What is it like helping GESS to document all the fun and interesting things that happen on campus? Our graduating student Alena Koelnsperger did that and more, by volunteering her time with our Marketing Department. Hear from Alena what she has accomplished at GESS.
How did your working with GESS’ Marketing Department come about?
My CAS (Creativity, Activity, Service) teacher Mrs Lacoste shared in class that the school’s Design Team was looking for volunteer photographers – I was immediately intrigued. Photography and video-editing have always been my passion, so I was really excited to volunteer and see if my photos would be used in the school’s marketing materials and social media. Not only was I able to bring my passion to life, but I had the privilege to meet the amazing Design Team (Kai Ting, Qayyum and intern Yi Qian). They helped me a lot throughout my journey and even welcomed me into their office every week to teach me the basics of photoshop, animation, photography, and so much more.
Then one day, I came across GESS’ TikTok video which caught my attention. I asked myself, what if I started a committee where we students can show a glimpse of our school life in a fun and interactive way? After discussing this with the External Communications, Design and Marketing teams, we were able to collaborate on this project. Thanks to Digital Marketing Manager Halit’s expertise and guidance, we were able to kick off our TikTok account and create content with many students.
What are some of the work you have accomplished? How much time or how often do you have to go about these activities, on top of your schoolwork?
Apart from taking photos of school events such as Pink Shirt Day and sport competitions, I was also actively working with my fellow committee members to gather TikTok content ideas once a week, as our main aim is to reach a wide audience and profile our school life. Thankfully, the schedule for photo-taking was up to my availability and does not compromise my classes, so I did not have to worry even if I had exams coming up.
A huge accomplishment that I am very proud of is our school tour video which is available on YouTube. Halit gave me the opportunity to be featured in this video and I am beyond grateful for that. We had a few meetings to plan and direct the video, which was then showcased to the school’s Senior Leadership Team and the entire Marketing & Admissions Department came to watch and cheer me on.
How do you feel working with the Marketing Department has benefitted you?
Working with the Marketing Department has definitely helped me identify my passion and skills within the creative field. Because of all the school work, I never had the chance to dive into this field and learn so many new things such as collaborating with others (especially working adults!) and plan major projects.
Alena with former Design Team intern Yi Qian
Has getting a taste of the creative field influenced you on your future plans, be it pursuing education in this area or even considering a future career in this jobscope?
This experience has allowed me to gain confidence and motivation to further explore the field of digital marketing and social media. I now feel better equipped to make informed decisions for my studies and career path which I had no idea even just a few months ago. Working with the Marketing and Design Teams also gave me insights to their profession, which seemed like lots of fun.
After every meeting with Halit he would tell me, “You have a bright future in front of you,” and I will certainly live up to that.
What are some challenges you encountered and how have you overcome them?
During the process of establishing the committee, I had to overcome a few obstacles, especially because the committee would be running independently without any supervision. This means that I was responsible for all decision-making and making sure that we scheduled regular committee meetings and worked productively in order to upload weekly videos. Although it was quite challenging to balance this with school work, I am proud of how far this project has come and glad that other students were keen on participating.
Throughout this project, I became more aware of the importance of teamwork and collaboration, as well as being independent. Every challenge that I had to face, I took it as a chance to grow and develop as an individual.
Making Gessy part of the TikTok fun on campus with Halit and classmates
How have GESS, your teachers and classmates supported you when you needed to work on these?
First off, I want to thank the Marketing Department for providing me the opportunity and wider perspective with which I could discover and develop my passion and develop this by handing me this opportunity. The team was always opened to my ideas and gave me the freedom to get creative, whether it was directing the school tour video or creating content for social media.
Without the help of the Design Team, I would not be where I am today. I felt comfortable and welcomed working with them and they always helped me if I ever needed advice. Everyone was very down to earth which made me feel motivated to work hard.
Most of my teachers were supportive about my photography or filming assignments. I also want to thank my classmates who were willing to participate in our videos, such as our football match video-editing or our fun student interview videos. With their help, we were able to demonstrate a diverse and welcoming feel of our GESS community.
To your fellow school mates who are considering trying their hands at what you did, what would be your advice to them?
If you love to be creative or have always wanted to know how it is like to work in this field, I would definitely recommend you to give it a shot. We are still young and have such a long journey ahead of us, so why not try it out! Everyone I worked with is super friendly and I appreciate every single one of them. It is a once in a lifetime opportunity to be able to participate in such activities and be part of the community. Whether you are interested in photography, videography, creating content or directing videos, the Marketing Department will always be there to support you and provide you with endless opportunities.
This being my 14th and final year at GESS (graduating with class of 2023), I am very happy to have worked with the department, even though it was only for a year. It felt like a reward for my last year and I am glad that I could wrap up this chapter with such an amazing memory.
It was a pleasure working with you all and I will definitely cherish this memory forever. Thank you for giving me the chance to discover my passion and create a ground for me to grow.
