Soonmee Iwasaki

As a communications strategist with hands-on experience in social media campaigns, non-profit sectors, fundraising, and newsletters, I am passionate about driving informative decisions and content. I am protective of the organization and the people I represent. My background in working with people, from non-profit to serving at a restaurant, and to crafting personalized experiences under pressure, has prepared me to gain more hands-on experiences in PR as an intern and be a great team player.

Server at Korean BBQ and Hot Pot (KPot) (2024-10 – 2025-07)

• Ensuring prompt and attentive service in a high-volume environment, serving an average of 28+ guests per shift
• Enhancing customer satisfaction and repeat visits, guiding 15+ first-time diners per week
• Anticipate guest needs and recommend add-ons and beverages based preferences. Increased add-on sales by 20%
• Coordinating orders, grill changes, and special requests, ensuring smooth operations with a team

Communications Coordinator at International Association of Youth and Students for Peace USA (IAYSP USA) (2022-08 – 2024-01)

• Assisted in co-hosting a strategy meeting at the UN with religious leaders, nonprofit directors, and media to advance local peace initiatives: New York Peace March 2023, May1.
• Helped run S!nergy October 2021 and December 2021 with outreach efforts, finding participants to compete
• Ran Instagram page, YSP. USA2Fall 2023
• Implemented Otter.ai to increase the accuracy of meeting summaries by 23%
• Managed and tracked membership using Squarespace, designed newsletters in Mailchimp, and coordinated content.
• Hired first intern under IAYSP and implemented a newsletter as a project with MailChimp
• Utilized Semrush to monitor and increase site visibility by 15%.
• Streamline posts and flyers using Canva, with a focus on branding awareness: increased engagement by 30% on social media
• At times interpreted from English to Japanese to simplify context

Volunteer Regional Coordinator at IASP USA (2021-08 – 2022-07)

• Organize weekly Zoom meetings for Regional IAYSP volunteers
• Point of contact for membership inquiries in Northeast region: PA, NY, NJ, MA, CT, M
• Fall S!nergy competition USA3, 2nd place winner

Community Outreach Center Leader at Family Federation of Philadelphia (2022-09 – 2023-05)

• Student engagement leader for CARP4 Philadelphia chapter
• Weekly educational seminar hosted by a team of three: regular attendance of 11 students
• Developed community relations between the college campus and local church
• Worked with Advisor to host weekly theological seminars

Podcast Host at Dinner Table Talk (2021-11 – 2022-05)

YouTube podcast (Co-host). Initiative to increase civic engagement in local communities

• Set objectives and follow data analysis to measure projectile of growth
• Scripted and edited each episode
• Assessing challenges, delivering clear solutions, a call to action.
• Self-sustained; using prize money to fund equipment; researched UN Sustainable Development Goals to create a relevant, relatable show.
• Demonstrated crisis response and leadership by assessing challenges, delivering clear solutions, and inspiring peers to take action.

Business Page Manager at SheShares_WeGrow (2020-10 – 2021-03)

Instagram business page

• Promoted racial awareness through impactful quotes.
• Managed content creation and edits using Canva.
• Saw consistent growth over one week, gaining 200% increase in organic following.

Team Lead, Volunteer at Generation Peace Academy (2016-09 – 2018-04)

• Fundraising success, working in teams, and meeting 98 to 105% of fundraising goal(s).
• Mission- alignment with the non-profit
• Training anywhere from two to five members at any given time

Strategic Communications major with experiences in PR, Journalism, mass media communications, graphic design, marketing, and speak Japanese, Spanish, and Korean.