So, What Are You "Working" On?

Meeting at a coffee shop in downtown Lafayette on Thursday, April 24, 2025. Photo credit: Cindy Carter

Festivals are fun, but we really are working.

Festival International 2025 began on Wednesday, and though most of us arrived late Wednesday evening, Thursday was our first workday.

What does that look like? We met at a local coffee shop Thursday morning to discuss the work plans the students submitted early this week. Each student's plan was unique to their field of study, as we brought students from journalism, political communications and public relations. They were asked to write or produce two articles or blogs, along with daily social media content for three of the four days that we will be onsite for the festival.

Additionally, each student signed up for two volunteer shifts to get an insider's view of the communication that happens behind the scenes. Those shifts had to be worked into their schedule around interviews, content creation and the festival happenings.

At 10 a.m., we met with the Jesse Guidry, director of communications for Lafayette Travel, who shared some of the festival's 39-year history, including its impact on local culture and economy. His insight on the year-round activities related to the festival gave the students a deeper understanding of the significance of the annual event and inspired them to pursue several of the fantastic ideas for articles and social content immediately.

The students walked out of the coffee shop and spent the next few hours taking photos and interviewing local shop owners, while following up on additional contacts for new story ideas. Once we received our media badges, they students set off in search of interviewees and social content.

Friday began with another huddle at the coffee shop, followed by a meeting with Carly Viator Courville, the marketing director for Festival International. She shared some story leads and contacts for the students to pursue. After lunch, the students worked on lining up some logistics for the website, mostly working out a functional system to get content uploaded and posted. This aspect is always tough, and with much of the content coming over the weekend, we needed to get a system in place to facilitate the sharing of content.

LSU Manship students Cadence Laszlo, Dorene Hantzis and Olivia Johnson discuss story ideas and coordinate posting social media content on Friday, April 25, 2025. Photo credit: LSU Manship student Kierra Evans.

Friday was a blur of confirming and conducting interviews, working volunteer shifts and finding new content. Thankfully, most of these activities were done early, as the rain came in around 8 p.m. and closed the festival for the evening.

Stay tuned for our weekend activities.