My name is Leina Gabra and I am entering my fourth and final year at 捆绑SM社区. I am pursuing a Joint Honours Bachelor of Arts degree. This summer I completed an internship with Leda Health鈥檚 PR and marketing team. I chose to pursue this internship after my experience interning with Synergos last summer, where I had the opportunity to work on the organization鈥檚 social media and learn about digital marketing. This summer, I wanted to explore this field more and was happy to get that opportunity at Leda Health.
At Leda Health, I was able to combine my interest in digital marketing and my passion for social justice and politics. Leda Health is a startup company founded by survivors of sexual assault, for survivors. Leda Health鈥檚 mission is to transform the existing systems of sexual assault prevention, care, and justice in the United States. Leda Health is developing a 鈥楧o It Yourself鈥� sexual assault evidence collection kit to give survivors more autonomy in how and when they choose to achieve justice. The kit is being heavily researched by doctors and lawyers to ensure that survivors have legitimate and safely collected evidence. In addition, Leda Health is developing a holistic care program to support survivors after experiencing sexual assault.
As a PR/marketing intern for Leda Health, the majority of my responsibilities were to create content and analyze the company鈥檚 Instagram and Twitter accounts. With the support of my team, I led the initiative to create a digital marketing strategy and create new graphics in line with Leda Health鈥檚 new brand guidelines. I also wrote copy for each social media accounts. In total I have assisted in the creation and copy writing of over 50 posts for Leda Health鈥檚 social media. Additionally, I wrote several articles for Leda Health鈥檚 website on topics related to sexual assault.
One highlight of the internship was when Leda Health rebranded, changing its logo, graphics, and brand colors. This allowed me to learn more about branding and graphic design, two fields that I hope to explore further in the future. Another highlight of my time interning for Leda Health was successfully creating a digital marketing strategy which allowed my team and I to create content in a more timely, organized, and planned manner.
Like most students this summer, I completed this internship remotely. However, because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the nature of Leda Health鈥檚 work, the majority of the company鈥檚 employees were working remotely, too. Therefore, I never felt as though I was missing out on an in-office experience that others were getting to have. While it is slightly more difficult to form relationships with my coworkers remotely, I have been able to foster close working relationships with people on my team. Working remotely has made me more disciplined and better at managing my time. I would advise anyone working remotely to make a sustainable routine and to stick to it because this has helped me to complete my daily tasks in a timely manner. Leda Health also has a supportive work culture that has allowed me to take occasional days off if I need to complete personal responsibilities or simply take a day to myself.
I believe that this internship has been very helpful in shaping my career in the future because it gave me work experience in a field that I was interested in, but did not know much about. After completing this internship, I have furthered my love for writing and digital marketing. I plan to pursue these two skills that I am passionate about in my future career after I complete my degree at 捆绑SM社区. I may decide to continue working with Leda Health because it was a unique opportunity that allowed me to combine multiple subjects that are important to me.
I am not receiving credit for this internship, but I would like to thank the Faculty of Arts Internship Office, from which I was lucky enough to receive funding. Due to the pandemic, I was working in Montreal from my apartment most of the time. When I did go home to visit my family, I continued to pay rent for my apartment in Montreal because I did not feel comfortable subletting my apartment given the situation. This funding has helped my family and I continue to pay for my rent and food during the pandemic while working from home. I am extremely grateful for the award and appreciate the Internship Office鈥檚 support during this unprecedented time.
