“Every summer I spend working at THI is a summer well spent because it affords me different experiences and an opportunity to become more knowledgeable about cardiovascular disease and how it affects my community. This summer, I spent my time learning how to create captivating messages and visuals about the groundbreaking work we are doing here at THI and how to cater to audiences different than my own.” – Payton Campbell

 

Payton Campbell has spent several years as an intern and student worker on the THI team. Her relationship with THI started back in 2015, when she partnered with the Women’s Center and the departments of Regenerative Medicine Research and Cardiovascular Surgery Research to create an interactive touch box to educate adolescents about the importance of having a healthy heart. Since then, she has spent several summers interning in the Women’s Center, administrative offices, and now in the Visual Communications department.

 

“It has always been an easy decision to come back to THI every summer because I truly stand behind and believe in the importance of the work and research being done here,” Campbell said. “This summer has been different from previous summers in a variety of ways. Since switching my major to graphic design, I knew I wanted to assist more in the Visual Communications department and work under the supervision of my mentor and the director of communications, Keri Sprung.”

 

Campbell assisted with several administrative and Visual Communications projects. She contacted Mandarin and Vietnamese translators to expand the Heart Information Center on the THI website to reflect the growing population of speakers in Houston.

 

“I studied Mandarin for over 10 years, so I understand the value of ensuring that THI’s educational resources are accessible to people of different backgrounds and ethnicities,” Campbell said. This summer, she also produced a Spanish version of the THI Health Passport for distribution at community health events and through the Center for Women’s Heart & Vascular Health, which focuses its outreach and research on impacting cultural disparities in the development of cardiovascular disease in women.

 

Also, she designed a recipe template for recipes with heart, learned how to create the monthly newsletter, and updated the layouts of Project Heart resources. However, her main project this summer was assisting with a video promotion for the THI website and Texas Heart Institute app. “This video project really brought me behind the scenes of THI and helped me learn some of its rich history,” she said. “I can’t wait to see the final product and the exposure it brings to the institution.”

 

After reflecting on her work, she believes the most exciting project she worked on this summer was the marketing and promotion of the new THI app. “I had never seen the back end of app development, and it was really exciting to test the product and see it come to fruition. Witnessing the dedication Keri exhibited in ensuring that this project was carried out was inspiring and motivating. It definitely wasn’t easy, and there were countless adjustments we had to make along the way, but this app is truly revolutionary for the Texas Heart Institute,” Campbell said.

 

Outside of THI, she traveled to the National Association of BlackJournalists conference in Miami, Florida to represent her university. “I learned a tremendous amount about the communications field and how to gain access in the industry as a young person of color.” Campbell will be president of her school’s chapter this upcoming year.

 

Campbell is grateful for the exposure she has gained thus far working at THI and is excited to return to the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University for her junior year, where she will be majoring in graphic design and minoring in entrepreneurship.

 

She will continue the work she started this summer by assisting with the design and layout of the annual reportand updating the design of THI  Hearti-Facts. Infographics. “Payton is an extraordinarily talented, creative, and ambitious individual. We are honored to be a part of her career journey and very fortunate to have her on our team,” Keri Sprung.