SAMANTHA LEONORE MENDAROS

Phone | 408 427 4403 Email | samantha.mendaros@gmail.com Website |samanthamendaros.com Twitter | @smendaros

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Corporate Communications Fellow | Ketchum Inc. June 2013 to Present (San Francisco, CA) Provides key support for major accounts in Ketchums Corporate & Public Affairs Practice, focusing on corporate and issues-based clients including the United States Farmers & Ranchers Alliance, Biotechnology Industry Organization, Liberty Mutual Insurance and Walmart: Involved in content creation, social and digital media planning, traditional media outreach, event planning, website management, research and data analysis Participates in team brainstorming sessions to generate creative ideas for client campaigns, slogans and messaging strategy Provides finance support for media buy efforts: manages invoices and payments and assembles documentation for clients Provides billing support for accounts: ensures all rates and fees are correct, runs weekly budget status reports using the JSR system and compiles monthly activity reports for clients Worked with an intern team across regional offices to develop a start-to-finish campaign for an international nonprofit organization Attends Ketchum University training sessions on topics including trends, crisis management, cross-media storytelling, marketing to millennials, creativity and business leadership as well as proprietary software and other public relations tools

Public Relations Intern | Melwood Global January 2013 to May 2013 (Boston, MA) Created media lists and pitched stories to local, statewide and national media Prepared press materials (press releases, news advisories, pitch letters) under deadline for distribution to print and broadcast media Tracked traditional and social media and prepared reports on industry trends and coverage Contributed to and edited articles and opinion stories pitched to national media outlets Supported client projects and campaigns with research, data and analysis Generated monthly activity reports for clients in the Boston and Washington, D.C. offices

Press Intern | Office of Massachusetts Senate President Therese Murray May 2012 to December 2012 (Boston, MA) Monitored news coverage of the Senate President in print and online publications Developed institutional knowledge of the policymaking process and issues including healthcare and education Compiled news clips concerning the senators key issues from state and local media and distributed to staff each morning Created issue briefs and fact sheets on topics ranging from Cape Cods tourism industry to drug abuse in Massachusetts for the Senate President to use when presenting speeches, giving interviews and participating in panel discussions Assisted the press team in writing speeches and preparing talking points for media interviews Wrote all press releases to be distributed in the Senate Presidents District; secured clips in the Cape Cod Times, Old Colony Memorial, Plymouth Patch, Falmouth Patch, Sandwich Enterprise, Bourne Enterprise, Kingston Reporter and Barnstable Patriot Drafted and formatted monthly newsletters sent to 3,000 constituents (view at www.theresemurray.com/form/newsletter) Composed entries for the Senate Presidents Plymouth Patch blog (view at www.plymouth.patch.com/users/therese-murray/blog_posts) Took photographs and managed image content on the Senate Presidents website (view at www.theresemurray.com)

TECHNOLOGY

AND

NEW MEDIA

Proficient with Microsoft Office Suite and public relations tools including Cision, Factiva and LexisNexis Fluency in social media including Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram, Foursquare and Vine Working knowledge of basic programming languages: HTML, CSS and JavaScript

EDUCATION
Bachelor of Science in Journalism Boston University, College of Communication Major in News-Editorial Journalism, Minors in Political Science & Public Relations Relevant Memberships: Public Relations Student Society of America (Edward L. Bernays Chapter) Graduated: May 2013