Congratulations to Amanda Solliday, our very first CommuniGREATER!

September is Whole Grains Month, and you were asked to nominate communicators who are “bran” new to Duke and already making a mark.

The list of nominees, along with the comments submitted by peers is below.

AMANDA SOLLIDAY, Duke Global

  • Amanda has already jumped in with learning to do videos (with captions!) and will be a great partner in the future, I’m sure.
  • Amanda came to us from SLAC as a science writer, and before her 90 days are up she’s become a videographer (making a video featuring the Provost — way to aim high!), social media expert (managing our Instagram global baton project) and a designer (creating all kinds of peripheral materials in support of our November Duke at Home in the World Series (even branded M&Ms! How cool is that?!). She’s run full speed into heading up efforts to brand our Duke at Home in the World; she’s sending out our newsletter — and oh, she’s writing stories, too! She’s a CommuiGREATER for sure!

BLAKE TEDDER, Duke Forest

  • Blake is doing a great job at giving Duke Forest an engaging personality on social media. I really love his Instagram posts especially. And he has spent time with our development & marketing staff (and presumably those in other areas of Duke) to learn best practices and explore ideas that will help bring Duke Forest to a new level of success and visibility.
  • I met with Blake when he was nearly brand-new to his role with Duke Forest, but he dove right in – He has helped strengthen the department’s website, social media, reports, and much more. Just in the short amount of time he’s served as the Duke Forest communicator, I’ve seen a lot more news out about the Forest. He also is a big advocate of inviting Durham neighbors and Durham Public Schools classes out to the forest to learn about and enjoy nature. Duke is so lucky to have Blake as a super communicator!

KATY CLUNE, Office of the Vice Provost for the Arts

  • Katy may be just at the year mark or slightly over but she‚Äôs fairly new and really awesome. The Ruby, the Arts Communicators Group, there‚Äôs lots of great things that Katy has been working on.
  • Katy has been great at reorganizing, reenergizing and inspiring the arts-related communications staff, and she was a powerhouse with the unveiling of the Rubenstein Arts Center, as well as the creation/redesign of the Ruby and Duke Arts websites and email newsletter. Katy thinks creatively and is especially adept at encouraging cross-pollination and brainstorming, as well as ensuring that things don’t sit on a backburner for long. I am blown away by all that Katy has achieved in her time here so far (just short of 1 year), and I know she will continue to be an amazing leader as Duke’s arts corridor continues to develop and expand.
  • Katy has single-handedly and quickly built a comm presence that is way bigger than her 1-person operation lets on. Her Ruby grand opening was epic and partnering with her on our upcoming collaborative event has been a dream.

MEGHAN O’NEIL, Bass Connections

  • She started her new position in July (about half her time is for communications) and has already been heaven-sent, from managing all our orientation activities to providing much-needed support in our office…not to mention contributing her brilliant ideas.

MEGHAN RUSHING, Admissions

  • Meghan joined our staff in a new position as PR Specialist in charge of digital communications. She hit the ground running and now manages not only our social media accounts and website but has also become an expert on our CRM, Technolutions Slate, through which we send various e-campaigns to over 100,000 admissions prospects on a regular basis.

MIRANDA VOLBORTH, Pratt School of Engineering

  • Miranda Volborth (Pratt – Department Communications Specialist for Civil & Enivronmental Engineering / Electrical & Computer Engineering / Mechanical Engineering & Materials Science) has become a valued collaborator in just a few months. In all our interactions, I’ve been wowed by her responsiveness, focus on solutions, and keen sense of strategy. So glad she’s at Duke!
  • Miranda started at Pratt this spring as communicator for our ECE, CEE and MEMS departments. She may be “bran” new to Duke but she has jumped right in to make a difference. In just a few short months she has pulled together a first-ever ECE annual report (coming soon!), produced outstanding content and videos for grad student recruitment, greatly increased engagement on our Instagram channel and garnered press coverage for our recent Guinness World Record-breaking Duke Electric Vehicles team (in collaboration with Energy Initiative colleague Braden Welborn)! She is great at showing the world what makes Duke Engineering special and we are thrilled to have her on the Duke team!!

SOPHIE WILLIAMS, Student Affairs

  • Sophie started just a few months ago and has already provided so much support to the Student Affairs division including website, document accessibility issues, tips on communicating with Duke students, etc. She has done so much already in such little time, I am ecstatic to see what her accomplishments look like a year from now.
  • Sophie has been at Duke for just over a month. She has hit the ground running with fresh ideas and is a great collaborator.

STUART SHAPIRO, Development

  • As a newcomer, Stuart has taken on the challenge of streamlining development marketing and communications across product lines (think Annual Fund, Gift Planning and general philanthropy) and updating the processes, tools and pathways we utilize to help the audiences we communicate with better understand our offerings — and ultimately engage in giving to Duke.
    Secondly, Stuart has brought a comprehensive strategy to print and digital communications that pushes the boundaries of what philanthropy at a leading university can accomplish. It’s stewardship, but it’s also imaginative. It’s individual but it’s also collective. Stuart’s push here has been a big stride for our “brand” in the post-Duke Forward space we are currently occupying.
    Lastly, Stuart takes an active approach in the growth of the folks he directly manages, highlighting their strengths and working with them to build on areas for improvement for the betterment of the team.
    In the less-than-a-year that Stuart’s been at Duke, he’s a strong example of the Whole Grain communicator described in the CommuniGREATER award description.

TIFFANY GOETZINGER, Sanford School, DCID

  • As the sole communicator in the Duke Center for International Development at Sanford, Tiffany has made a dramatic impact since joining the Duke family last October. She has not only transformed digital and print impact of the Center in less than a year (e.g., see the annual report she just produced and her strategic changes to the monthly newsletter- links below), but has also done work behind the scenes in communication and outreach strategy that has resulted in better organization, stronger internal communication, and expanded cross-school/center networks that have improved the Center’s ability to reach its mission statement (which, by the way, she helped tweak with the faculty and leadership team).

    Annual Report: https://dcid.sanford.duke.edu/articles/introducing-our-2017-2018-annual-report
    Newsletters: https://dcid.sanford.duke.edu/newsletter

  • Tiffany is doing an amazing job since starting as Communications Director at DCID last fall. There are many reasons deserves recognition. Here are just a few. She’s been incredibly productive — she created a detailed communications plan after working with center leaders to examine their organizational goals; revamped DCID’s logo; redesigned the center’s home page and updated the website for accessibility; launched an Instagram account and revived other center social media accounts with lively photos and timely commentary; designed and wrote the center’s annual report — and so much more. She’s also making sure that DCID’s 2-day event for Duke at Home in the World is all set to go in November when she will be on maternity leave with her first child. In addition to being a true professional, she’s fun to work with — always ready to laugh when the stress is getting a bit much. I’m really happy she’s part of the Sanford communications team.

LINDSAY KEY, School of Medicine

  • Lindsay Key has been a wonderful addition to our network of communicators! She’s a terrific writer and a great colleague and I’m so glad she’s here!