Just days before she walks across the stage at graduation, University of the Ozarks senior Katie Robinson already knows where her future is headed — and it all started with a conversation over lunch.
Robinson, a marketing major from Bonner Springs, Kan., will graduate on Saturday and begin her new career the following Monday as an influencer campaign officer with SheSpeaks Inc., an award-winning influencer marketing and media company. The opportunity came together through a chain of connections sparked by a recent networking event that brought Ozarks alumni and graduating seniors together.
The event — a focus group and networking lunch held in April — was sponsored through the Joe Hoing Alumni Grant, awarded last summer by the Alumni Association to the University’s business faculty. The grant supports initiatives designed to strengthen alumni engagement and create meaningful connections between current students and Ozarks graduates working in a variety of professional fields.
For Robinson, those connections quickly turned into opportunity.
During the luncheon, Robinson met Ozarks alumni Whitney Lewis ’14 and Jo Jo Cole ’15, who encouraged her and connected her with additional alumni working in the marketing field in Northwest Arkansas, including Emma (Bottorff) Curry ’09. What began as a casual networking conversation soon became a launching point for Robinson’s career.
After meeting Robinson for coffee on campus, Curry connected her with SheSpeaks Inc., a company where Curry had previously worked. Curry also helped Robinson navigate the application process, introducing her to professional contacts within the company and helping her secure an interview that ultimately led to a job offer.
“All the alumni were super supportive and excited through my search process and I’m very thankful to them and Professor NaLisa Brown for the connections,” Robinson said. “Emma was extremely helpful to me over the past week. She sent a personal message to a contact who got me through a screening interview at SheSpeaks and also sent me other job postings that she thought I would be a good fit in. Overall, this experience helped me in many ways through having more personal contacts in the workforce and by helping me gain confidence in reaching out to others myself.”
The networking luncheon was one of several alumni engagement events organized throughout the academic year by the business faculty through the Hoing grant. Additional initiatives included alumni returning to campus to speak in classes as well as a business alumni session held during Homecoming.
NaLisa Brown, assistant professor of marketing, said the events demonstrated the powerful role alumni relationships can play in helping students transition from college to career.
“Students arrived at the joint lunch unsure what to expect,” Brown said. “Faculty observed a rapid shift—within minutes, every student was actively engaging with alumni. Conversations extended well beyond the scheduled hour, with students continuing to ask questions and alumni offering thoughtful responses. Many students learned about career paths and practical tips they could use after graduation. After the event, students were seen walking across campus with alumni to the bookstore and other locations. Students later told faculty that the experience exceeded their expectations and boosted their confidence in professional networking.”
For Robinson, the experience became more than a networking exercise — it became a reminder of the strength of the Ozarks community and the willingness of alumni to invest in the next generation of graduates. Just days before earning her diploma, those relationships have already helped launch her professional journey.
Topics: Alumni