This year ETSU’s Marketing and Communications Department is sponsoring a new program called Bucfluencers, an opportunity for students to be social media ambassadors for the university. 

Marketing Communications Specialist, Rachel Howard, said the process began last year with a request for nominations for students from faculty/staff. 150 students were nominated and about 25 undergraduate and graduate students were selected.  

“We have a really diverse group of people with different majors and different interests,” said Howard.  

Howard shared that Bucfluencers will create social media content based on their experiences with ETSU. They are given creative freedom over the content posted on their personal social media platforms and on ETSU’s. They will promote events or initiatives on or around campus like Homecoming or Civility Week.  

Howard said the aim of the program is to illustrate what life is like at ETSU for prospective students and to help current students build connections.

“Say someone is interested in outdoor activities like hiking and they see somebody who they resonate with and feel like they can connect with,” said Howard. 

Another goal of the program is for the Bucfluencers to be representatives of different types of students on campus. “Maybe current students can see themselves and their current classmates or prospective students could see themselves,” said Howard.

Photo of Macy Strader, Miranda Meredith, and Hannah Askew. (Contributed/ETSU)

This year’s Bucfluencers have yet to be announced, but Howard said a post/video is in the works for the reveal. Throughout the semester, the Bucfluencers will be promoted on ETSU official social media accounts to boost their engagement with students.  

Howard hopes the program grows and keeps going every year. “The goal is to allow them to share from their perspective at ETSU. . . and to offer a more personal look at what it’s like to be a student at ETSU,” said Howard.  

If students are interested in the Bucfluencers, they should follow ETSU’s social media accounts to see their content.