Danaris Lopez Works as Marketing and Social Media Intern at the Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum
from FSU Art BA ’20 Danaris Lopez:
My summer internship experience was with the Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum in Peoria, Illinois. This internship was conducted remotely and was a 6-credit hour internship requiring 20-25 hours a week. As a Marketing and Social Media Intern at the Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum, I was responsible for managing and creating marketing material. Typical marketing material for the PlayHouse included Facebook and Instagram posts, weekly email blasts, and graphics. This material was closely related to five of the PlayHouse’s on-going programs. I was also responsible for measuring these posts by analyzing data. For example, I analyzed data Facebook data using Facebook Analytics. Moreover, I was responsible for managing two websites. One website was the museum’s main website. I was tasked with updating the website’s content such as the event calendar and program resources. The second website I was responsible for was the PlayHouse Times which is an online kid-written newspaper founded by the museum. This website required weekly updates and edits. Finally, I was responsible for attending weekly zoom meetings. These zoom meeting ranged from weekly staff meetings to data meetings to brainstorm sessions.
During my time with the Peoria PlayHouse Children’s Museum, I learned several valuable skills. I learned how to navigate and manage a variety of unfamiliar software such as WordPress, Constant Contact, Facebook Analytics, Smart Sheets, InDesign, and even Zoom. Moreover, since I had a variety of responsibilities, I gained valuable organization and time-management skills. I also gained new communication skills and teamwork skills that arose from working virtually. For instance, I learned how to efficiently communicate and collaborate through email and zoom.
One of the challenges I faced was figuring out how to work remotely for an organization in a different state. Adjusting to an organization and its operations remotely was tricky and required a lot of question-asking. This challenge, however, proved to be the most rewarding to overcome. One of the most enjoyable parts of this experience was meeting wonderful people during a challenging time. Being able to meet with my team, collaborate with them effectively, and execute impactful programs virtually was both awesome and inspiring. It proves that while we may be experiencing a difficult time, we are resilient and will continue to be.
