Chris Cox ’14
Author: perkinsk
Class: 2014; Public Relations
Then: ISUtv (web director); PRSSA (member and vice president); the Salt Company (connection group leader)
Now: NEXT Media Specialist at Cornerstone Church of Ames
In his own words: As most Greenlee students know, we boast a more than 99 percent job placement within six months of graduation. I, however, was that odd less than one percent.
After several years being involved in various clubs and organizations, internships and side jobs, I finished my classwork and walked during the spring commencement of 2014. I did my required internship during that summer, and from the start it seemed that it would turn into a full-time job after the summer. That, however, did not end up being the case.
Two weeks before the end of the internship, I discovered that higher up the chain, it was decided they didn’t need this position in a full-time context. I fell back on using skills I picked up during my undergrad to freelance and contract the eight months that I looked for full-time work.
I had solid video production skills, especially editing, that I had gained being part of ISUtv and making promotional materials for PRSSA, in addition to internships I had previously completed. I also had enough basic graphic design and digital media experience to be able to one-stop-shop small projects for friends and acquaintances. One of those contracts led me to my current position.
In late January of 2015, I got an email from someone I knew that was on staff that worked with regional and global ministries. They needed a video shot of someone that had just gotten back from a mission trip to Haiti and they had heard through the grapevine that I was looking for freelance work. After that project, I worked on two more for the church as a whole. During those projects, I worked closely with the communications lead at that time. He was really impressed with my skills as someone that had only just graduated in the past year, and little did I know, was working on creating a part-time position or paid internship to get me on staff.
I ended up accepting an offer that developed in under a week, from when it was first proposed to our lead pastor, to my acceptance, and I started in June of last year. Since then, I’ve been able to not only average producing one video a week, but have been able to photograph and document many different events and activities, work with newspapers to place advertisements for special services, and even help develop an interactive edition of a theology course we teach. In addition, my daily duties in web and social media management help keep me sharp for all avenues of communication. Were it not for the Greenlee school’s dedication to excellence, though, I wouldn’t have been equipped to fly solo and take the contract that ended up becoming a career.