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About the Episode

The what's what...

About the Episode: Living with a disability presents a unique set of challenges, especially when it intersects with professional life. In this special and insightful episode, Jaime has an engaging conversation with RJ Thompson, who is the Manager of Digital Strategy in Pitt Health Sciences. RJ shares his personal experiences of working and thriving in a professional setting while living with cystic fibrosis, offering a valuable perspective on this often-overlooked aspect of the workplace.

In this episode, listeners can expect to gain several key takeaways:

  • Insights into Navigating a Career with a Disability: RJ opens up about the strategies he uses to manage his work while dealing with cystic fibrosis, providing listeners with real-life examples and practical advice. This segment is particularly enlightening as it delves into how individuals with disabilities can navigate their career paths effectively.
  • Ideas for Supporting Colleagues with Disabilities: Jaime and RJ discuss the roles and responsibilities of supervisors and coworkers in creating an inclusive and supportive work environment. This part of the conversation aims to foster greater understanding and empathy, offering tangible ways in which people without disabilities can be allies and supporters in the workplace.
  • Leadership Tips for Unseen Disabilities: This episode also sheds light on the challenges faced by leaders in recognizing and accommodating staff members with non-visible disabilities. Listeners will learn how to create an inclusive culture that respects privacy while offering the necessary support.
  • Remote Work as an Equity Issue: The conversation also explores how remote work arrangements can play a crucial role in promoting equity in the workplace. We delve into the benefits and challenges of remote work, especially for people with disabilities, highlighting how flexible working arrangements can be a game-changer in terms of accessibility and inclusivity.

Connect With Our Host:
Jaime Hunt
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jaimehunt/
https://twitter.com/JaimeHuntIMC

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
Confessions of a Higher Ed CMO is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!  

Some of our favorites include Talking Tactics and Higher Ed Pulse

Enrollify is made possible by Element451 —  the next-generation AI student engagement platform helping institutions create meaningful and personalized interactions with students. Learn more at element451.com

Connect with Us at the Engage Summit:
Exciting news — Jaime will be at the 2024 Engage Summit in Raleigh, NC, on June 25 and 26, and we’d love to meet you there! Sessions will focus on cutting-edge AI applications that are reshaping student outreach, enhancing staff productivity, and offering deep insights into ROI. 

Use the discount code Enrollify50 at checkout, and you can register for just $99! This early bird pricing lasts until March 31. Learn more and register at engage.element451.com — we can’t wait to see you there!

About the Podcast

Jaime Hunt

Host

Jaime Hunt

Transformation has been a hallmark of Jaime's career. In nearly 20 years working in higher education, she been part of four university rebrandings and five website overhauls. She's been hands-on in the development of an integrated marketing communications model at three institutions. As a result, she has gained extensive expertise in brand strategy, recruitment marketing, internal communications, crisis communications, issues management, online innovation, and media relations. She also has in her portfolio government relations and, for two years, she oversaw a public radio station. She is currently the vice president for university communications and chief marketing officer for Old Dominion University, a 23,000-student public R1 research institution in Coastal Virginia. Prior to her current role, she was the vice president and chief communications and marketing officer for Miami University (the one in not-as-sunny Oxford, Ohio). She also served in marketing and media relations leadership roles at Winston-Salem State University (North Carolina), Radford University (Virginia), the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, and Northwestern Health Sciences University (Minnesota). Her background also includes more than four years as a print journalist and three years working for nonprofits and in nonprofit consulting. She earned my bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Minnesota and her master's degree in integrated marketing communications from West Virginia University.

RJ Thompson

Interviewee

RJ Thompson

RJ Thompson, MFA, is an award-winning marketing and graphic design professional. Currently, RJ is the Manager of Digital Strategy in Pitt Health Sciences. He was most recently the Director of Digital Marketing in the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business and College of Business Administration at the University of Pittsburgh. Before joining Pitt, he was a tenured Assistant Professor of Graphic + Interactive Design in the Department of Art at Youngstown State University. Previous to Youngstown State, RJ taught at Carnegie Mellon University, La Roche University, and Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. Continuing his career in education, RJ has been an Adjunct Professor of Graphic & Interactive Design at Point Park University since 2019 where he was responsible for writing and teaching the interactive design curriculum. In 2020, he began teaching at the Community College of Allegheny County. Outside of marketing, design, and teaching, RJ is also the Co-Principal and Creative Strategist for +Public, a Pennsylvania-based social enterprise that focuses on cultivating community and economic development impact through the creation of branded communication platforms, creative place-making, and storytelling initiatives for communities-in-revival. Throughout his career, RJ has received many accolades for his creative works: In 2015, he was one of several recipients of the National Endowment for the Arts “Our Town” grant, valued at $100,000, for the INPLACE (“Innovative Plan for Leveraging Arts & Community Engagement”) project. In 2017, RJ received a “Best of Marketing Award” from the Ohio Economic Development Association for his efforts in rebranding the City of Youngstown, Ohio. In 2018, RJ was accepted into the prestigious Cohort 2 of the National Arts Marketing Project, a program supported by Americans for the Arts and the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. In 2019, RJ also received a scholarship to join the National Arts Strategies Executive Program in Arts & Culture Strategy through the School of Public Policy at the University of Pennsylvania. In 2019, RJ was honored with the Ohio Governors Award in the Arts in Community Development, the state of Ohio’s highest recognition in the arts sector. Recently, RJ was the recipient of a certification scholarship from the National Institute for Social Media and received accolades from GDUSA and the University & College Designers Association for "Pitt Business Backstory" and "Business.Pitt.Edu" websites. RJ is presently the President of the Pittsburgh chapter of the American Marketing Association.

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