 We know that students at historically black colleges and universities nationwide are at the center of many viral moments and strategic placements on Social media across a number of industries and pop cultural topics today We talked with one of the experts in our HBCU community Who's worked with a number of fortune 500 100 companies and also lens our expertise to several small businesses Throughout the DMV During her time as a student at Howard University and an emerging professional in the field Maya Regman She is also the founder of the at 150 bison account that you can find on Twitter miss Maya. We appreciate your time this morning So let's talk a little bit about how you get started And I because I think that this is something that young people in particular Would want to hear about how do you go from your home your dorm room the classroom? Internship to a Really really flourishing career in working with established brands for social media digital marketing And and and kind of multi multimedia development. How do you even get started in that? Can you tell us how it became a point of interest for you in your life? And then the first steps you took and getting connected with some of these companies in your work Absolutely great question. I love answering it Well, um, it all started when I was actually 16 I knew that I wanted to work in the marketing social media public relations So that's just what I started doing. I got my start in Working with small nonprofits and black on businesses in the New York area. I'm natively from New York And I just started doing internships. I started working Did by the time I graduated high school had already done eight or nine internships and marketing social media public relations and I had a very foundational knowledge of understanding what it takes to build community through social through social media And how to solve problems through marketing and communications So by the time I graduated, I knew I was about to go to Howard and I had seen some Big differences in the way that Howard since it was the only HPCU that I applied to home was communicating Versus all the other PDF UIs where I got my acceptance letter on time And I knew where to log in and get merch and every single thing by the time January hit and here I am with What two thousand other incoming freshmen that are super excited to go to Howard? We don't know what's going on at all And after meeting a mentor of mine Howard alumnus his name is Roosevelt Augustine who was very involved in Greek life and student council and everything social on Howard's campus and he had told me about what opportunities there were at Howard Just based over that conversation alone. I realized I wanted to replicate that for other students and with my marketing background I was like well I think I could probably just create a social media page that everybody can connect with and as long as I can make it an Experience I think that this could be something that's going to be fulfilling for everybody And that has now grown into 150 bison that connects over 8,000 Howard University students organizations alumni administration so Came into Howard on creating an immersive experience through social media for incoming freshmen while also connecting us to on-campus Students and understanding what Howard University had to offer us on beyond academics even and Ever since then it's just really just been up on the opportunities I've been offered by administration to work and develop the university opportunities I've been able to really flourish in with helping grow student life and activities and connecting students and now even connecting students from H2 25 here I am H2 21 and Really get to understand what it takes to uplift and connect Creatives and entrepreneurs has then ventured into me really going a lot harder in influencer marketing and really making sure that I'm that HBCU representation that these 4500 tabs so working with brands such as go daddy and The United Nations and feed the children and really just embodying And so many more don't coming a lot farther from where I was when I first started my influencer career working with cover girl cosmetics at the age of 16 and really just realizing that we have a voice and it Should be included in these campaigns for companies How how do those companies or Identify somebody like you or how do you make yourself available to those companies in the sphere of influence? Is it a certain amount of followers? Is it a certain amount of content? What is the key thing that that gets a company to say okay? Let's let's partner with he or she to move a product or to move a message What does it take for somebody to get in that game? Great question Contrary to popular belief you don't have to have a million followers Going to Howard you will go to school with people who do have a million followers and they have a huge following But a lot of it what it comes down to is being able to show that you're able to connect and engage with their audience and that comes from showing who you are and Really being the authentic you that you are and understanding what your values are what your mission is what your vision is people know That if I'm gonna post it's a comment that I get a lot But I don't miss but a lot of that just comes from having a strong production quality Making sure that my captions are really telling a story and it aligns with the picture I'm not somebody that I do an influencer campaign and you think that I don't actually use that product because I genuinely do a lot of these Companies that I work with I already had an existing In an existing you know relationship with it or with the