When your boss is running for president

Think you’re busy? You’re probably not as busy as Alicia Oken ‘13, whose boss is running for president.

She is the social media platforms director for the Democratic National Committee, part of a team creating “one of the most inventive and irreverent get-out-the-vote strategies in modern politics,” according to The Washington Post.

Oken majored in political science, communication studies, and multimedia journalism and mass communications, and went on to earn a master’s in public relations and corporate communications at Georgetown University.

We wanted to know how she got from Augustana College to the Kamala Harris “digital war room.”

Q: You’ve said that when applying for jobs after graduate school, you applied for positions for which you were not completely qualified. Really?

A: After graduate school, I applied to any job in the political field that seemed remotely interesting or had skills I wanted to gain. The most notable was when I applied to a place I had interned at for a job doing email coding. I had zero experience with coding.

After my telephone interview, they said I wasn't a good fit for that email position but they were looking to hire someone to do social media — a skill I did have experience with — for a woman who was running for Senate in California. That woman turned out to be Kamala Harris, our current vice president.

I always recommend students apply for the job they may not be a perfect fit for because you never know where it may lead you. For me, it brought me to my dream career.

Q: Is this "aim high" attitude something in your makeup that was amplified at Augie?

A: There's the quote that goes, “Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you'll land among the stars.” I've carried this with me throughout life, and certainly at Augustana.

When presented with the chance at Augie to submit a research paper to a conference or apply to a summer leadership institute, I took it. While I wasn't accepted to everything I applied to, the feedback and experience I gained from trying set me up for success better next time. Augustana offers so many opportunities both academically and personally, you just have to grab them.

Q: You’ve said you were not a joiner in high school, but you certainly were at Augie. What changed?

A: Augustana offered so many opportunities and experiences for me to try out areas of my interest outside of class. Because you live on campus or near campus, going to an Augustana Observer meeting after class or hosting a radio show at night is so much easier than it was in high school — especially since I was a high school student-athlete, which consumed most of my time. For the first time in my life, I had the free time to explore who I wanted to be and join a wide array of activities.

My most memorable Augustana moment was when my roommate and I created Tennis Club. We both wanted to continue playing tennis but in a less competitive environment than college sports. Nothing existed like that at Augie at that time, so we made it happen. Having the opportunity to bring together people with similar interests who may not have met each other on campus otherwise is something I will never forget.

Q: You said "My Augustana 'A' has led me to Washington, D.C." How?

A: I was very lucky in life and have known since high school that I wanted to pursue a career in government and public service. During my high school government class, something clicked, and I begged my parents to take me to Washington, D.C., for a family vacation. The first time I saw the U.S. Capitol in person, I knew one day I wanted to live and work there.

This is actually one of the reasons I picked Augustana. During my college visit, I met with an Augie political science professor who told me how politicians would come to Iowa during election years, and it was a great area to get involved in local politics. I was sold.

During my time at Augustana, I was able to see President Barack Obama in person twice and thanks to the help of Augie Choice, I was able to intern in Washington, D.C., in the U.S. House of Representatives during the summer between my junior and senior year. This experience solidified my high school decision to live in the D.C. area, and I'm still living here today!

Q: When you graduated in 2013, social media was not what it is now. What did you learn or experience at Augie that has helped you to embrace and keep up on a high level with this aspect of communications?

A: Social media has definitely evolved since 2013, but at its core, it has remained the same: A place for people to connect with others. No matter whether it is Facebook or TikTok, text or video, Augustana gave me the skills to communicate through written and visual mediums.

From my multimedia journalism and mass communications classes where we learned how to create a compelling news video to my political science classes where we learned how to distill important information, I learned how to embrace change, doublecheck my sources, and make sure content is accessible so you can reach as many people as possible. As social media has evolved and grown to be a bigger part of people's lives, I have grown with it.

Q: Anything else you would care to share?

A: I would not have made it where I am today without the supportive faculty at Augustana. My advice to prospective students is always to lean on your advisors and tell them what you are interested in beyond Augustana. They will help guide you — sometimes even years later!