Getting to Know Kendra Clarke, Staff Excellence Award Recipient

from Inside RBS - Staff Newsletter - November/December 2020

Staff Spotlights

Kendra Clarke Getting to Know

As this year’s Staff Excellence Award recipient, the Newsletter Committee had the opportunity to meet and speak with Kendra Clarke, Web Content Strategist for Marketing and Communications, on her experiences in and out of Rutgers Business School. During the interview, we were truly enlightened to learn that she is so much more than what meets the eye. The quiet and soft spoken person who tends to hide in the background, is also world-traveled, loves good food; and her passion and commitment to work and family is fueled by her love for life and making a change in the world. As you will see from our Q&A, Kendra Clarke is definitely a role model for both women and males to follow. We are sure we will hear her name again resounding within the halls of RBS!

When you learned you were the recipient of the Staff Excellence Award, how did you feel? The competition in the category was pretty steep, so I really didn’t think I would be the one called. I wish I could have seen my own face when my name appeared on the presentation, but I had moved the screen on Zoom to look at the other attendees. I know my jaw dropped when Dee called my name!

Even though I doubted I would win, I was proud to be the recipient, and I know that I have worked hard to be worthy of the recognition. I’ve worked at RBS for 8 ½ years, and regardless of my position, I always went above and beyond. I was a Program Coordinator, Career Management Specialist, Part-Time Lecturer, and Acting Assistant Dean/Director in the Undergraduate-Newark Office of Career Management. In each role, I did my best to ensure that our students had the best experience possible and that they were able to realize their career goals.

In my current role as a Web Content Strategist with the Communications and Marketing team, I work closely with staff and faculty across both campuses to create webpages designed to promote the preeminence of the school, attract new students, and communicate the RBS brand. It’s been an enriching experience, and I am humbled by the acknowledgment of my efforts by my peers. Thank you again to the committee and those who nominated me!

Why did you make the career shift to go into Communications and Marketing? Marketing has always been my passion, but I never knew what I wanted to do. I started working with OCM Undergraduate Newark as my first job after graduation and learned so much that helped prepare me to transition into a marketing role. I completed my MBA while working to help build my qualifications and skillset. I was also able to make new connections and gain critical technical skills through my involvement with the American Marketing Association of New Jersey (AMA NJ). This is a professional organization of marketers.

When I saw the open position for the Web Content Strategist, it wasn’t something I had ever considered, but it felt like a great fit. It involved writing, building webpages, and was focused on the user experience as it pertains to the website. I was sold on the role but nervous about doing something I had never done before. What helped make the final decision to apply is how great the RBS Communications and Marketing team is. I am fortunate enough to love what I do and work with such a fantastic group of people.

Who or what inspires you and why? I am inspired to do what I do because of the generations that I can help to influence in a positive way. I attribute part of that to being the oldest of 3 children. I also mentor two young women trying to navigate college and life immediately after graduating from college. They both have dreams and goals that they want to accomplish, but what helps them have confidence is knowing someone who has done it before them, especially someone who looks like them. Young Black men and women are often looking for that role model so that they know that the things they want to achieve are possible. This inspires me to keep reaching for my dreams and goals because being able to pave a path to bring up those after me is truly rewarding.

Is there anything outside of Rutgers that you are currently working on or would like to be a part of? I am the first female Black President of the American Marketing Association of New Jersey in its 76-year history. This is a huge accomplishment for me and something I am immensely proud of. I’ve learned to manage a team of 15+ volunteers virtually and during a pandemic, which is no easy feat. I also dance

amateur salsa, which is so much fun! I started about two years ago, and I love it! The school I go to is in Newark called Smiling David’s Dance Studio.

What is your ultimate goal in life? I don’t know that I have an ultimate goal, but I would like to achieve incremental goals in the future. I want to buy a one-family house. I own a rental property, but I’d like a place of my own. I would also like to reach the Director/Manager level within two years. Eventually, I’d also like to have a family of my own. My next travel goal is to visit Japan.

How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected you? I’ve been fortunate and blessed not to have many people in my family affected health-wise, and my prayers are with those who have been negatively affected by this pandemic. One change that has really affected me is that I always feel like I’m ‘on,’ whether with RBS related work or my work with AMA New Jersey. I’m an introvert, so socializing is not a huge necessity; however, I miss seeing people and having casual conversations. I also miss going to the movies, a restaurant, a friend’s house, salsa dancing. Overall, I truly wish we were on the other side of this, but I recognize how blessed I am to be in the position I am in and don’t take that for granted.

What is the most defining moment of your life thus far? Thus far, the most defining moment of my life happened during the Fall 2016-Spring 2017 academic year when I had what I would call one of the most challenging years of my life. At the beginning of that year, I got sick and could not go back to work for weeks. At the same time, Sarah Kosakowsi, now a Career Management Specialist, was just starting her job, and it was my job to train her. I was also taking MBA classes and needed to keep on top of that work. When I got back to work in October, I was just recovering but continued to do my best to fulfill my duties and get Sarah acclimated to RBS. The same semester, my grandfather passed away, and a week after that, I got in a car accident. I was challenged mentally, emotionally, and physically, but through all that, I realized I was only being prepared for what was next.

Following that semester, one of my colleagues took ill and was out for the entire semester. That semester, I took over for my colleague in an acting capacity. I also took on her class, Business Forum, which has about 200+ students in a semester, continued with my MBA courses, and still did my job as a Career Management Specialist. I had never experienced so many difficult situations concurrently, and it was so hard at times to keep it together. What I discovered in that time was that I had more strength than I knew, that I could get through hard times, even in the toughest circumstances. I also gained a new perspective on how short life is and how you should never take your health (mental and physical) for granted. I know that that year truly defined how I approach life today because I reference it so often, even now.