Okay So I haven't put ANY of my vlogs since I got down to Florida on my blog for you all to enjoy yet...so to make up for that, I'm putting them ALL here in one post for you to enjoy! If you want to comment, click on the video and it will take you to my YouTube Channel.
Starting from the most recent:
See how Disney Partners up with other groups on campus!
Campus Representatives hold their first campus presentation of the semester!
Campus Reps travel to Toledo to promote our campus presentation!
Alpha Sigma Phi (my fraternity) travels to the local quarry for some fun and relaxation!
CAMPUS FEST! Campus Representatives promote the Disney College Program to students during one of the biggest meet & greets of the semester!
I'm back from my Summer Vaca as an alumni castmember...sadness personified...see my memories from the summer!
The D-Fam travels to the "Open Mouse" of Bay Lake Toers, a new resort located right next to Disney's Contemporary Resort. Check it out!
Quick little vlogs on my way to work...
POOL TIME!!
Rope Drop at the Magic Kingdom...one of my favorite pastimes!
In Honor of the 6th Harry Potter movie being released, Caitlin and I decided to celebrate...DISNEY style!
My first ACTUAL vlog in Florida. Special Cameo from Caroline!
November 6, 2009
November 3, 2009
Shanghai Nights: Disney Parks Adds Another International Theme Park to Their Repetoir
I've never really been to another Disney Park other than Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, FL. But it looks like in the future, I'm going to have to add another one to my list. A major milestone has been passed for the Disney Company's Shanghai Theme Park Project! 
This news release from corporate comes from the Disney Parks Blog :
As mentioned before in the article, China, more specifically Beijing has given Disney the approval to move forward with the project which is expected to be the one of the largest-ever foreign investments in China. Estimates for the park's price tag are around $4 billion. It would allow Disney to establish a direct presence in a market that, despite its size, has presented numerous hurdles to foreign entertainment companies according to the Wall Street Journal.
Disney - not a stranger to operating internationally- already owns and operates a theme Park in Hong Kong, but this park (according to plans) will be much bigger and will allow for a direct access to the local market.
All of this information is newly established. I will update you as soon as new information is released. For more information visit this Wall Street Journal article or the Disney Parks Blog.
What are your thoughts about Disney drawing plans for a new theme Park internationally. Has anyone journeyed to Disneyland Hong Kong, Euro Disney or Disneyland Paris? Leave a comment below with your thoughts and/or experiences.
This news release from corporate comes from the Disney Parks Blog :
The Walt Disney Company today announced that the Project Application Report (PAR) for a Disney theme park in the Pudong district of Shanghai has received approval from the relevant authorities of the central government of
China.
“China is one of the most dynamic, exciting and important countries in the world, and this approval marks a very significant milestone for The Walt Disney Company in mainland China,” said Robert A. Iger, president and CEO of The Walt Disney Company.
The PAR approval will enable Disney and its Shanghai partners to move forward toward a final agreement to build and operate the park and begin preliminary development work. Upon completion of the final agreement, the project’s initial phase would include a Magic Kingdom-style theme park with characteristics tailored to the Shanghai region and other amenities consistent with Disney’s destination resorts worldwide.
As mentioned before in the article, China, more specifically Beijing has given Disney the approval to move forward with the project which is expected to be the one of the largest-ever foreign investments in China. Estimates for the park's price tag are around $4 billion. It would allow Disney to establish a direct presence in a market that, despite its size, has presented numerous hurdles to foreign entertainment companies according to the Wall Street Journal.
Disney - not a stranger to operating internationally- already owns and operates a theme Park in Hong Kong, but this park (according to plans) will be much bigger and will allow for a direct access to the local market.
All of this information is newly established. I will update you as soon as new information is released. For more information visit this Wall Street Journal article or the Disney Parks Blog.
What are your thoughts about Disney drawing plans for a new theme Park internationally. Has anyone journeyed to Disneyland Hong Kong, Euro Disney or Disneyland Paris? Leave a comment below with your thoughts and/or experiences.
