Christina R. Lorella
University Place,WA
Summary
Communications professional with robust experience in managing internal and external communications. Skilled in crafting compelling messages, media relations, and digital content creation. Strong focus on team collaboration and consistently achieving results. Reliable and adaptable, excelling in dynamic environments and meeting changing needs.
Overview
13
13
years of professional experience
Work History
Communications Specialist (Temporary, Term-Limited)
King County, Dept. of Adult & Juvenile Detention
03.2024 - Current
- Write, photograph, design, and publish the monthly DAJD newsletter, including sourcing content through interviews and storytelling
- Solely responsible for concept development, content creation, and publication of the Juvenile Division’s internal newsletter
- Collaborate with juvenile division leadership and safety officers to develop and distribute a monthly Safety Essentials publication focused on safety tips and reminders for uniformed staff
- Partner with programming contractors and volunteers to document youth engagement programs, including photography and storytelling to support future funding and visibility
- Actively participate in youth programs to better capture the impact of services provided to youth in King County custody
- Contribute to content creation and publishing for the King County Department of Adult & Juvenile Detention’s LinkedIn account, amplifying department initiatives and employee highlights
- Lead Ambassador for the King County Employee Giving Drive; set a 10-year record for donations in 2024, doubled employee participation, and received the Executive Office's "Most Improved" Award
- Serve as the department's Engagement Champion for the Employee Engagement Survey, promoting high participation and contributing to actionable feedback for positive change
- Act as Engagement Specialist for the department, leading recognition and morale-boosting efforts such as Correctional Officer Week, National Nurses Week, Food Service Workers Week, and additional employee appreciation campaigns
- Serve on the Senior Management Team, supporting department-wide communication strategies and promoting equity-driven initiatives across all staff levels
- Collaborate regularly with the Executive Office communications team to align departmental messaging with broader County-wide goals and strategize effective communication initiatives
- Partner with the Director and Deputy Director on internal and external communication needs, as well as community engagement efforts
- Design and manage internal communications materials, including digital signage, flyers, posters, and department-wide announcements
- Write and distribute press releases on behalf of the department, highlighting key events, accomplishments, and initiatives to the broader public
Strategic Communications Advisor
Seattle Municipal Court
02.2023 - Current
- Acted as the sole communications advisor for the court; a role that requires a deep understanding of public, political and judicial landscapes
- Professionally and tactfully communicated messages to a diverse community of individuals
- Wrote and/or edited internal and external collateral to ensure it is clear, concise, professional, and appropriate for its intended audience
- Managed all aspects of the Court’s social media presence from the creation of written and visual content to the management of community outreach
- Develop, manage, implement, and maintain communication plans for the court and its internal departments
- Assist the bench with the creation of talking points, bench cards, and other materials that aid them in their judicial duties
- Responsible for creating and distributing all internal communications including court-wide emails, internal news posts, staff newsletters, Teams messaging, etc.
- Served as the lead web steward for both the internal and external Seattle Municipal Court websites
- Worked with subject matter experts to design and publish court-wide materials for the public, including slideshows, one-pagers, videos, webpages, and more
- Managed a court-wide informational video project to help community members better understand court systems and processes
- Led the development and rollout of an updated logo and style guide that better aligned with the Court’s missions and values
- Planned and led both the internal and external rollout of the Court’s new branding efforts, including the replacement of former logos within the courthouse on any and all communications material used by the Court.
- Served as the point of contact for all media inquiries
- Led the communications efforts and served as the community liaison for the Court’s “Probation Evolution Project,” which recently won the Innovating Justice Award from the Washington State Board for Judicial Administration (BJA) for “outstanding work delivering innovative and responsive justice using a race equity lens.”
- Acted as a liaison between the Court and community members/stakeholders with a focus on building and maintaining relationships built on communication, transparency, and mutual trust
Community Relations Officer
City of Tacoma
01.2016 - 01.2023
- Acted as the sole community relations officer for Environmental Services, a role that requires a deep understanding of both department operations and the current political landscape
- Professionally and tactfully communicated messages to a diverse community
- Acted as the point of contact for all community-related complaints, compliments, and conversations regarding department utilities, programs, and services
- Wrote/edited both internal and external collateral to ensure it is clear, concise, professional, and appropriate for its intended audience
- Managed all aspects of the department’s social media presence Served as a community liaison to residential and commercial customers, organizations, and businesses
- Worked collaboratively with Tacoma Public Utilities, our sister organization, to provide extensive rates outreach through the design and distribution of materials and the planning and execution of up to 50 community and stakeholder presentations on a biennial basis.
- Built and maintained relationships with stakeholders, both locally and nationally, through frequent communications and meetings
- Wrote organizational assets including press releases, blog entries, and articles, and distribute them to local and national media outlets for publication
- Created content for, manage, and distribute a citywide newsletter
- Managed partnerships with the Tacoma Rainiers, Tacoma Public Utilities, Point Defiance Zoo, Metro Parks, etc.
