Making the Case

Key Messages and Data • Making the Case Resources • Media Activity • Speeches and Addresses • Books and Reports •

OCTOBER 2001
Vol. 3, No. 1

PRESIDENTS EDITION

Welcome to Communications Resources, CIC’s periodic kit of tools and ideas to help you tell your institution’s story. Your public relations director has received a similar mailing. In this issue, we include an excellent pamphlet written by one of your colleagues on college admissions and the importance of applying to a liberal arts college, as well as some thought-provoking op-eds about the value of a college degree and the significance of a comprehensive information technology plan at a small college. We also help you evaluate the news benefit of your college website, and we recycle important guidelines for surviving those vexatious media interviews. Finally, we refer you to a new book from CASE on how presidents and PR Directors can work together to develop an effective communications plan. Enjoy.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

"Straight Talk on College Admissions," is written by Randolph-Macon College President Roger Martin. He is well-acquainted with the admissions process, as a former dean who has worked with those in charge of admissions, as a president overseeing a small liberal arts college, and most recently, as a parent of two college-bound teenagers. If you're appealing to students from the perspective of a largely liberal arts education, you'll find Martin's pamphlet very relevant and helpful. So, too, will your admissions officer.

College Misericordia (PA) President Michael MacDowell penned an opinion piece for the Wilkes Barre Citizen Voice that explains what a college degree means financially over a person’s lifetime. It provides excellent data to have on hand when making the case for the value of a college education.

Some may have missed West Virginia Wesleyan President William R. Haden's article in the September/October, 2001 EDUCAUSE periodical. Haden's piece, "Implementing a Comprehensive IT Plan: A Small-College Response," explains why having an information technology plan is vital on CIC campuses, and is worth reading.

ADVANCING YOUR COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY

“Ten E-ssentials: A Checklist of Features Your Web Site Needs to Make It Reporter-Friendly” provides ideas to attract the attention of editors, reporters, producers, and bookers in the news media to your institution’s website. It was designed by Roland King, vice president for public affairs at the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.

We’ve had a spate of requests from presidents for “Tips for a Successful Media Interview,” penned originally for CIC’s newsletter, The Independent. The article and its sidebar piece, “Escaping Tough Question Traps,” could come in handy during particularly grueling media interviews. The author is Susan Peterson, president of Susan Peterson Productions, Inc. in Washington, DC. It’s enclosed for those of you who missed it the first time.

Finally, we refer you to Public Relations and the Presidency: Strategies and Tactics for Effective Communications, published by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). The book will quickly become a staple for every campus PR office. Authors John E. Ross and Carol P. Halstead conducted a 1998 study that served as the basis for the book, and added more than 60 essays and case studies to illustrate their points. Chapters that focus on strategies for media coverage at small and medium sized independent colleges and universities are contributed by several CIC member public relations and marketing executives, including Tim Allston (Oakwood College), Ben Anderson (Warren Wilson College), Don Orlando (Saint Vincent College), Julie Guillebeau (Drury University) and Andrea Nodge (Madonna University). The book is available from CASE on its website, www.case.org/books.

WANT TO SHARE SOME OF YOUR WRITING?

Several presidents and PR directors have suggested articles for Communications Resources, and several presidents have asked us to consider some of their writings for future issues. If you have a short speech, op-ed, report, or other article that you think would be of interest to your colleague presidents in CIC, send them to editor Laura Wilcox at CIC. We’re especially looking for articles about values, the return on investment that CIC colleges provide to students, and the meaning of “independent” in independent higher education. For more information or to talk about your materials, contact Laura Wilcox at (202) 466-7230; e-mail lwilcox@cic.nche.edu; fax (202) 466-7238.

OCTOBER 2001
Vol. 3, No. 1

PUBLIC RELATIONS DIRECTOR'S EDITION

Welcome to Communications Resources, CIC’s periodic kit of tools and ideas to help you tell your institution’s story. Your president has received a similar mailing. In this issue, we include some thought-provoking op-eds about the importance of raising awareness of an institutional brand and the significance of women’s colleges in our society. A checklist from NAICU will provide you with tips for evaluating the news benefit of your college website, and we recycle important guidelines for surviving those vexatious media questions. Finally, we refer you to a new book from CASE on how presidents and PR Directors can work together to develop an effective communications plan, as well as a new guide from University Continuing Education Association to help boost the marketing efforts of your continuing education programs. Have a great fall semester! Enjoy.

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Mount Ida College English teacher James Martin, and Chair of the Education Alliance James E. Samels, have authored an opinion piece for the Boston Globe about the branding phenomenon in higher education. The op-ed, entitled “Higher ed ‘brands’: Are they buzz or substance?” stresses the value of brands in today’s competitive higher education marketplace.

PR officers at women’s colleges that face rugged competition will want to read Converse College President Nancy Gray’s enclosed op-ed article. This piece appeared in several newspapers from Spartanburg, SC to Chattanooga, TN. Her arguments for attending a women’s college may convert even her most vigorous critics.

ADVANCING YOUR COLLEGE OR UNIVERSITY

We’ve had a spate of requests from presidents for “Tips for a Successful Media Interview,” penned originally for CIC’s newsletter, The Independent. The article and its sidebar piece, “Escaping Tough Question Traps,” could come in handy during particularly grueling media interviews. The author is Susan Peterson, president of Susan Peterson Productions, Inc. in Washington, DC. It's enclosed for those of you who missed it the first time.

KEEPING UP

Public Relations and the Presidency: Strategies and Tactics for Effective Communications, published by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), will quickly become a staple for every campus PR office. Authors John E. Ross and Carol P. Halstead conducted a 1998 study that served as the basis for the book, and added more than 60 essays and case studies to illustrate their points. Chapters that focus on strategies for media coverage at small and medium sized independent colleges and universities are contributed by several CIC member public relations and marketing executives, including Tim Allston (Oakwood College), Ben Anderson (Warren Wilson College), Don Orlando (Saint Vincent College), Julie Guillebeau (Drury University) and Andrea Nodge (Madonna University). The book is available from CASE on its website, www.case.org/books.

Active continuing education promoters will want to purchase Steal These Ideas Please! Great Marketing Ideas for Continuing Education. The 88-page book consists of ideas gathered primarily from continuing education marketing professionals at large private and state universities across the country, but the CIC member will find nuggets of helpful wisdom on many of its pages. It provides tips on media relations, advertising, collaborations, attracting promotional donations, and enticing libraries, county offices, school district offices, coffee shops, book and grocery stores, banks, and others to distribute your course catalogs free. Obtain a copy by sending $20 for members or $25 for non-members plus $4.50 to cover shipping, to University Continuing Education Association, One Dupont Circle, Suite 615, Washington, DC 20036. More information is available by calling (202) 659-3130.

TELL US WHAT YOU THINK….

What do you think about Communications Resources? How can we improve it to better serve your needs? Let us know. Contact editor Laura Wilcox, director of communications, at (202) 466-7230; e-mail lwilcox@cic.nche.edu; fax (202) 466-7238.

CIC PR LISTSERV

If you’re not on CIC’s “listserv” discussion group for public relations directors and their staff and would like to join, send your e-mail address to Maxine Morris at mmorris@cic.nche.edu, and we’ll add your name. There’s no charge for this service. Participation is restricted to PR practitioners from CIC member institutions. CIC also sponsors listservs for presidents, chief academic officers, business officers, and lead staff in student affairs, advancement, and IT. See CIC’s website or newsletter for details.