Senior to Watch: Dana Gleason

Involved and dedicated senior public relations major, Dana Gleason, is active around the Illinois State University campus, taking part in several organizations during the week while remaining attentive to her studies. When she is not in her public relations classes, you can find Gleason at the ISU Chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America  meetings Tuesday nights or interning for the School of Communication (SoC) and Office of Admissions.
 
When I asked Gleason why she chose the public relations major, she said, “I was encouraged to take Communication (COM) 178, ‘Introduction to Public Relations.’ After taking the course, I fell in love with public relations.”

“Introduction to Public Relations” did more for Gleason than help her decide her major; it helped her excel within the field through her involvement in PRSSA. Since her freshman year, Gleason has been an active member of the ISU Chapter. She discovered ISU PRSSA through a COM 178 class assignment, the “Get Involved” project. This assignment requires students to attend a registered student organization’s meeting and write about their experience.  While attending her first ISU PRSSA meeting, Gleason made a friend within her major. They decided to continue attending PRSSA’s weekly meetings. For Gleason, this project served as the stepping stone to her extensive involvement within ISU PRSSA.  

Freshman year Gleason worked with ISU PRSSA’s development committee by assisting in planning events. Gleason is currently involved in ISU PRSSA’s student-run firm, PRogressive Image (PRi), where she manages the Forever Redbirds account. Gleason  has also served as the student ambassador for the Alumni Office where she managed social media. 
When Gleason is not devoting her time to ISU PRSSA, you can find her working at one of her two internships, both of which are at ISU. Gleason is a SoC promotion and development intern. She handles the SoC’s social media accounts. She is also an intern for the Office of Admissions, where she manages its social media.  

Gleason’s advice for  freshmen public relations students is to attend several public relations events at ISU, join and become involved within ISU PRSSA, and start your first internship as soon as possible. 

“Networking as often and early as you can is important,” said Gleason.  She also suggested that public relations students should make relationships with their professors and ask them for advice because they really appreciate it. 

Post-college plans for Gleason include moving to a big city and working at a public relations agency. If she cannot work at an agency, she wants to work for a nonprofit organization or sports team. 

After speaking with Gleason and learning about all of the hard work and involvement she has done during her years at ISU, I believe that she will achieve great things in her future career.  Because of her involvement within PRSSA and multiple internships, Dana Gleason is a role model for all public relations students. 

Interview by Ashley Luecke

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