Written by Parker Ladle
This year, Adriana Nguyen is passing the torch to fellow Public Relations major Anna Gutfreund.
Gutfreund will take on the role of overall director on the Homecoming Executive Council at Florida State University. Homecoming is an entirely student-run tradition consisting of week-long on-campus events headlined by an executive council responsible for working with volunteers and student groups, managing communications, and seeking sponsorships.
Speaking on what it means to step into this role, Gutfreund shared, “I’m honored to have this position and be part of FSU history, especially for the 75th anniversary of Homecoming. To me, being overall director means that I’ve been given a chance to achieve my dream of making a difference at FSU, and I’m so excited to continue guiding and supporting the council so that we can all accomplish it together!”
In 2022, Homecoming faced a significant setback when Hurricane Ian reached Florida the same week Homecoming was set to take place. Nguyen expressed that her experience in Dr. Elizabeth Ray’s Crisis Communication class helped her react to the complication. “The class helped me think about messaging strategies,” said Nguyen. “It helped me think how to communicate necessary information to our team, to the student body, to our vendors and other involved organizations while staying in line with overall university messaging and without causing more confusion or anxiety about the situation.”
Gutfreund also contributes much of her success to the knowledge she has gained in her Public Relations classes at FSU’s School of Communication. “With most of our classes being project-based, I’ve learned a lot about how I function within a team and what the best ways to delegate and work with others are,” said Gutfreund.