Meet Aaron Lindley

by: Simone Fraid

During all four of my years here at OU I have had ties to Housing & Food Services. I was a customer my freshman year, and have worked in various aspects of the department for the past three years. I have seen firsthand how much work goes into making everything run smoothly in a department that serves thousands of residents.

Public relations is an important function that keeps the department thriving. The Marketing Department for H&F has the task of retaining residents as well showing Housing and Food Services in its best light. I spoke with Marketing and Public Relations Specialist and recent OU graduate Aaron Lindley.

Lindley graduated from OU with a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication with an emphasis in adverstising in December. During the last year and a half of school, he had a marketing and public relations internship. He said it was helpful to have an internship that related to his studies.

Lindley's duties as a specialist include overseeing marketing interns and prospective student guide staff, writing and editing copy, creating advertisements, buying and scheduling media, and responding to media inquiries. While these are his basic duties, he said he faces many different challenges due to the reactionary nature of public relations. He said things come up that can change his entire plan for the day.

It is easy to see, then, why he suggests these characteristics for public relations professionals: a sense of calm under pressure, as wele as an ability to juggle different situations that occur all at once. He also stressed the importance of writing and speaking skills for the profession.

Lindley provided me with the unique perspective of someone who is very new to the professional world of public relations. It was refreshing to get to hear his experiences as I prepare to head into the "real world" very soon!