The Last Day of My Internship At the Alabama Tourism Department

Posted by Alabama Tourism Department intern Brooke Franco

On the last day of my internship at the Alabama Tourism Department it is hard for me to really pin- point all of the things that I have learned, and my favorite things that I have done while I have been here. The biggest things that come to mind is how working in this industry is always about keeping and staying in contact with people, and how you must always have an open ear about what new things are happening and what is going on. I have also learned that promoting an entire state is not an easy job, and it requires an entire dedicated team which everyone working in this office has shown me this. From promoting events and cities, to creating brochures and advertisements, to coordinating tours in the state, to helping people with travel questions, managing the welcome centers to a whole lot more, I have seen how complex working in Tourism really is.
Working in Public Relations in this office is not just about doing press releases, is about doing anything and everything you can thing of to get Alabama’s name out there. It’s about finding out every new thing in the state and promoting every detail of it. It’s about offering the public a chance to see anything that Alabama has to offer and why they would want to see/be apart of it. I have also realized how staying on top of social networking groups like Twitter or Facebook are a critical part of Public Relations. As these networks have become less for entertainment use to for business use, it is a normal thing that groups like the Alabama Tourism Department use them for promoting themselves. In the work that I have done I realize how detailed you must get when writing a press release or an article for the public. Anyone out there can be convinced to attend or visit something because of the tiniest detail that they read in something that you write, therefore it’s best to leave nothing out.
This is just a sample of the things that I have learned while I have interned with this office. I have taken a lot from this internship and I will use it as I work on my plans for the future. I thank everyone in the Alabama Tourism Department for the help and the opportunities that they have given me this summer!

Meeting Governor Riley!

Posted by Alabama Tourism intern Brooke Franco:

There’s something very unique about taking a trip to the state capitol building in Montgomery. From taking in the picturesque view of it as you walk up Dexter Avenue, to climbing up the massive marble staircase at the foot of the building, to checking the time on the enormous clock on the front, to walking around the buildings tribute to all 50 United States flags, to gazing up into the mural of the history of Alabama inside the rotunda, there is just something exciting you find every time you go over to Goat Hill in Montgomery. History and stories abound from the moment you step onto the property.

I was able to take a special visit to the capitol. Ten other interns and I for the Office of the Governor were able to go and meet Governor Bob Riley in his office inside the building. We were all very excited that he was able to squeeze us in between traveling and all of his duties as Governor.

The Wednesday afternoon in July that we were to meet him we were taken into the grand reception area outside of his office to wait while he was in an important meeting. None of us said a word, as we stared at the pale yellow walls anxiously thinking about the man we had heard so much about on our internships.

When he was ready, we filed into his office and greeted him one at a time for a picture. From the second we walked into the room we found out how personable the Governor was. He talked to each of us asking where we went to school and what we were studying, things we had done on our internship, to even talking football and making jokes with us. He seemed so happy to meet us all despite how incredibly busy of a man he is. We all left his office excited at the opportunity we had just had.

Now when I take a trip to the capitol building I will always think of the day I was able to meet Governor Riley in his office. I will remember the exquisite way his office was decorated as it grandly looked out onto the grounds of the capitol. Most importantly, I will remember how happy he made a group of interns just by spending a little time with them!

A Trip to the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Plant

Posted by Alabama Tourism intern Brooke Franco:

As a part of my internship, I recently had the opportunity to visit the Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Alabama plant located right off I-65 outside of Montgomery. I was amazed at what I was able to see on the tour of this facility. This particular Hyundai Plant produces the Hyundai Santa Fes and Hyundai Sonatas. They offer guided one and a half hour tours Mondays-Fridays three times a day, and only one evening tour per week, with a reservation.

The tour started off as our guide gave us a brief overview of the history of Hyundai, the plant itself, and the car making process. They then showed us a brief video about how the plant was run and gave us an idea of things to look for as we were on our tour. The entire facility is huge, spanning several miles. The tours are given on trams driven by your guide and take you as up close as you can to seeing how the process is done.

I was completely amazed with the robots and the technology that the plant uses in making its cars. Hundreds of robots are used that perform jobs like welding, stamping parts of the car from steel, putting in the car consoles, and placing on the windshields, all in a matter of a few seconds.

The tour first takes you into the stamping section where steel is cut, transformed into recognizable parts of a car, and then welded on to create what looks like a car body. You are next taken into the general assembly building where the majority of the production is done. Watch as the wiring, engine, battery, seats, windows, doors, and everything else are put into the car by both workers and robots. As cars leave this building they are drivable and ready for the rigorous testing done to each vehicle. Your final stop of the tour takes you to where the engines are assembled as robots cut the parts that are assembled by team members.

Overall, I was very impressed with the tour and watching how the facility was run. I was really impressed with the fact that so many of the Hyundai team members stopped and waved to the tram as the tour passed along, and that they seemed to be so happy to have visitors. I would definitely recommend this tour to anyone!

My Internship at the Alabama Tourism Department

My name is Brooke Franco and I am an intern this summer at the Alabama Department of Tourism. Here are some of my reactions on my first day of my exciting internship.

After living in Montgomery for 22 years I thought that I knew a lot about Alabama and what goes on here, but as I finish my first day interning at the Alabama Tourism Department I am really taken back by all the various aspects and the tremendous effort that it takes to show the things that make Alabama such a great state. From sandy white beaches, to restaurants, golf courses, historical monuments, events, and big and small cities alike, there can be no expense in what can be promoted in and out of the state. One thing that I never realized is that almost any given day anywhere in Alabama there is an event going on. From the smallest and most unique events to the larger well-known festivals and activities, anyone anywhere could find something that would make them want to visit Alabama for. I was also amazed at how many different types of travel one could possibly do in Alabama. There are
countless historical sites to be visited, such as the Rosa Parks museum in Montgomery, Helen Keller’s birthplace in Tuscumbia, and the Hank Aaron Museum and Learning Center in Mobile. Golf fans will want to head straight to one of the eleven Robert Trent Jones Golf courses the state has. One can visit literary landmarks the state has like Monroeville, home of Harper Lee and Truman Capote, or the F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald Museum in Montgomery.
Another big thing that I learned on my first day as an intern was how much media exposure helps bring a better image to Alabama. From major companies using Alabama as a backdrop for ads their products appear in, to television shows and movies filmed all around the state, these are the kinds of things that help put Alabama’s name out. One of the more recent things that Alabama has been filmed for was for a documentary reality series named “On the Road In America” where four Arab young adults are traveling from Los Angeles to Washington learning about American culture and history. The show stopped in Montgomery to film a segment about the Civil Rights Movement.
As I complete my internship for the next six weeks there are so many new things that I want to learn about tourism and how it can be successfully done. From event scheduling, to creating advertisements, knowing facts and backgrounds of the places you are promoting, and everywhere in between, these are some of the important things that I hope to learn about tourism in the state of Alabama.