Top Channels for Communicating with Students – with Mellissa Taylor

Student Housing Matters

During her tenure at COCM, Mellissa Taylor quickly became known among students as The Housing Lady. So, what did she learn as the face and voice of student housing at the University of Alabama at Birmingham? How have those lessons around communicating with students carried over to her current role in higher ed?

Mellissa serves as the Assistant Director of Honors Advising and Retention at UAB. But her first role out of graduate school was that of Assistant General Manager of Marketing and Resident Services with Capstone, where she was responsible for community engagement for UAB student housing. Mellissa earned her graduate degree in Student Affairs at Florida State University.

On this episode of the Alumni Series, Mellissa joins Tara Wilkinson to explain how she connected with COCM through contacts at UAB, her undergraduate campus. She weighs in on the most effective ways of communicating with students, describing the challenges of TLDR in email communications and the value of social channels like Instagram and Snapchat. Listen in for Mellissa’s insight on the enduring relationships she built at COCM and learn how her Capstone colleagues helped her grow a thick skin early in her professional career!

Topics Covered

How Mellissa connected with COCM through contacts at UAB

Mellissa’s responsibilities as Marketing Manager with COCM

• Representative at recruitment, admission events
• All housing assignments

Mellissa’s insight on communicating with students via email

Using channels like Snapchat, Instagram and text messaging

Mellissa’s enduring relationships with colleagues at COCM

The lesson Mellissa learned at COCM on growing a thick skin

Connect with Mellissa

Mellissa on Facebook

Connect with Tara

Student Housing Matters

Student Housing Matters on Facebook

Student Housing Matters on Twitter

Capstone On-Campus Management

Tara on LinkedIn