This is the second November that the College of Business Administration has run their social media contest Black and Gold Business. This campaign revolves around the student organizations generating content related to the themes of the evolving culture of the College: Student Experience, Thought Leadership, Unique Place of Opportunity, and Entrepreneurial Culture. The organizations are motivated to participate because the three organizations that share the most content with #ucfbusiness and their unique hashtag (#ucfdeca for Collegiate DECA, for example) win $500.

This week is thought leadership week, so as I participated in this campaign to benefit DECA, I’ve thought about some of the incredible people I work with and learn from on a regular basis:

Dr. Carolyn Massiah: Although I’ve never had the privilege of taking one of her classes, Dr. Massiah has played a huge role in my college experience as the advisor for UCF’s Collegiate DECA chapter. I’ll probably always remember that one DECA meeting early in my first fall semester as a freshman when she told me that I already needed to have everything high school related off my resume no matter how good it is. That was one of the moments that encouraged me to get so involved in college. She’s always been happy to help me whether it is DECA related or personal. There’s a reason why so many students switch to Marketing after taking her class. She’s an inspiration to all of the students she works with.

Roy Reid: He’s definitely UCF’s best kept secrets. Few students get to know him outside the ambassador program, but he always has an open door to help any UCF student whether he knows them well or not. He has incredible patience and has taught me so much about leadership, trust, and being a better person. Plus, he shares my taste in music. That’s always fun.

Jonathan Gabriel: Jonathan bleeds black and gold. He clearly loves his job running the social media accounts for the college of business. It’s not uncommon to see Jonathan sharing updates with the ambassador team or the Business Leadership Council far past business hours. He’s always excited to help where he can and will always stop what he’s doing to talk to students when we need him.

The entire MMGY Global Research Department: I’ve been working with great people these last 6 months. My direct supervisor Leanne seems to always drop whatever she’s doing to answer my questions. Chelsea has done the same when I’ve helped with her projects. When I’ve worked with Anna, she’s also been quick to help me along with sharing some of her advice about the work world with me. Even the Vice President of the department, Steve, has had regular 30 minute meetings with me to mentor me through my time working for them and about the marketing research industry in general. I’ve heard few stories where the intern has as much support and encouragement as I have had in my time at MMGY Global.

In addition to these people, I also learn new things from my peers constantly. Whether it is the group project partners I referenced in the last blog post, the student ambassador team, fellow executive board members, or even the general members of the organizations I lead, I interact with some incredible students.

I have these people to thank for making my college experience a great one. I’ll always be glad that I chose to become a UCF Knight.