Behind the Scenes of the Turkey Bowl
Turkey Bowl!!!!! The event that we have been waiting for all year! This year’s Turkey Bowl will be a face-off between the Chi Sigma Cobras and the Epsilon Chi Vipers.
What special things must be done in order to have a successful Turkey Bowl? Well, the concessions and promotion for the Turkey Bowl, a favorite event of many students and guests, are put on by the students in the Public Relations class*, giving them experience for their future careers. So to get you all pumped for the game, I interviewed the class's Project Manager, Lydia George, for a behind-the-scenes sneak peek at the event!!
Alex: What is your job?
Lydia: I'm the Project Manager of the class Turkey Bowl project. Dr. Cirone, our teacher, has given me the great experience and responsibility of choosing and leading the managers for each of our committees. Not only that, but I get to see all of the inner workings of planning an event this large. I think I may have gotten more e-mails in the past three weeks than I did my whole sophomore year! It’s a great experience getting to see how different parts of a team have to work together.
Alex: How did you acquire your job?
Lydia: Everyone in our class was required to fill out an application for some position of Turkey Bowl. There were multiple positions available for committee managers, assistant managers, committee members, etc., but only one position open for Project Manager. We all wrote what our top 3 choices for the positions we wanted as well as why we believed we should get the job(s) we wanted. We could include resumes, cover letters, etc. Dr. Cirone offered me the position after considering all of the applications. It was a very professional and realistic process one would go through for a typical job application.
Alex: What is the hardest part about your job?
Lydia: Definitely delegation! I have to remind myself often to let my managers handle their committees' assignments. I am a perfectionist, and I like to handle everything myself. It's been a learning curve handing off tasks and letting others help me!
After delegation, it probably has to be keeping track of all the e-mails! I never imagined an event like this would involve so many questions and requests from so many departments. It's a huge amount of information, but it's great practice getting to organize and keep track of everything going on.
Alex: What are some of the behind-the-scenes details that most people don't see?
Lydia: I think most people don't realize how many departments are involved in the Turkey Bowl. Maintenance, Grounds, Advertising, Student Activities, IT, Promotions—the list goes on. The sheer amount of time and effort put into putting on Turkey Bowl by so many departments is astounding. It's encouraging to see how hard the staff here works in order to make Turkey Bowl great for us students. There is an incredible focus on details, right down to how much space is between the bleachers or what direction the lines for concessions are facing. PCC puts in a ton of effort to make it the most enjoyable experience for students and guests!
Alex: Any half-time show hints?
Lydia: The half-time show will definitely be entertaining. I myself can't wait to watch it! I can't give any hints, unfortunately, but nice try!
I will say that we'll be bringing a favorite food around campus to the concession booth for the first time. We can't wait to see how the students will like it! Our main focus is the game—it's gonna be great! We can't wait to watch our student body get excited for the Cobras and the Vipers.
Alex: What is your personal favorite part about the Turkey Bowl?
Lydia: It's hard to pick a favorite part! Soccer is my favorite sport to watch, so the game is incredible. The suspense of waiting for the half-time show combined with the thrill of the performance is always great, as well. It's hard to be away from home for Thanksgiving, but having something as entertaining and exciting as the Turkey Bowl to do makes it SO much more enjoyable being here on a holiday!
Alex: Last question: what is your major and what do you aspire to do with it?
Lydia: I'm a junior Marketing major. I absolutely love my degree. I was originally a Management major, but as I fell in love with my Marketing electives, I knew it was time to switch! I hope to possibly travel for Chick-fil-A Corporate when I graduate. They have a program that sends employees to areas opening a new store months before the opening in order to market to the community and get them excited for the new store, as well as hire and train staff to the Chick-fil-A level of excellence. There's marketing, public relations, management, and many others skills needed for the position. I love that I'm getting a well-rounded education that prepares me for not only this position, but also for wherever else the Lord may take me!
Alex: All right, thanks, Lydia. We all can't wait for the Turkey Bowl and the excitement it will bring!!
*The Public Relations class is in charge of many parts of the Turkey Bowl, working directly for the Student Activities office under the direction of Mr. Jon Tutton and Mr. Dustin McElreath. The Turkey Bowl class project has six committees: Marketing, Finance, Concessions, Customer Service, Logistics, and Personnel. They are in charge of choosing/purchasing food to sell, setting things up/tearing things down, greeting guests & interacting with the crowd as event staff, working concessions, and dozens of little details in between. What some people may not know is that visiting College Days guests and alumni make Turkey Bowl the biggest promotional event of the year. The Public Relations class gets the incredible opportunity to have hands-on experience with planning and promoting a promotional/public relations event!
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