Hello! My third Ogallala Commons Internship is in full swing here in Phillips County and I am beyond excited to share the new details of my journey. Like last year, I have been working for the Haxtun Chamber of Commerce. Because of the COVID-19 restrictions, my internship has looked a bit different than previous years. Rather than going into a physical office, I have been completing my internship work from the comfort of my own home. However, that has not stopped me from continuing to work on my online marketing skills!

A big project I have been working on since the start of this year’s internship is the Haxtun Chamber of Commerce “Shop Local Campaign”. This campaign was launched at the start of June, in order to promote local businesses and shopping locally. Shopping locally is extremely important to rural communities in order to keep revenue in local economies for generations to come. My role in our brand new “Shop Local Campaign” is to manage all social media entries. I designed seven interactive Facebook graphics that were posted on a weekly basis in the Haxtun Chamber of Commerce Facebook group. For example, on “Takeout Tuesday”, participants would share photos of food purchased from local businesses. Their entries were put into a drawing for a surprise basket!

A large aspect of being an OC intern is setting goals for your personal growth. I set three goals in three different categories: communication, leadership and expanding my professional network. For my communication goal, I am going to design at least 6 Facebook graphics for the Chamber of Commerce. In order to do this, I will need to effectively communicate with my supervisor to ensure I include all required information. In the leadership category, I am going to work one on one with 3 of my peers on how to become a leader. Finally, for expanding my professional network, I am going to attend at least 2 local professional networking events, and network with 5 people (or more) at each.

I am so excited to continue this year’s OC internship! Stay tuned for more!