What's HappeningNASCAR Program Picks GCSU Student
- Thirteen students from across the country were selected to participate in the 2009 NASCAR Diversity Internship Program. Senior Marketing major Gabriela (Gabby) Acuna (’09) of Peachtree City, Ga. was one of the lucky 13 who won a place in this year’s program which began June 1st at NASCAR’s Sprint All-Star Race weekend at Lowe’s Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C. While there, the interns met with a number of key people in the NASCAR industry including NASCAR Sprint Cup Series crew members, drivers, and NASCAR executives. Gabby was the only student from a Georgia college to be selected this year. While at GCSU, she was a member of the Bobcat women’s tennis team, president of the Marketing & Advertising Club, and member of the Dean’s Student Advisory Board for the College of Business.
- Below are some impressions Gabby shared about her experiences at NASCAR:
“There are few moments in sports that thrill fans like when the flag goes down to start or end the Daytona 500. After 3 interviews and finger’s crossed, I am very fortunate to have been placed to intern at such a successful NASCAR race team. Team owner, Joe Gibbs, is a Hall of Fame Redskins football coach and his drivers have won 3 Sprint Cup Championships and 72 race wins. Joe Gibbs Racing has 3 drivers: Kyle Busch - No.18 M&M’S, Joey Logano - No. 20 The Home Depot, and Denny Hamlin - No.11 FedEx. In addition, JGR recently added a motocross team with Josh Grant and Cody Cooper as their riders.
I have spent most of my time in the Marketing and Licensing department learning how to process product approvals. Working with Fortune 500 companies and licensees such as The Bradford Exchange, EA Sports, PEZ, and Herff Jones, has been a great experience. I will never look at a t-shirt as “just a t-shirt” again! By the end of my internship I will have worked with sponsorship and public relations, both of which play a large role in the sport. It is interesting to have had a fans view before joining JGR and now getting to see the business side of the industry.” 