The Palouse has changed since Rebecca Shepard graduated from Washington State University. She said she doesn”t mind, though.
“The fun part has just been finding the new restaurants that weren”t here before,” Shepard said.
Shepard returned to the Palouse last month as the University of Idaho”s Senior Director of Marketing.
“My husband was already teaching here for the last year and a half,” Shepard said. “We knew we always wanted to be back in this area.”
Shepard grew up in Southern California, right next to Disneyland in Orange County, but said she fell in love with the Palouse when she came to visit a friend during college.
“I knew I wanted to come up here for school”, said Shepard.
She graduated from Washington State University with a Bachelor”s degree in communications and an emphasis in advertising and graphic design. After graduating, Shepard worked for companies such as LucasArts, Ubisoft, Sony, and most recently Hasbro in the greater Seattle area.
Shepard returned to the Palouse when she moved to Moscow in December, and said she has settled in well.
As senior director of marketing, Shepard said she works on brand and enrollment. The goal is to encourage prospective students to consider UI by creating a strong identity for the university.
“My job is kind of to bridge and bring together all the University marketing that”s going on,” Shepard said.
Shepard said she already has goals for the future of UI, including bringing departments together and continuing to develop the university identity.
“Rebecca has the kind of marketing and strategy we are looking for,” said Stefany Bales, executive director of communications and marketing.
Bales said Shepard has excellent leadership skills, and has hit the ground running since beginning her position.
“I love being part of a team that”s helping to educate students on why to come to UI and why we”re so great,” Shepard said.
Alex Brizee can be reached at [email protected]