Problem
Excelsior is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2011, yet is sometimes overshadowed by its brick-and-mortar peers in the capital region, and nationally, often associated with the for-profits, even though it is in fact the largest nonprofit distance learning institution in the country. The purpose of this eight-week campaign was to raise public awareness about the institution in general, and its electrical engineering technology and nuclear engineering technology programs in particular, the latter of which is one of only two Bachelor of Science programs of its kind in the country accredited by TAC of ABET.

Research
Webinars – research contemporary nuclear and engineering issues to mine possible topics; once topics determined, perform in-depth research into contemporary issues such as Chinese nuclear processing and the “Smart Grid” to develop questions for each event’s moderator; research previous webinar attendance.

Media outreach – research potential industry media targets outside established higher education and local contacts and build background profiles for use in media training..

Internal e-mail campaign – research and develop an array of interesting facts about both Excelsior’s nuclear program and the nuclear industry in general to be used to dispel myths among the student population; interview four individuals involved with the program including a current student, recent graduate, industry advisor, and faculty member about their career and experiences with Excelsior College..

Strengthen and build relationships with industry partners – research IEEE student chapters to include in outreach.

Who is that handsome devil?

Planning

Media outreach – measure success based on number of stories, relevance of outlet and whether we received any unsolicited media invite appearances..

Internal e-mail campaign – use faculty and graduate interviews to develop editorialized profiles presenting students with several unique and interesting perspectives on the program.

Execution
Webinars – pitched media and blogs on webinar events; utilized social media channels, specifically Twitter and LinkedIn, and social calendars to boost awareness; pitched IEEE and ANS on cross-promotion and leveraged their networks to boost participation..

Media outreach – penned and disseminated a media advisory to capital region and industry press for each event; monitored news cycle for opportunities to pitch Dr. Jane LeClair into emerging stories; crafted and executed personalized media pitches; held media training sessions for Jane prior to each media briefing..

Internal e-mail campaign - distributed research factoids, profiles and webinar announcement as part of National Nuclear Science Week daily e-mail campaign aimed at promoting nuclear energy and Excelsior College’s nuclear engineering technology program among current students..

Strengthen and build relationships with industry partners - pitched webinar to ANS and IEEE as an example of possible future collaboration between Excelsior College and their organizations.

Results
Strengthened relationship with American Nuclear Society (ANS). Prior to nuclear webinar I pitched ANS’ PR specialist on cross-promotion. Over the ensuing days, ANS promoted the webinar on its blog, ANS Nuclear, posted a link to the media advisory on their Twitter and LinkedIn accounts, and distributed the announcement in an internal e-mail to membership. The ANS even permitted access to their private LinkedIn member group, Cool Hand Nuke, to promote the event. Scheele attended the webinar and has since kept in touch, opening up the possibilities for a future partnership..

Secured Education Partnership with IEEE. Based on success of nuclear webinar, I pitched IEEE on a joint National Nuclear Engineering Week webinar a few weeks later. They agreed and past IEEE president John Meredith acted as the moderator for the event. It was so successful, the IEEE asked us to become an educational partner. Excelsior College will now be developing courses for IEEE members on five different engineering and technology subject areas under a revenue sharing agreement..

Increased internal participation and awareness. Student, media and partnership outreach resulted in a 120 percent increase in webinar participation, including that of seven faculty members. The internal campaign concluded with a post event op-ed in our alumni magazine, Live & Learn, which is distributed to tens of thousands of alumni..

Increase external participation in webinars and School awareness. For the first time ever several outside organizations participated in our webinar series, including the Capital Region Energy Forum, ANS, and IEEE. The NY State Independent Operators (NYSIO) distributed an announcement about our event and our programs to their members, increasing awareness about Excelsior College. Capital Region Energy Forum asked to be included in future outreach endeavors..

Webinar Media Coverage. The Albany Times Union print edition featured an article on the engineering webinar, helping to attract phone calls from several local engineering organizations looking for future collaboration..

Established Dean as a “Thought-Leader.” On February 1, a profile on Dr. LeClair appeared in eCampusNews, which attracts 500,000 unique visitors each month. The article also appeared in the outlet’s print newsletter, distributed to 58,000 higher education leaders. It was a follow-up story to my pitch on our webinar. The profile drew the attention of U.S. News & World Report, which published its own story on February 3, 2011..

In March, after the Japan earthquake and tsunami, I reached out to local media to pitch Jane as an expert on the United State’s nuclear power plant disaster preparedness. Jane interviewed with five media outlets, including the Albany Times Union, WAMC public radio, YNN – 24 Hour News, and on the 6 p.m. slot for News 10 and Fox 23.