product or for example I just got featured by Refinery29 for my look with my Tel-Far bag, but I love Tel-Far and I've loved it for years That was kind of like I'm years into making so I would say for anybody who's starting Their career in influencing really take the time to sit and think what are my passions my vision my values What are the unique experiences that I bring to the table for me? I get a lot of campaign I get engaged in a lot of campaigns and reach out to buy large brands not because of my Follow-up I'm not even at 5,000 yet But because people are able to tell that have an authentic relationship with my audience and I genuinely have that trust Is it is it The enhancement for your work as an influencer or as a digital marketing specialist and social media specialist Built on what you you have always known even from your teenage years Has Howard enhance that in any way because I think a lot of folks will assume okay I go to an HBCU like a Howard or a Southern or Fambu It's a big community and a HBCU specter But folks that maybe a smaller school think well I don't I don't have you know, we don't have that kind of yard We don't have that kind of culture can they do it are the other those transferable skills from school to school or from campus culture To culture or do you think that Howard is unique in that way in your work? Well, you know ring a house it I do have to say And a lot of that does come from How Howard is just unique in that our students go very hard for the university and are very adamant about black We are black excellence and knowing that is a transfer of transferable skill across HBCU It doesn't matter if I'm meeting somebody from Fambu or somebody from a smaller college or just it doesn't matter Where you're coming from often times we have that HBCU pride But more specifically we know the we're black excellence and knowing that when you're engaged in the campaign or a brand Reaches out to you is key because they're looking for people to actually they're Especially in the light of every of the other racial tensions earlier in the earlier in the summer Companies are looking for people who are talking about their activist experiences and oftentimes HBCU students are at the forefront of that My marketing experiences have definitely been amplified by being able to work with Howard Working with Howard when I was a communications consultant So the vice president of communications and working with them to help develop their social media strategy and learn how to really Authentically tell the stories of students But I think that's an innate skill that often many Howard Howard students and then also HBCU students have because we do that On the daily really we come back and we're the only HBCU student That's at the table at Thanksgiving and we have to put on for Howard or you have to put on for Fambu That's a better one for Spelman because people are gonna try to play you out like your HBCU is as valid as they're as their university So we do that naturally we do that when we're in the comments of HBCU digest and we're talking about oh, well You know my illustrious university and this is why we're we have a better homecoming like being able to talk about those Experiences are things that literally brands are looking for because they want you to bring your unique experiences and the pride that you have in Yourself and your brand and your university to their college campaigns because if we're being real We're a lot prouder of our university experiences You'll meet freshmen that are more proud of their university experience at and HBCU versus a senior graduating from PWY So it's really that pride that makes you stand out and very unique in getting engaged in campaigns like that You're a senior So your time is drawn to a close at the Mecca and now it's time to think about okay Do I take my talents to somebody else's firm or do I start my own thing? What are the considerations that you make in saying should I keep this going as my own business? Or should I think about aligning with a corporation or aligning with a firm? What are the things that you think about when essentially you have so many options? And I think that's what a lot of students want to have when they graduate options about what kind of jobs They want or what kind of business they want to start or should I go get a graduate degree? What are what are some of your options and and what influences your decision about which one you would pursue? Well, but first comes to mind and this is something I've been saying a lot of interviews lately Is that everything that's happening right now? I not to be hashtagging infestation But I did manifest right being able to have a lot of different post-grad offers Have the flexibility and go into a different a lot of different companies But that came from always knowing that I wanted to have that flexibility and that came from from the age of 16 working in different industries like being not being afraid of working at a company or working at a Firm or working on a team with diversity because I wanted to gain those six those different experiences and learn about other industries So what I would say to the incoming freshman or say to the rising senior is make sure that you are taking the time to Think outside the box and really push yourself All of my internship experiences I've done a lot of internships while I've been at Howard were very basic wanted to learn something new and While also aligning myself with what my passions are which is my mission statement is really inspiring Creatives and empowering entrepreneurs so making sure that as long as I was uplifting black voices as long