UTSA staff celebrate graduates of inaugural Business Affairs Communications Academy

DECEMBER 19, 2024 — This month, the UTSA Office of the Executive Vice President for Business Affairs celebrated the successful completion of the inaugural Business Affairs Communications Academy. The semester-long program provided UTSA students with innovative, career-engaged learning opportunities focused on digital communication.

Created in response to the growing demand for communications services throughout the division, the program offered a unique, paid training opportunity specifically designed for undergraduate students seeking to enhance their skills in the field of communication and marketing.

“We are always looking for innovative ways to provide excellent communication to stakeholders across the university,” said Liz Rockstroh, UTSA associate vice president for administrative services. “The academy enables our talented strategic communications employees to offer direct training and mentorship to students, allowing them to gain hands-on experience as they support university operations.”

“This is a unique opportunity for UTSA students to participate in a paid training program that provides the necessary workforce development to be successful post-graduation.”

Applications for the program opened last summer. Over 150 students applied, with five finalists selected for the inaugural cohort in the fall. The finalists were hired as student employees and participated in 13 weeks of immersive, hands-on training guided by professional staff from the Business Affairs Strategic Communications team, as well as other professionals across the university. Training opportunities were focused on essential communications skills, including writing, social media management, graphic design, web content development and editing, event photography, video production and professional presentations.

Students who successfully complete the program are offered continued employment with Business Affairs, providing direct support to areas within the division. The opportunity for on-campus employment while practicing communications and marketing skills in a real-world context helps ensure students are able to make connections between their course work, employment and future careers.

“This is a unique opportunity for UTSA students to participate in a paid training program that provides the necessary workforce development to be successful post-graduation,” said Veronica Salazar, UTSA executive vice president for Business Affairs and chief enterprise development officer. “I am confident the Business Affairs Communication Academy will serve as a model for future career-engaged learning opportunities.”

In early December, students from the initial cohort presented their digital portfolios to the Business Affairs leadership team and division employees. They shared the most challenging and rewarding projects they worked on, and they offered lessons learned from their experience.

The students in the program represented various degree fields, including English, marketing, and film and media studies.

Going forward, the Business Affairs Strategic Communications team plans to utilize the students in a service-center style model, where students will support communications requests from departments within Business Affairs.

The division plans to continue exploring future programs that pair undergraduate students with seasoned UTSA professionals, creating an opportunity for paid training, hands-on skill development and an innovative workforce-development-focused approach to career-engaged learning.