Class of 2026: Marketing major Catori Griffin has had a full plate – and jar

By Leila Ugincius

When Catori Griffin needs a boost of self-confidence – which might seem surprising, in light of her accomplishments – she goes to a special place that is always close at hand.

“I keep a little jar on my desk of all my wins,” said Griffin, who graduates this spring from Virginia Commonwealth University. “So if I’m ever … just sad or if I’m feeling that imposter syndrome feeling, I do like to go get one of those and see, ‘Oh, I did this – and I forgot I did this!’ I think that really can help.”

That jar has gotten fuller – with plenty of reminders that Griffin has excelled on her path to an undergraduate degree in marketing, with a concentration in product and brand management, from VCU’s School of Business. She also is minoring in creative writing in the English Department of the College of Humanities and Sciences.

A fresh entry awaits after graduation, when Griffin moves to Columbus, Ohio, to join JPMorganChase as a full-time analyst in the bank’s Marketing Leadership Development Program. She attributes that achievement, and her VCU successes, to her acceptance as a sophomore into the Management Leadership for Tomorrow’s Career Prep program, which supports minority college students through career coaching, professional development and internship placement.

“The program really opened my eyes to what was possible within the corporate world and allowed me to dream bigger than I had ever imagined,” Griffin said. “I credit this program, alongside lots of hard work, as a major factor in where I am today.”

Her journey has been marked by notable work off and on campus, including a marketing and communications internship at Google Public Sector. Griffin also received funding from the VCU Professional Development Fund to travel to the Society for Marketing Advances conference in Las Vegas, one of the only undergraduate students there to engage with and present her research to graduate students and professors.

In her junior year, Griffin began a project under the guidance of Suzanne Makarem, Ph.D., an associate professor of marketing. “Motivators for Non-Voting Behavior Among Gen Z Consumers: Looking Beyond Social Media” explores the young generation’s low participation in the 2024 U.S. presidential election.

“I had the privilege of … completing research alongside her ever since,” Griffin said, with presentations at the SMA conference, the VCU Research Symposium and the National Conference on Undergraduate Research. “We hope to continue this work and push for publication this summer.”

Griffin came to marketing by chance. Throughout high school, she planned to major in psychology and become a child psychologist. After taking an AP psychology course, she realized she wanted a new route, and during senior year, she took a marketing class – and found herself drawn to branding.

“I ended up choosing marketing somewhat on a whim,” she said, “but I’ve been fortunate that it turned into something I genuinely love.”

Outside of her academic and pre-professional work, Griffin has built a presence on LinkedIn, where she shares career insights, internship opportunities and lessons she has learned navigating early-career spaces. With more than 5,000 followers, Griffin focuses on helping other underrepresented students navigate their careers.

“This is something I’m really passionate about, and I hope to continue this work and eventually build it into a nonprofit focused on expanding access to career resources and opportunities within public high schools,” she said.

Griffin was drawn to VCU by its diversity.

“As a minority student, it was important to me to be in an environment where I felt a sense of belonging and representation,” she said. “Beyond that, VCU offered strong academic and professional opportunities within the School of Business that allowed me to grow both personally and professionally.”

She also wants to challenge any notion that a student from a “nontarget school” has less to offer than those from more “prestigious” schools.

“I think there can sometimes be a limiting belief among students that companies won’t recruit from VCU in the same way they might from schools like UVA or Virginia Tech,” Griffin said. “I always tell people not to self-select out of opportunities. Don’t tell yourself ‘no’ before anyone else does, and even if you do hear ‘no,’ keep going. Your starting point doesn’t have to define your ceiling.”