as I was speaking and Really bringing the stories of people who could not tell their own to the table and Being driven by inclusion and diversity. I would take an opportunity So working at the university or what working with small businesses like restaurants and fashion labels in the DC area or Working remotely with people back in New York or even people outside the country and helping them build their social media strategy Were things that were very key to me being able to now be at this age where I've had the fortune 500 experience I worked at Accenture for two years and I did Communications consulting and marketing consulting and technology consulting and nonprofit consulting But then also while I had my own stuff going on making sure I still maintain the entrepreneurial mindset and maintaining my personal brand and Maintaining the connections that I have at Howard and really making sure that people who also have supported me along that journey felt appreciated So make sure that you're saying thank you to those professors that helped you out or make sure that you're connecting to the The mentor that you have freshman year that you know, you might not still talk to today But you understand that what that impact they had on you. So really just I guess kind of like stakeholder management before Before we close it out Let me ask you one important question because there's one thing that that continues to emerge in dialogue about the value of HBC You's particularly in workforce development and that's internships. You mentioned you had several before you even got to college You've had several since you've been in college I hope how do you divide or how do you see the responsibility for students securing those kind of Volunteer internship paid internship or fellowship opportunities because I think that there's an impression that the school sets out a list And then it's through you to pick But is it can you cast some light on how do you get them? Who's responsibility? Is it to find them? Whose responsibility is it to make sure that a student is qualified to work in them? Is that I Understand the school has a role. But can you speak to who who actually makes it possible for somebody like you to get those opportunities? You make it possible That is really the best answer that I can give like when I was just applying to colleges in general Howard was the only school that I didn't tour or see beforehand and the reason why I felt comfortable enough coming And we're like, yeah, I know I'm still gonna secure the bag. I know I'm gonna get a job I'm gonna get an internship is because something that was so common in every single hours unit that I connected with I think this is Across the HVCU experience is that we are self-starters We are going to go out and get an opportunity and figure out what we want. What are the pros? What are the cause? Understand what our rates are because we take that initiative to really understand who we are and what makes us different That's something that is as simple as when you step on the yard with your cue outfit You're thinking about what makes you different, but we apply that to school. We apply that to majors We apply that to our Howard intros or our HPC intros being able to Verbalize what makes us different from everybody else in the room standing up and proudly and confidently telling who you are And what your mission statement is and that's something that Regardless of what room you are gets you an internship offer or gets you that connection where somebody who was a speaker now Has identified you as somebody that they would want to mentor and I think that that was something I was very Common in my Howard experience, but then also prior to coming Howard I had a very I've always had my mindset on what I want and even though the title might have changed or the Organization might have changed or the company might have changed. I always knew what I wanted and being more focused on results and experiences rather than titles and Companies is very critical to being able to get the jobs that you want. So Schools do help do play a large role in it, but I know personally every single Career opportunity that I've gotten a Howard every formal internship experience was never anything that I got in an email So even down to being Being offered the position as working at Howard that was a goal that I had for myself for senior years So to get that at the end of my freshman year was kind of a confirmation of as long as your Actively working on what you need to do people will see that and And you never know who's watching and I think that's another thing that I've learned from Howard So it's just important to always make sure that you're maintaining that personal brand and uplifting people as you do Outstanding advice my regular my regular calm pops tonight. I believe the website In the interim tell people and let people know how they can follow you How can they can see a lot of your marketing work and how they can get in contact with you for work with their small business or emerging brands? Absolutely. Well, my Instagram and my Twitter are Maya and AI a underscore melanin, you know, it's both that If you are interested in connecting with Howard students our creators our entrepreneurs all the beautiful people that we have at the university You could follow my page at 150 bison on Twitter for memes for updates for just regular Howard Twitter shenanigans Especially if you do want to engage Howard students in your next campaign I'm pleased to meet there if you'd like to email me my email is Maya regman at gmail.com And I a are e g m a n at gmail.com and my website will be locked tonight