Dara Quackenbush

Current

• Strategic Communications Advisor at Montage Strategic Communications
• Senior Lecturer, Public Relations at Texas State University, San Marcos

Past

• Principal at Dara Quackenbush Communications
• Account Supervisor (Part Time, Contract) at Blanc & Otus
• Senior Strategist (contract position) at VisionEdge Marketing

• Account Executive II at Springbok Technologies
• Marcom Specialist at Interphase
• PR Specialist at Olicom
• Marketing/Customer Service Manager at Words & Pictures
• Publications Manager (SAM'S Club) at Wal-Mart Stores, Inc

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5 more...

Education

• Texas State University-San Marcos
• University of Arkansas at Fayetteville
• Sylvan Hills High School

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Recommended

6 people have recommended Dara

Connections

240 connections

Industry

Public Relations and Communications

Websites

• My Website
• My Company

Dara Quackenbush’s Summary

Dara Quackenbush is a strategic communications adviser and public relations professor at Texas State University. She works with clients to develop branding, positioning, messaging and strategic communications plans. Dara has more than 15 years of experience in marketing communications, public relations, branding and product positioning and has worked with both start-ups and Fortune 500 companies. She began teaching in 2005 and strives to bring real-world experience to the classroom.

Dara is very involved in the community and volunteers for several local theatre and art organizations. She is a member of the board of directors for the Austin chapter of the Association of Women in Communications and was the chair of the marketing committee for the Austin American Heart Association’s 2008 Go Red for Women and Heart Ball campaigns. In 2008 the Texas State University Student Foundation named her as one of its Foundation of Excellence honorees

Dara earned a master’s degree in mass communication from Texas State University, where her research emphasis was blogging and opinion leadership, and a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Arkansas.

Dara Quackenbush’s Specialties:

Communication/marketing plans
Branding and positioning strategies
Marketing education and training

Dara Quackenbush’s Experience

• Strategic Communications Advisor

  Montage Strategic Communications

  (Marketing and Advertising industry)

  June 2008 — Present (5 months)

  Works with companies to develop brand and positioning platforms, key messages and marketing plans. As an experienced communicator and communications educator, I create communications strategies to help companies meet their organizational goals.

• Senior Lecturer, Public Relations

  Texas State University, San Marcos

  (Educational Institution; 1001-5000 employees; Higher Education industry)

  September 2005 — Present (3 years 2 months)

  Teach various classes in the public relations sequence, including Introduction to Public Relations, PR Writing, PR Campaigns and Advertising/PR Management.

• Principal

  Dara Quackenbush Communications

  (Public Relations and Communications industry)

  September 2001 — May 2008 (6 years 9 months)

  Developed and implemented public relations, media relations and communications programs for clients. Conducted both primary and secondary research projects for clients. Created and managed electronic newsletters and edited Web content.
  Developed positioning and messaging for clients and made strategic recommendations for their marketing plans. Planned special events and executive summits for clients. Developed and implemented sales pipelines and customer segmentation processes.

• Account Supervisor (Part Time, Contract)

  Blanc & Otus

  (Privately Held; 51-200 employees; Public Relations and Communications industry)

  2005 — 2007 (2 years)

  Responsible for client strategy, tactics and management for multiple clients.
  Activities included writing and distributing press releases, media alerts and case studies.
  Secured coverage in national and international media outlets and industry analyst reports.
  Scheduled appointments with media/analysts during tours, tradeshows and significant news announcements.
  Developed strategic and tactical public relations plans to support the business objectives of each client.

• Senior Strategist (contract position)

  VisionEdge Marketing

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Marketing and Advertising industry)

  September 2001 — August 2003 (2 years)

  Managed primary research projects for clients.
  Developed positioning and messaging for clients and made strategic recommendations for their marketing plans.

• Account Executive II

  Springbok Technologies

  (Public Relations and Communications industry)

  February 2000 — September 2001 (1 year 8 months)

  Managed account teams for multiple clients.
  Responsible for client strategy, tactics and management.

• Marcom Specialist

  Interphase

  (Public Company; 51-200 employees; Computer Hardware industry)

  1998 — 1999 (1 year)

  Managed all marcom activities for the WAN product line, including production of all print and electronic collateral (datasheets, white papers, Web site and CD-ROMs).

• PR Specialist

  Olicom

  (Public Company; 201-500 employees; Computer Hardware industry)

  1997 — 1998 (1 year)

  Managed company’s internal and external public relations and marketing activities for the North American division.

• Marketing/Customer Service Manager

  Words & Pictures

  (Privately Held; 1-10 employees; Graphic Design industry)

  1995 — 1997 (2 years)

  Developed and implemented all marketing/sales promotions, special events and collateral

• Publications Manager (SAM'S Club)

  Wal-Mart Stores, Inc

  (Public Company; 10,001 or more employees; WMT; Retail industry)

  1992 — 1995 (3 years)

  Managed entire publication process for monthly customer magazine, with a circulation of 4.2 million and a budget of $1.1 million.

Dara Quackenbush’s Education

• Texas State University-San Marcos

  MA, Mass Communication, 2004 — 2006

• University of Arkansas at Fayetteville

  BA, Journalism, 1988 — 1992

• Sylvan Hills High School

Additional Information

Dara Quackenbush’s Websites:

• My Website
• My Company

Dara Quackenbush’s Interests:

New media and user-created content, wine and gourmet cooking, glass fusing, the arts

Dara Quackenbush’s Groups:

Association of Women in Communication, Metropolitan Breakfast Club, Women of Wine and the Men Who Adore Them, Volunteer with the Zachary Scott Theatre, Toastmasters, Helios

•    Texas State Alumni
•    Public Relations and Communications Professionals
•    The Association for Women in Communications (AWC)
•    HARO--Help A Reporter Out
•    Fans of Metropolitan Breakfast Club

Dara Quackenbush’s Honors:

Outstanding Graduate Student, School of Journalism & Mass Communication, 2006.
Outstanding Graduate Assistant, School of Journalism & Mass Communication, 2006.
Presented at the AEJMC 2007 Southeast Colloquium, “Virtual Opinion Leaders and Opinion Change: Applying the Two-Step Flow of Communication to Blogging.”
Toastmasters -- earned ATM Silver and Competent Leader designations

Dara Quackenbush’s Contact Settings

Interested In:

• career opportunities
• consulting offers
• job inquiries
• expertise requests
• reference requests
• getting back in touch