- Produced and distribute all marketing and promotional materials for TAGRO and create yearly communication plans to develop brand awareness
- Assisted educational outreach team with the development of materials and communication plans
- Served as a web steward and manage all content for web pages associated with the department. Assist with web maintenance, redesigns, and page audits
- Staff liaison for the Environmental Services Commission, a group of 15 city manager-appointed stakeholders from throughout the City who provide utility rate recommendations to City Council
- Designed and distribute monthly educational/promotional utility bill inserts that reach over 300,000 homes within Pierce County in a multitude of languages
- Wrote/edited letters to the community, speeches, award and grant applications, and responses for department directors, division managers, and engineers
- Utilized metrics and other analytical data to plan, monitor, and supervise budgets associated with marketing and communications to ensure a strong return on investments
- Met regularly with division managers and department heads to develop communication plans based on current needs of the department
Communications Specialist
City of Kirkland
01.2015 - 01.2016
- Researched and conducted journalistic interviews, wrote news releases using A.P. style, updated the City news page, and distributed critical information to all local and major news outlets, as well as to the community via email campaigns and social media platforms
- Created and published all content and design for social media outlets with an audience reach of over 5000 recipients
- Worked closely with other departments, including the Office of Emergency Management, to stay current with our crisis communication plan and routinely discussed methods necessary to get critical information to the community in the event of an emergency and/or to inform residents of critical road or trail closures
- Worked together with the tourism department and parks department to promote the City
- Partnered with Kirkland Conserves, a group consisting of waste management and stormwater management, to ensure that Kirkland remains a leader in recycling and green living
- Helped create all digital promotional material and distributed using appropriate mediums
- Used data analysis to plan, monitor, and supervise budgets associated with marketing and communications to ensure a strong return on investments
- Wrote television script for a monthly segment on recent city news and provide voice-overs
- Assisted program managers with communication plans and outreach strategies
Communications Manager
Encompass
01.2014 - 01.2016
- Responsible for all aspects of marketing and communications for a children’s nonprofit organization with 26 different programs and services
- Worked closely with the fund development team to procure items and funds in support of the organization’s mission
- Managed all aspects of the organization’s social media presence
- Served as the organization’s web steward, including the creation and maintenance of all web-related content and design
- Designed, edited, and printed annual reports
- Wrote frequent blog entries for industry publications
- Used data analysis to plan, monitor, and supervise budgets associated with marketing and communications to ensure a strong return on investments
- Utilized a variety of marketing strategies to increase participation rates, encourage donations, and assist in the organization’s total annual revenue
- Designed the newly-implemented strategic plan which was published in local newspapers and sent to all of our community sponsors, donors, partners, participants, and major stakeholders
- Ensured all materials were accurate, consistent, and relevant to the organization’s values, mission, and brand.
- Designed all print and digital advertisements and maintained media relations that increase program participation and encourage donor support
- Coordinated and led monthly marketing and communication meetings with all program directors and managers to encourage dialogue and ensure all program needs are being met
- Created all flyers, brochures, posters, gala catalogs, signage, annual reports, and other promotional materials
- Provided all content and design for blog and monthly newsletter with an audience reach of over 2500 recipients
Editor-in-Chief
University of Washington
01.2012 - 01.2015
- Oversaw all aspects of the publication’s operations
- Supervised approximately fifteen people, including the publication’s board of directors and all non-board editors and writers
- Utilized data retrieved from analytic techniques to increase daily readership by an average of 250 percent by developing audience-specific content
- Developed the ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects under strict deadlines
- Responsible for web content layout, web interface design, web content writing, and the selection, editing, and final publishing of all web content
- Worked with Director of Web Technologies to redesign the website to increase reader usability
- Worked closely with the Director of Marketing to create and implement strategic annual media plans and corresponding media kits; Gained proficiency in branding
- Created and/or edited and published all web-based content
- Developed expertise in Associated Press style; Performed final proofreading on all documents
- Managed all aspects of social media maintenance
- Responded to community inquiries in a timely fashion
- Provided an intellectual atmosphere conducive to the stimulation and interchange of ideas
- Scheduled meetings and transcribed meeting minutes
- Planned and coordinated large-scale marketing events
- Provided spreadsheet, graphics, and desktop publishing support, including data entry and biweekly timesheets for payroll department
Education
B.A. - Media & Communications Studies
University of Washington
Seattle, WSA06.2012
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Bellevue College
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International Social Marketing Association
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Community-Based Social Marketing
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Western States Project
Skills
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Confident, articulate, and professional speaking abilities
- Empathic listener with a willingness to learn and adapt
- Persuasive writer
- Collaborative mindset
- Provide an intellectual atmosphere conducive to the stimulation and interchange of ideas
- Build relationships based on trust and respect
- Internal communications
- Event coordination
- Social media management
- Media relations
- Press release writing
- Copyediting
- Digital communications
Hobbies and Interests
Advertising and Branding, Conceptualization and Copywriting, Web Design and Content Development, Illustration and Drawing, Journalism and Associated Press Style, Community Outreach and Education, Search Engine Optimization, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Community Psychology, Continuous Education and Professional Development. Huge women's soccer fan with a love for the outdoors, particularly boating!
Accomplishments
- Served as the County’s 2024 Employee Giving Program Ambassador, driving the highest donations in the past 10 years and earning King County’s “Most Improved” award for a department with over 600 employees.
- Member of 2019-2025 Strategic Plan Team
- Member of the Equitable Engagement Team
- Board Member at Washington Corrections Center for Women
- 2018 Continuous Improvement/Lean Six Sigma Advocate
- Recipient of 2017 T.O.P. Award presented by director and city manager for outstanding performance in community relations
- Nominated for Librarian’s Blog of the Year Award, 2021
Timeline
Communications Specialist (Temporary, Term-Limited)
King County, Dept. of Adult & Juvenile Detention
03.2024 - Current
Strategic Communications Advisor
Seattle Municipal Court
02.2023 - Current
Community Relations Officer
City of Tacoma
01.2016 - 01.2023
Communications Specialist
City of Kirkland
01.2015 - 01.2016
Communications Manager
Encompass
01.2014 - 01.2016
Editor-in-Chief
University of Washington
01.2012 - 01.2015
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Bellevue College
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International Social Marketing Association
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Community-Based Social Marketing
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Western States Project
B.A. - Media & Communications Studies
University of Washington
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