Rebecca Meza – From Small town, to Big Dreams

(Photo credit: Erin Helgerson)

 

As a first-generation college student who grew up in the small town of El Centro, Calif., it was always her dream to make it in the big city of Los Angeles and work in the field of communications.  When it was time to leave her parents, who own the Spanish-language newspaper El Sol Del Valle Imperial that has been in circulation for years, Rebecca Meza ’07, researched her fair share of colleges.  Her findings, California State University, Fullerton (CSUF) had one of the best communications programs in California.  After a campus tour, she knew that she would become a Titan. Meza says she owes her tour guide that day for allowing her to pick his brain, and ultimately solidifying her decision to attend CSUF to study public relations.

However, It wasn’t until her final two years at CSUF that Meza really started to get involved, a decision she felt she could have made earlier in her college career. Meza encourages students to immerse themselves in campus life, and organizations as soon as possible.  She made up for lack of involvement during her first two years by getting involved her junior and senior year with the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), where she served as vice president, worked as the Associated Students, Inc. (ASI) election commissioner, joined the Lambda Sigma Gamma sorority and was a new student orientation leader (‘06-’07). Through her time with various organizations, she learned how to manage conflicts and different personalities, a vital skill she uses in her professional life. She also credits her campus involvement with helping her build confidence and stay organized.

While at CSUF, Meza interned at Capitol Records in Hollywood. But it was her first job at Hot Topic, Inc. after graduation that kick-started her career.  The idea of using social media to market brands was a new concept, and luckily for Meza, she was given the task to start the social media sites and campaigns for Hot Topic’s sister brand Torrid. This experience enabled her to gain valuable hands-on skills, along with building industry and technical expertise to be at the forefront of a new marketing development.

Her next career move brought her to the University of Southern California (USC), where she was part of the global initiative team, which she collaborated with USC’s international directors and organize international events.  Meza credits her position at USC with “elevating her communications skills.” 

While at USC she set her sights on graduate school, and after graduation she knew it was the right time to launch her own firm, a dream she states that was originally “fueled through the CSUF alumni network.”  She saw other CSUF success stories, and knew she always wanted her own to share and encourage future Titans. Meza currently owns her own boutique public relations firm, Meza Communications, where her clients include, North Orange Continuing Education, Calgrove Media, Rojas Communication Group, Santa Ana City Councilwoman Michele Martinez, Torrid, USC Society of Trojan Women, USC Entrepreneur Network, USC Real Estate Network, and her parents’ newspaper, El Sol del Valle Imperial among others. With her prolific marketing experience, she is “most proud of helping her parents elevate their business.” 

Now that Meza is on her way to achieving her goals, she wants to help CSUF students accomplish theirs, and offers this advice: “Getting involved can be intimidating at first for students, but is key to relationship building and networking, and ultimately can lead to the dream job and success.”