PROFILE: Graduating Senior Found Her Future At UC

When UC communication senior Rose Dizon first started at the University of Cincinnati, she wasn’t quite sure which career path she’d take. Choosing UC was a sure thing, says the McAuley High School graduate from White Oak. She wanted to stay close to her family, and at the time Rose was a freshman, her sister Rina was a junior and was working on her bachelor’s degree in biology.

Furthermore, Rose had been awarded a university level Cincinnatus scholarship after entering the Cincinnatus competition during her senior year in high school.

Rose started out as an “undecided” major, but about six months into her college experience, a class helped her discover what she wanted to be. “I took Evan Griffin’s ‘Introduction to Interpersonal Communications’ class and I absolutely loved it! Everything he said sort of spoke to me. That’s why I transferred to communication.”

Before she even entered the major, Rose was getting some early experience in the field by participating in an internship for the Walt Disney World College Program in Orlando back in the spring of 2001. Now a UC campus representative for the program, Rose says it’s an opportunity for students to “live, learn and earn.”

“They provided corporate-sponsored housing for us and the rent was taken out of our paycheck. That was awesome for me, since it was my first time away from home and I didn’t know about searching for housing.

“For the earning aspect of the program, I worked various jobs throughout the park. One day I might have been working food and beverages and the next, I’d be working at The World Showcase, or doing guest relations or working at conventions.

“I also took classes that are recommended by the American Council on Education—classes that corporations buy up for thousands of dollars.”

Rose gained even more experience in her field of study through the connections in her college program. She credits Lisa Newman, an adjunct communication professor, for the tip that led to her internship for the Applause! Magazine Imagemaker Awards. “This is a ceremony in Cincinnati that promotes diversity and recognizes exceptional achievement. I worked on getting the speakers and the entertainment together during the night of the awards. I felt like I was the stage manager.”

Rose had previously met the supervisor for her June 2002 dual internship at Luxottica Retail/Lenscrafters Inc. after Nikki Walden served as a guest speaker for Rose’s “Careers in Communications” class. “My first main task involved registration. There would be advertisements that would say, ‘If you have any questions, call this number. Well, the person on the end of the line was me!

“The second part of the internship involved working for their Gift of Sight program, which is dedicated to providing eyeglasses for the needy in developing countries. The company collects the glasses all year long, but there’s a big one-night event called Fright Night, which is held on Halloween. That’s when the general public is invited to collect eyeglasses for the needy.

“I worked on the brochures for the Fright Night publicity kits that we sent to different stores and to all the volunteers, and I also wrote content for the Fright Night Web site. And again, when people were asked to ‘call this number,’ the person on the other end of the line was me.”

Rose says Fright Night was an “awesome experience,” with 290,000 people participating from around the world. “We received donations from India, Portugal, Canada and the Philippines. I was sad I had to leave.”

The most recent challenge for the Golden Key International Honor Society member and past recipient of the Outstanding Junior in Communication Award was putting her skills to work for the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life fund-raiser. It was UC’s first time participating in the April event on Sigma Sigma Commons. Rose served as the announcer through the 18-hour relay as well as the event chair. “I just worked to help everyone else do their jobs to the best of their ability, and I used my communication skills to get other people involved.”

She sent out e-mails, worked her connections to bring in entertainment and even brought the eggs for the Easter weekend relay egg hunt. It was just another part of the job for where she works at the UC Center for Community Engagement, the resource center for community service projects and agencies. She has been working at the center since December but has been in touch with the staff through her entire UC career -- volunteering service as part of her Cincinnatus scholarship commitment.

Rose’s standout resume led to a feature on her in a television commercial about the University of Cincinnati. In addition to her many internships, she has previously participated in the RallyCats school spirit organization, has served as a member for the UC Community Action Network, and was a facilitator for the Student Activities and Leadership Development conference during winter quarter.

Her advice to the new UC freshman class is, “Definitely experience as much as you can, and especially try to get an internship. I know that because of my internships, people will want my work experience.

“Just keep an open mind and try to do things that you wouldn’t dream would be possible.”