About
Academic Background
Valeria Mendoza is a born-and-raised New Yorkina, with the unwavering aspiration to make her immigrant parents proud. She is an academically trained multi-lingual (Spanish/English) and bi-cultural (Mexican - American) professional with a dual bachelor's degree in International Relations/Latin American Studies and a Marketing minor.
Graduated Cum Laude with a dual degree in three years.
Sigma Iota Roe - International Studies Honor Society
Sigma Delta Pi - National Collegiate Hispanic Honor Society.
Internships
In 2012, Valeria lead a cohort of middle-school youth leaders from Astoria Queens and Long Island City to petition City Council to find a resolution on climate change and to increase renewable energy usage in New York. She facilitated workshops centered on the science of sustainability and the history of environmental policy supported by the Greening Western Queens Fund. On the state level, she worked in partnership with environmental groups to call for a ban on hydraulic fracturing in New York State. Ultimately, Valeria’s cohort devised a campaign to improve air quality in Western Queens which was presented to Assembly Aravella Simotas.
In 2013, Valeria was selected for the LASAC Prelaw Scholars Program at Georgia State University for a intensive program where she explored her interest in the law, understood the skills needed to succeed in law school, gained insights on the legal profession and future career options, and learn more about navigating the law school admission process. She built confidence and community through supportive networking and mentoring relationships with diverse legal professionals, faculty, and peers in the program that specifically acknowledge and addressed the challenges faced by minority students on the path to law school and the legal profession.
primary Research Experience
In 2013, she was awarded the best Social Science Research presentation “Exploring the Role of Music in the Transnational Lives of Migrants from Mexico in the United States,” from Adelphi University. Her primary research was then selected to be presented at Binghamton’s LACAS Undergraduate Conference which brings students across the United States to showcase the best undergraduate research conducted on social, political, economic, geographic, and medical topics.
Work Experience
In 2014, she’s worked with the Deutsche Bank Americas Foundation and the City University of New York to identify and secure partnerships with city agencies to provide 3,500 young people and their families with individual literacy support services, childhood development programs, job training for young adults, and translation services for parents.
Valeria joined ABC News and Univision Communications' latest joint venture Fusion. The digital news startup championed a young, diverse, bi-partisan, and inclusive mission. There she learned the fundamentals of corporate communications, helped build an audience of 20 Million from the ground up leveraging content marketing, social media, and broadcast production.
In 2016, she launched Echo Communications LLC, to offer female-owned businesses consulting services in marketing and public relations. Since then Valeria has gained experience in messaging strategy, positioning, media relations, public relations, thought leadership, influencer marketing, and strategic partnerships having worked within the tech, fashion, entertainment, philanthropy, and travel industries.
As a consultant she has generated 5K views on sponsored content featuring the first female cruise line sea captain Kate McCue Celebrity Cruises, improved customer retention rates by 45% revising Everlane’s approach to customer relations, and secured over 1.5 million impressions through earned media hits for what is to be one of AMResorts most sustainable hotels. Some of her media strategies have landed top-tier placements in The Guardian, ABC News, Univision, The Today Show, Yahoo, MSN Money, Fast Company, Trip Savvy, The Points Guy, USA Today and Travel Weekly.
Valeria is now focused on letting her creativity run wild working on projects that align to her values as an animal welfare advocate and sustainability champion. In addition to consulting, she occasionally models and is working on a poetry book. Echo Communications, LLC has been rebranded to help vegan, cruelty-free, waste reducing businesses become change agents who lead the transformation of their industry. She is open to serving as a spokesperson for on air interviews, radio, and podcasts or working on the business side of public relations and content marketing. Valeria dedicates 5% of her working hours volunteering for female-funded businesses.
