JACKSON BORMAN | STAFF REPORTER | jborman@butler.edu
Butler communication and business students will have a new internship opportunity next semester.
Bright Blue is a new agency still in the development process. The agency will provide internship opportunities for junior and senior students.
Due to the nature of the agency, students will have a completely different experience than they would in a typical internship.
Bright Blue will be a student-run marketing and communications agency. It is a collaboration between the Lacy School of Business and the College of Communication. The agency will be housed entirely on Butler University’s campus in the Holcomb Building. Bright Blue will model a real-life agency that students could find themselves working for in the future.
Joe Ellsworth is an independent contractor who is the project director for Bright Blue. He said he is thrilled about the opportunity this project will provide to Butler students.
“It is really exciting and really a cool internship opportunity, and not your average internship at that,” Ellsworth said. “Bright Blue very much mirrors real life jobs; it isn’t just an assignment.”
Sophomore business student Anna Graham completed internships before where she is given jobs nobody else wants to do. She says Bright Blue sounds different.
“I think students feel that when adults are in the scenario they need to impress that older person,” she said. “It might be challenging to work with strictly peers, but I think the outcome would be really cool to see what the students can do.”
Students who are selected will fill real-life positions in the company such as CEO, accounting executive, marketing strategist, creative director and graphic designer. These experiences will act as paid internships.
This team will work with local businesses on initiatives that range from communications to marketing, in order to create advertising and products that the companies can then actually use to distribute to their own clients as well as the general public.
Bright Blue will identify a company’s business strategy to create projects such as videos, websites, ad campaigns and printed media.
A committee of faculty members with experience in the business and communications fields will oversee the student run agency. Bright Blue will be run inside of the Holcomb, so professors and other faculty members will not be far if students need advice or assistance.
While the agency will not be for profit, the students in charge will run it as if it is, helping to create the real world feel that the project was designed around.
Katy Robinson, a senior strategic communication major, will not have a chance to take part in this internship, but is excited for the students who will.
“I just found out about this internship recently and was really disappointed,” Robinson said. “I love this idea. I think this is a great way to give students the real world experience. This sounds like an amazing opportunity for students who are interested in the agency world.”
Ellsworth said he believes the internship is a great fit for both communications students as well as business students. Communications students can focus on the creative process, while business students can work on managing the finances of the group as well as the clients and their needs.
“We hope to draw in students with an entrepreneurial interest because it truly is a real business startup that involves working together to accomplish goals,” Ellsworth said.
In the coming years, Bright Blue hopes to become a staple in the Indianapolis business scene and a popular internship opportunity for Butler students.
Graham said she does not see the popularity of the new program being a problem.
“I would be really interested in joining because it is something new to Butler, so it is cool to be one of the first people involved,” she said. “Also getting to work with Butler students is always fun.”
The agency is looking to fill six internship positions who will receive a salary. Those who are interested should contact Joe Ellsworth via email at jellsworth@fireandrain.com.
