Research and Development Center

SHANNA

Year in School: Second year master’s student

Major / Minor: Communication

Extracurricular Activities @ U of I: None really, unless you count teaching.

Hometown: Antioch, IL 

Is your hometown known for anything? Not really, it’s very small. I think Al Capone used to vacation there during Prohibition, but that’s about it.

Favorite thing to do on campus: Just walking around and finding new places I’ve never seen before. The college where I did my undergrad only had 2,500 people, so this is quite a change!

What do you do in your spare time? Read stuff that’s not class-related, watch movies and just hang out with friends.

Favorite Holiday: It’s not very original, but I love Christmas because I get to see all of my extended family on Christmas Eve. Also, our family tradition on Christmas Day is to hang out in our pajamas, eat leftovers, and watch Christmas movies all day. It’s something I look forward to.

Favorite Food: Homemade tacos

Favorite Movie: Stranger than Fiction

If you could have dinner with anyone from history or present day, who would it be and why? It would probably be Barack Obama, just because he’s such an important part of our country right now. He is making all these decisions that are going to affect us for years to come, so it would be cool to actually sit down and chat with him in person about that.

Why did you decide to work for the RC? I had friends who had interned here before, and they raved about their experiences. Also, I’m not sure what I’m going to do after I graduate, so I figured I’d try something new.

What is your project about? I’m working on the annual Communication Effectiveness Survey and interviewing the different stakeholders to find out how to improve the actual survey itself, as well as how the data get reported to the different zones and departments. Also, I’m putting together a portfolio of best practices in communication measurement for the different zones to use.

What is your favorite thing about working here? The environment and how helpful everyone is. There’s always someone I can go to if I have a question about anything, which has been really helpful so far.

What is the most surprising thing you have learned about State Farm? I wasn’t aware that they had their own bank.