Kanna (Taylor) Rook
February 19, 2019
Kanna (Taylor) Rook (2018).
After graduating from Truman 10 years ago, Kanna (Taylor) Rook has become well-versed in the world of PR, marketing, and communication with a diversified background in higher education, non-profit, government, and now healthcare. Most recently, she spent a year in the communications department with the City of St. Peters, and prior to that she spent nearly five years as a community manager for the American Cancer Society, where she raised more than $1.5 million for the cause.
Kanna is now a PR consultant for SSM Health at St. Mary’s Hospital in St. Louis, where she resides with her husband Tyler and their three dogs. She is always exploring the city and traveling outside of it to find the best things to do, eat, and drink.
What year did you graduate and what was your concentration?
I graduated in 2009 with a Bachelor of Arts in Communication with a concentration in Public Communication and a minor in German (because, why not?)
What extra-/co-curricular activities did you do?
I played on Truman’s women’s club lacrosse team, I was a student ambassador, a Tel-Alumni caller, and I was a features reporter for The Index, the campus newspaper. I was also a member of the Ad and PR Club, and served as service chair for Lambda Pi Eta (COMM national honor society).
Kanna playing lacrosse (2007).
I also did an internship with Truman’s PR department – the best professional experience of my college career. If you have an opportunity to apply for this internship I’d highly recommend it!
Kanna (far right) and the Truman PR team at a Cardinal game (2008).
Lastly, I served as Service Chair and Vice President of Phi Sigma Pi, to this day the most influential organization I was ever a part of. It taught me so much about leadership, working with others, organization, and it helped me develop my passion for serving others. I also met some of my best friends in PSP, which I am still very close with to this day.
Kanna (2nd fr left, front row) with her Phi Sigma Pi brothers (2007).
Did you go to grad school? If so, where? Was it immediately after you left Truman or did you wait? Why?
No, but after 10 years removed from school, I am finally entertaining the idea of going back to get my Master’s, especially since my new job offers tuition reimbursement!
What was your first job after graduation?
Thanks to a college friend I met while in the Ad and PR Club (connections are everything in the professional world!) I started working just two days after I graduated at a smaller, locally owned PR agency in St. Louis called The Vandiver Group. I was an account coordinator, so I helped them with internal and external communications, social media, and business proposals as well as pitching to new clients. While it was a great experience, I quickly learned that agency life was not for me and ended up moving into the higher education field at St. Charles Community College for a few years shortly after.
What work do you do/What are you doing now?
Kanna and her dad at a Relay for Life event (2010).
After St. Charles Community College, I made what I like to call my “left turn” and got into fundraising/event planning with the American Cancer Society (ACS). I started volunteering for the organization while working at SCC, not knowing that I would end up working for them someday. ACS represents a cause that I will forever hold near and dear to my heart since I lost my dad to cancer when he was just 49 years old in 2011. Working for them was the best way I could fight back against a disease that took away my best friend.
After ACS, I worked for a local city government just west of St. Louis (City of St. Peters), thanks to connections I made when I interned for them while in college (internships – another key for later success!) This helped me find my way back into the PR/communications world, which eventually led me to where I am now, serving as the PR consultant for SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital-St. Louis. At St. Mary’s, I am responsible for the planning, implementation and coordination of the hospital’s public relations strategy, while also facilitating internal and external communications, such as news articles, newsletters, press releases, website and social media content.
How has your Liberal Arts/COMM education helped you?
My education at Truman, and more specifically my Communication degree, has opened so many doors for me, both personally and professionally. Being able to explore such a wide variety of liberal arts classes allowed me to expand my horizons and taught me how to think outside the box. Thanks to Truman, I have a better understanding and appreciation for cultural diversity and awareness. Plus, I met some of my best friends in college, and I love that we all have different backgrounds and career fields, including teachers, lawyers, accountants, scientists, and more. I can honestly say my liberal arts degree made me a better, more well-rounded person and truly prepared me not only for my career but life in general.
Which class did you dislike at the time you took it, but now you’re grateful you took it?
Public speaking with Dr. Self. Mostly because it was an early class the first semester of my freshman year, so I had a hard time showing up and staying awake. When I did manage to make it to class, it was on a test day that I was obviously unprepared for, or the day of a major project deadline, which I also missed quite often.
