Experienced • Creative • Professional
edgar@edgardosantana.com
linkedin.com/in/edgardosantana
Qualities:
- Creative problem solver
- Thrive in collaborative environments
- Detail oriented
- Life-long learner
Bilingual:
Verbal and written skills in a foreign language: Spanish
Experience:
Director of Public Relations & Marketing
Student Health Services, University of South Carolina, August 2019 to December 2020
Responsible for all internal and external communications for Student Health Services (renamed University Health Services in 2021) at the University of South Carolina, Columbia campus. This is the premier university health program in the state of South Carolina providing primary care, women’s health, sports medicine, counseling, psychiatry, and wellness services for more than 35,000 students.
Responsibilities:
- Supervise staff, graduate assistants and student designers
- Develop and implement marketing plans
- Provide creative direction and project management
- Manage printing budget
- Manage all internal and external public relations
- Oversee client consultations
- Crisis communications
- Ensure all creative work meets university brand standards
- Coordinate media interviews with subject-matter experts
- Procure paid media
- Manage owned media: website, print, social media, email newsletter
Achievements:
- Implemented a new HTML email newsletter with a 35.02% open rate and 3.72% CTR
- 114% increase in Twitter followers
- 174% increase in Facebook followers
- 329% increase in Instagram followers
- 145% increase in website traffic
- Implemented Google My Business search profile for health center
Covid-19 Pandemic Achievements:
- Provided critical health communication support to university’s executive communication team
- Successfully transitioned creative team to a work-from-home model
- Partnered with Office of New Student Orientations for virtual orientation sessions
- Designed health center’s Covid-19 internal and external communication materials
- Served on the university’s Future Planning Committee which developed the Fall 2020 Return to Campus policy
- Presidential recognition, Certificate of Meritorious Service, exemplary service
Creative Director
Office of Student Media, University of South Carolina, July 2006 to August 2019
Creative Services manager and technology coordinator to students, graduate assistants, interns, and staff. Provide leadership in effective communication to student designers and professional staff. Oversee the creation of advertising and marketing materials for student organizations, university partners, and businesses in the Carolina community.
Responsibilities:
- Supervise professional staff and student designers
- Provide creative direction
- Manage client consultations
- Ensure client’s communication goals are met
- Ensure all creative work meets university brand standards
- Project management
- Manage print procurement
- Manage digital ads on mobile, email, and web using Google Ad Manager
- Train students in the use of Adobe Creative Cloud apps
- Train students in the use of cloud-based productivity suites
- Manage office technology resources
Achievements:
- Best Ancillary Operation, College Media Business & Advertising Managers, Third Place (national), 2015, 2019
- Developed Newsroom of the Future white paper
- Instrumental in transitioning The Daily Gamecock to a digital-first news organization
- Developed PDF ad workflow that reduced printing errors
- Developed training manuals for designers, mobile app, and web content managers
- Facilitated collaborative effort to digitize archival issues of The Gamecock newspaper
- Designed permanent exhibit commemorating African American presence at the university
- Designed promotional materials for the School of Journalism’s new building dedication
- Deployed three macOS Servers for file sharing, MDM, caching
- Managed up to 45 Apple desktop and laptop computers
- Deployed backup, archival, and video storage systems
Social Media Strategist
Columbia International Festival (Volunteer)
Responsibilities:
- Write, curate and post to festival’s social media channel
- Foster festival’s social media brand personality
- Track engagements
Art Director
Wingate Advertising, Inc., October 1996 to July 2006
Responsibilities:
- Develop advertising campaigns for retail and financial clients
- Write copy for ads
- Design print advertisements, outdoor bulletins, direct mail, logos and annual reports
- Manage print vendor selection, review proofs and perform press checks
Graphic Artist
S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control, to
Education, Certifications and Training:
- Bachelor of Arts from the University of South Carolina
- FEMA 100, 700
- Apple Certified Support Professional, Mac OS X 10.6 (certification)
- Disney Institute: Disney’s Approach to Business Excellence
- American Red Cross CPR/AED, First Aid (2011-2013)
- LEAD Supervisory Essentials
- Anti-Defamation League: A Campus of Difference
Technology:
- Adobe Creative Cloud applications use and deployment
- Microsoft Office 365
- Mailchimp email marketing platform
- Hootsuite social media account manager
- Cloud-based collaborative suites: Asana, Trello, Slack
- Apple macOS, macOS Server, iOS
- Windows 10
Awards:
- Certificate of Meritorious Service, exemplary service during pandemic, 2020
- Best Ancillary Operation, College Media Business & Advertising Managers, Third Place (national), 2015, 2019
- Best Newspaper Advertising, Professional Services Ad, South Carolina Press Association, 2001
- Gold Award, National Public Health Information Coalition, 1997
Volunteer:
- United Way of the Midlands Ambassador (Department of Student Life) 2014-2016
- Columbia International Festival planning committee, 1996, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2014-2018
- Artist Contributor Art Director’s Art Show, American Advertising Federation of the Midlands, 2011
- S.C. Mission General/Medical Interpreter (Spanish), 2011
Affiliations:
- American College Health Association
- South Carolina Press Association
- Student Affairs IT Workgroup
- College Media Advisors