About me

Hello classmates! My name is Aimee McKinlay and I’m a senior in the PR/Advertising program with an emphasis in Marketing. I’ll be graduating in the spring, which feels surreal considering it’s taken me over twenty years to get to this point. I’ve learned so much educationally, but feel like self-perseverance is at the very top of that list! Last year I left my job of 13 years to pursue my education, and I haven’t looked back. It’s been one of the most rewarding, and hardest, things I’ve ever done.

I’m a Utah native, originally from Cache Valley. My father is a second generation rancher and has a beautiful 300-acre ranch that I love to visit when I need to decompress. There’s nothing quite like the peace, familiarity and solitude of his place. I have two adult children; my son is 24 and my daughter is 20. I have a beautiful granddaughter who will be four next week. She’s the smartest and funniest four year old I have ever met. She loves spending time with her grandma almost as much as I enjoy spending time with her. In my spare time I enjoy reading and spending time outdoors hiking or gardening. I also love to travel and explore new places, people and cultures. A couple of highlights include hiking Machu Picchu, going through the Panama Canal locks and (barely!) surviving travel on the roads through Bangladesh. My next planned vacations will be to Disneyland with my granddaughter and relaxing on a tropical beach somewhere reading anything other than a textbook. 

Professionally I have 15 years of marketing experience. Prior to my current part-time position with the Weber School Foundation, I worked for 13 years for a local general contractor as their marketing coordinator. A brief summary of my responsibilities included the planning, design and execution of all private and public proposals; creation and design of all marketing collateral; events for both internal and external audiences, as well as many other marketing related job functions. Summer semester I finished an internship with the Weber School Foundation where I implemented a comprehensive communication plan. Part of the plan included the research, design and implementation of a new website. This was a new experience for me, but one that I thoroughly enjoyed. Plus I think it will look really good on my resume.

I’m really looking forward to refining my editing skills with this class and being one step closer to my degree.