November 2, 2009
So... I applied again....
There has to be a Disney chip in my brain or something because I just applied for the Disney College Program...again. 
UPDATE (11/3) So for those of you wondering how my interview actually went this is for you. I received my call at around 7:30 (after freaking out mildly cause my interview was scheduled at 7:15) and after apologizing briefly Jan, my interviewer began asking me questions. After being relieved that I was an active castmember (that being she didn't have to ask so many questions) we bantered back and forth about my relationship with the company, why I'm applying for a 3rd college program and my increasing love and dedication to the company.
Let me explain because there's a logic here...I swear. I'm graduating college in a little more than a month and a half, and I applied for a few professional internships (See this post for info...) and they said I would hear back in November...well hello November! It's nice to meet you!
I have anywhere from Today (Nov. 2) until the end of November to hear back from the company on whether or not I received a Professional role within the company...so the College Program is a fall-back...a fail safe if you will, just in case.
We had our last campus presentation, and as a Campus Representative it was my very last presentation as a student. So to say I was sad is an understatement, but to apply for the program again makes me even happier...
Now I know what you're thinking...and it's not like I want to go back into Merchantainment with my bachelors degree in Public Relations and Entertainment Marketing, which is why this time around I decided to try something different and apply for a few different roles:
- Photopass
- Concierge
- Vacation Club
- Hospitality
- Character Entertainment
- Character Performer
...yes you read right. Character Performer. I wanted to try something different this go round , which means I will be traveling to Michigan this weekend to Audition. Am I excited? Yes. Am I nervous? Extremely. Will I vlog about it? Most definitely. I'm not banking all my hopes on it because performers are cast based on need and height. Based on experience auditioning, I've been told I'm "dead height" (meaning there isn't a constant need for my height range as far as character performers go). So instead of worrying my pretty little head off about it, I'm going with the notion of having fun and hopefully I'll get something out of the process...
In addition I plan on taking a few classes that will help me in the long run like: Exploring Marketing, Exploring People Management, or maybe Corporate Communication and of course, using my networking skills at the Speaker Series and such to a tee that they can't help but hire me after my program is over.
I'm still keeping my hopes up about the Professional Internship but it doesn't hurt to have options right? Except for that my options are with the same company! So yeah I've applied for the College Program for a third time, but honestly...I feel this company is where I belong. If you know me at all, I never shut up about Disney! I love this company and what it has done for me professionally so why not want to continue down the path?
My interview is tomorrow (Tuesday) in the evening and I'm doing everything I can to prepare. I'm not really worried, but there's no sense in not being ready. Plus I'm auditioning for roles I've never had before so it is (in a sense) a completely different interview!
UPDATE (11/3) So for those of you wondering how my interview actually went this is for you. I received my call at around 7:30 (after freaking out mildly cause my interview was scheduled at 7:15) and after apologizing briefly Jan, my interviewer began asking me questions. After being relieved that I was an active castmember (that being she didn't have to ask so many questions) we bantered back and forth about my relationship with the company, why I'm applying for a 3rd college program and my increasing love and dedication to the company.
We talked for about a good 40 minutes about my work experiences on previous programs and why I chose the roles I did on my role checklist. She praised me on my examples and said that I was one of her favorite interviewees because she loves interviewing alumni and current castmembers because of our awesome stories and yearn to stay with the company.
What mostly stuck out to me was that she told me that she saw no reason that I shouldn't be admitted back into the program based on my interview (YAY!) and she "Would love to tell (me) right then about an offer but because (I was) auditioning on Sunday, I would have to wait until after then". So it's safe to say I'm really excited about the next couple of weeks because not only should I hear back from the Professional Internship segment of the company, I might also get a purple folder as well. The is me extremely excited for the weeks ahead.... :)
We'll know in a few weeks time what the future actually holds for me but for now I'll just keep looking to that second star to the right and wishing really hard my dreams continue to come true!