You see, in high school, all my teachers told me my college professors wouldn’t care about me, so I took that to heart thinking they also wouldn’t notice when you slacked off. This is definitely not the case at Truman. I managed to squeak by with a C, which will always haunt me because I now love public speaking (and honestly I was never all that scared of it).
Flash forward to my junior year, when I ended up in Dr. Self’s rhetoric class and was surprised to learn he actually remembered me, telling me how far I had come because I ended up getting an A in that class. That’s when I knew I had made the right decision in choosing Communication as a major. I didn’t declare until the fall semester of my junior year, but it was one of the best decisions I ever made.
Graduation Day 2009: Kanna with her dad and with her fellow PSP brother graduates.
What was your greatest accomplishment at Truman?
While I was Vice President for Phi Sigma Pi, I brought a non-profit group called Invisible Children to campus to speak and it was one of our largest campus-wide events that semester. It was probably the first real PR campaign I had ever created from scratch and implemented. Since I was also a features reporter for The Index at the time, I did a story on it and got to speak with some of the people from the organization, which was extremely interesting. The whole experience was really cool and very rewarding.
Why is Truman a good place for a student to study?
I think Truman is the perfect size for a college, big enough to meet a lot of new people, but small enough to be able to develop more personal relationships with professors and staff. The makeup of the students at Truman is also unique. Being surrounded by fellow students with the same drive to succeed, yet not afraid to have a little fun at the same time was definitely encouraging and inspired me to be the best I could be.
What would you say a COMM student should absolutely do while at Truman?
Get involved! That really goes for all Truman students though, it was the best thing I could have done in college. Sure, taking classes and getting good grades is important, but so is making friends, building relationships, and creating a network of people that you will be able to lean on later in life.
Kanna and friends claiming victory at a trivia contest (2018).
The connections and friendships I made at Truman, including those made in the Ad and PR Club, have continued to help me to this day, 10 years after graduating college! I cannot tell you how many times a Truman connection has helped me get a job. In fact, I got my current job thanks to a fellow Truman alumni and Ad and PR Club member!
What advice would you give someone who wants to go into the same line of work as you?
Get experience in the field before you graduate. Internships are key! I know both the Career Center and Truman’s PR Department have really great internships for COMM students. Also, make sure to utilize the Career Center, they are a great resource!
What do you miss most about campus/Kirksville?
I haven’t been back in a long time, but the last time I did, I jokingly called it “A Weekend in the Land of No Consequences,” because in my mind I think of Kirksville of this magical little place where nothing bad can happen to you. Now, I know that is not the case, but it certainly felt that way while I was up there. It is such a cute and safe little college town. I love Truman’s small campus. I loved being able to walk everywhere, and walking into a place and everyone knowing your name (although sometimes that could backfire 
). St. Louis is known for being a small town, but there is nothing quite like Kirksville.
What tag line would you create for the COMM department at Truman?
In the famous words of jazz musician Duke Ellington (and a friend of mine who uses this quote quite often), “I don’t need time, I need a deadline.” As journalists and media/PR professionals, I think this quote speaks to our profession quite well.
Kanna (2nd from left) and her colleagues in need of a deadline at a PRSA conference (2017).
If you could come back to Truman and teach a class for a semester, what would be its title and what would it be about?
The Importance of Communication in the Workplace. This would be a class for ALL students, not just comm students because communication is SO IMPORTANT for all professions and often the most underutilized and misused skill.
What did we not ask that you think is important for people to know?
Honestly, if you’re reading this and have already decided you’re going to be a COMM major, I think you’re already on the right path (I may or may not be a little biased). But if you’re not, and you haven’t declared a major yet and you’re just exploring different fields of study, that’s OK. It’s OK to not know what you’re going to do after you graduate, whether that’s in a few weeks, a few months or a few years.
One of my dad’s favorite quotes was to say, “I’m XX years old and I still don’t know what I want to be when I grow up.” Well, I am now 32 and I feel the same way. I know people age 50 and older who are still exploring new careers, new ideas and business ventures. Some people think of success as having it all figured out, but I think those of us who haven’t yet lead much more exciting and fulfilling lives.
Kanna with her husband Tyler and their three “puppies” (2018).