sophomore and continued to develop until I eventually led the entire DN staff in my senior year. Beyond that, I was able to apply what I learned in my CoJMC classes to my work at The DN. In turn, I learned from my coworkers at The DN and used those skills in my classes. Overall, The Daily Nebraskan was an excellent supplemental learning experience that was really influential in my career growth.

What is one CoJMC class or experience that made an impact on you as a student?

The first class that comes to mind is Data Journalism. I found a love for data in the Sports Data Visualization class and was grateful to take Data Journalism in place of a reporting class. Math was always something I struggled with, so data in journalism really intimidated me at first. However, this class taught me to think critically and think of numbers as a story. The Data Journalism class challenges you to look at a set of data and think about what those numbers mean beyond just computation.

Name a person who helped you be successful at Nebraska and how:

Professor Matt Waite is the first person who comes to mind. I enrolled in both his Sports Data Visualization class and his drones popup class in my junior year. I instantly found a great interest in what we were working on and excelled in the class. I took Waite's Data class in my senior year and with his help, I also had the basis of my journalism capstone revolve around data. Beyond my school work, Matt was also on The Daily Nebraskan's publications board. I turned to him for advice on many occasions because I knew he would be straightforward with me and not sugarcoat his response. He would ask me questions and help me think through my own thoughts before giving his own opinions which helped me become a better leader and decision-maker.

Someone who helped me succeed outside of the University was my Hudl internship supervisor, Emma Hulsey. When I started my internship at Hudl, I had no idea I would be taking on the role of editor-in-chief with The DN that next year, which was more time-consuming than the role I held when I started the internship. I found myself juggling both The DN, my Hudl internship, and upper-level classes, which wasn't easy. Emma let me be flexible with my schedule and was always understanding when there were times that I needed to cut back my hours for an exam or just because life was crazy. She also let me take on roles in my internship that strengthened my skills, such as helping with interviews of potential interns and guiding the new interns through the training and onboarding process. Beyond my work at Hudl, Emma taught me to focus on myself and encouraged me to look for opportunities to better myself personally and professionally.

Fill in the blank: "The best thing about being a Husker is ___________________."

The best thing about being a Husker is the sense of community. A few examples of this come to mind: One being when I was in Dallas, Texas, a few years ago wearing a Husker sweatshirt and had someone yell "Go Big Red" to me from across the street. Another being at Husker sporting events when you would see Nebraska fans go up to the opposing team fan and saying a simple "Welcome to Nebraska" or starting a genuine conversation. Huskers have so much pride in the university, and it continues to show in so many ways.

Are you currently working on any special projects?

I briefly mentioned this in a previous question but part of my job is to plan the Harvest of Harmony parade. The parade is a big deal to Grand Island as it's an event taking place every year since 1938. The parade brings in over 100 high school marching bands from across Nebraska. The event draws in thousands of spectators and many look forward to the event each October.

I have also been working on what the Chamber calls "workforce initiatives," which aim to develop and grow the workforce in the Grand Island area. Several programs are launching in the coming year, and I have been working on creating the research for promotional and marketing materials for the programs.

Have you had any life-changing experiences?

I wouldn't say I have had any substantial life-changing experiences, but finishing my last semester of college online due to COVID-19 was definitely an experience that I wasn't expecting. As a senior, I worked as an intern at Hudl and the editor-in-chief of The Daily Nebraskan while completing my senior year. When the University announced that the campus was closing, I not only had to shift my schoolwork to online, but I also had to work remotely for my internship and lead my Daily Nebraskan staff to work remotely. I had to push aside my grief of missing all of the fun senior experiences and focus on leading my Daily Nebraskan staff to ensure that the newspaper was still functioning despite not being in the newsroom every night.

What would you say is the most important skill or quality to have "out in the real world"?

To me, the most important skill to have in the "real world" is acknowledging the need for self-care. Being an adult can be scary and stressful, and it can be easy to push aside your health to work on your career, relationships, family, or whatever else is going on. Nothing is more important than taking care of yourself in a mental, physical and emotional capacity. I do this by making sure I set aside time to read a few chapters of a book every night. This is my time to relax and do something I enjoy. I have also been 'trying' to go to the gym more and packing healthier lunches to improve my physical health. Self-care looks different to everyone. Whatever it looks like for you, making sure it becomes a priority in your life is an important skill to have.

What advice do you have for current students, prospective students?

My best piece of advice would be to take the time to enjoy your college experience. When I look back at my years at UNL, there are times that I regret not spending more time with my friends or attending events. I focused a lot on my work and schoolwork, and in turn, I didn't set aside enough time to really enjoy being in college. Classes and work experiences are important, but that doesn't mean you have to spend every waking second focused on that work. Spend all day watching Husker football. Attend a campus event that sounded interesting. Meet up for coffee with friends at the Mill without the goal of studying. By attending campus events or fostering relationships with your friends, you better yourself as a human and open yourself up to new experiences that will help you in your career in the long run. Your college years fly by and you'll regret not taking in all of the experiences of being a Husker.

Karissa Schmidt
Karissa Schmidt