Alana J Jajko — ajj005@bucknell.edu
Education
Bucknell University:
MA English with a thesis covering topics in Environmental Studies (Class of 2018)
BA English Studio Art & Creative Writing, Classics Minor (Class of 2015)
- Magna Cum Laude
- Honors in English
- Phi Beta Kappa
- Gamelan Ensemble, Writers of Rohan, Student Art Association
Work Experience
Susquehanna Greenway Partnership, Director of Communications & Outreach (August 2019-Present)
Susquehanna Greenway Partnership, AmeriCorps Communications & Outreach Assistant (September 2018-Present)
- social media management (facebook & instagram), design of outreach materials, creating newsletters, attending tabling events, radio appearances, event planning, video production, article writing
Bucknell University Press, editorial intern / promoted to editorial assistant (Aug 2014-Aug 2018)
- review of book proposals, contract writing, blog writing, social media management, conducting interviews, designing promotional materials, editing manuscripts, managing press database & permanent collection
Bucknell University English Department, digital consultant (Aug 2016-May 2018)
- graphic design and social media
Budget Your Trip, travel writer (Feb 2016 – 2019)
- Writing travel guides for destinations around the globe and contributing to a regular blog
The Culture Trip, editorial intern/ promoted to freelance contributor (Nov 2015 – Aug 2016)
- Writing feature articles on “the best of” dining, shopping, entertainment, etc. for locations around the U.S.
Gro Rite Garden Center, plant care and register (Mar-Jun 2016)
Blooming Twig Books, editorial intern (Sep 2015 – Nov 2015)
- Editing manuscripts, designing graphics, writing blog articles, marketing and social media, conference calls
Other Experience
Pennsylvania Master Naturalist, trainee, Montour Preserve, Danville, PA (present)
Nineteenth-Century Studies Association Conference, presenter, Philadelphia, PA (spring 2018)
21st International Cooper Conference, presenter, SUNY Oneonta, NY (fall 2017)
Ismenion Hill Thebes Excavation, archaeological team member, Thiva, Greece (summer 2015)
Volunteers Initiative Nepal, volunteer, Kathmandu, Nepal (winter 2014)
Unicorn Writers Conference, attendee, Portland, CT (spring 2014)
Undergraduate Conference in Medieval and Early Modern Studies, presenter, Moravian College, Bethlehem, PA (2011, 2013, 2014)
Jim Henson Company, intern, Queens, NYC (summer 2013)
Research
- Graduate thesis studying the works of Cooper and Muir in relation to understanding America’s National Parks as a symbolic representation of the nation and it’s history
Stories of the Susquehanna Valley documentaries, project manager (May 2017-present)
- “Churches of Coal Country” (in production) – on religious & immigrant communities across generations in the coal region of Central Pennsylvania
- “The Coopers and Conservation at the Headwaters of the Susquehanna” – on Cooperstown, NY, and the writings and influences of James and Susan Fenimore Cooper
Digital Rural Hours, collaborative project (Feb-Sept 2017)
- Work on developing a digital annotated text of Susan Fenimore Cooper’s nature journal Rural Hours in a collaborative project with three universities under the leadership of Professors Alfred Siewers, Rochelle Johnson, & Roger Hecht
Grants & Awards
- Graduate Summer Research Award, Bucknell University, 2017
- (for work on a thesis studying the works of James Fenimore Cooper, John Muir, and their artistic contemporaries in relation to the shaping of America’s National Parks)
- Book Collecting Prize, Bucknell University Press, 2017
- (for an essay on my Nancy Drew collection, connecting a sense of mystery to the adventure of finding each book as well as the thrill of greater endeavors in life)
- Cadigan Prize for Younger Writers, Stadler Center for Poetry, 2015
- (for a creative non-fiction piece on my travels to Nepal, reflections on childhood, and my ongoing relationship with the natural world)
- Bucknell University Arts Council: Arts & Creativity Grant, 2015
- (for an art installation exploring the boundaries between humans and the natural world)
- Bucknell University English Department & Program for Undergraduate Research Grant, 2014
- (for the creation of an illuminated manuscript, combining my expertise in the fine arts with nature writing)
- Arts Merit Scholar, Bucknell University Department of Art & Art History, 2011
- (scholarship awarded for excellence in the fine arts, judged by interview and portfolio review)
- Girl Scout Gold Award, 2011
- (for organizing a project for a mural and reading corner in a special needs preschool classroom)
Skills & Interests
- Research, writing, editing
- Marketing and social media
- Designing promotional materials
- Digital photography
- Video production
- Grant writing
- Web design (WordPress / Scalar)
- Microsoft Office Suite, Adobe Suite
- Managing group projects
- Conducting interviews
- Conferences / public presentations
- Interest in non-profit / conservation
- Interest in travel / world cultures
- Background in Art (painting, drawing, calligraphy, sculpture, printmaking, digital art, etc.)