There will be a special meeting of the UMass Amherst Campus Communicators Network on
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
from 2 to 3 pm
in Campus Center Room 101
On the agenda:
Tom Milligan, Executive Vice Chancellor for University Relations
with an update on University Relations activities.
Please RSVP to nsossen@admin.umass.edu
The UMass Amherst Connections weblog was launched in June 2008 as another outlet for the campus to share its story with a regional audience.
blog.masslive.com/umassamherst
Process for submitting content
The UMass Amherst Connections weblog was launched in June 2008 as another outlet for the campus to share its story with a regional audience.
Items on the weblog are posted into one or more of the following eight categories:
Alumni
Athletics
Community Connections
Events
Headlines
Research & Discoveries
Support UMass Amherst
UMass People & Places
The campus’s MassLive.com Editorial Board makes the decision regarding newsworthiness for posts. Content is posted every 2-3 days. Content should be submitted to one of the following people based on your unit. If your unit is not explicitly listed, submit content to the Editorial Board chair.
Ed Blaguszewski, chair – News Office (edblag@admin.umass.edu)
Wesley Blixt – Outreach Marketing (wab@outreach.umass.edu)
Michael Ellman – Auxiliary Services (mellman@mail.aux.umass.edu)
Michael Grabscheid – Outreach Marketing (michael@outreach.umass.edu)
Marla Michel – Research Liaison & Development (marla@research.umass.edu)
Lisa Perlbinder – Advancement Communications (lperlbinder@admin.umass.edu)
It is the intent of the weblog to provide a variety of stories and notices to the community. It does not replace the standard News Office outlets and is NOT a catch-all for everything else. Some items that are submitted may not make it to the weblog. Here are some submission guidelines:
• You do not need to resubmit items for which a press release has already been sent to the News Office or In the Loop.
• Relevance is defined by the audience: regional community members who want to know more of what’s going on around UMass Amherst. Keep in mind that more than 27% of UMass Amherst alumni live in Franklin, Hampden, and Hampshire counties! The legislative, business and education communities also top the list of target audience.
• Pieces that have already been written for departmental or college newsletters are perfect. When submitting, be sure to include the author name, an image, if available, and a URL to where the full article is posted online.
• Multimedia is encouraged, including podcasts, videos, and slideshows.
• Events that are open to the public and that are bringing high profile visitors to campus work well. All events should be posted to the campus calendar at www.umass.edu, too.
• Stories that show faculty of other University engagement with the community are good. We want people to know how involved we are in our region.
• Stories that involve students, particularly students from the region, are of interest.
• You may choose to write up a short item that reflects on something that has occurred in your department, i.e., a record number of graduates or an extremely prestigious award to a faculty member. If you do this, keep it short (2-3 paragraphs) and include a URL that can be linked to.
Please don’t hesitate to contact any member of the editorial board with questions.
With April upon us, the campus is teeming with events and activities and many of you have asked how to get your events listed in the Web site calendar at www.umass.edu and from there how to get your event featured on the home page.
How to get your events listed in the UMass Amherst online calendar
The calendar works by you submitting your own events. You’re the best person to describe your event accurately and this is the most efficient way to get events accurately listed Simply click on “Submit an event” in the lower right corner of the home page (www.umass.edu). This will take you to a form where you can fill out all the details of your event. Any event happening on campus and open to the public may be listed. Any event happening off-campus, sponsored by UMass Amherst and also open to the public may also be listed. Form fields that contain required information are marked with a red asterisk. You may include one image in .jpg format up to 300 pixels wide with your listing. After you submit your listing, it comes to our office for any cleanup and approval. This typically takes up to 48 business hours (longer during campus vacation periods). You’ll receive an email confirmation when your event has been approved.
If you submit events frequently, we can give you a quick login to bypass some of the information on the event submission form. If you’re interested in this, please email me.
How to get your approved event featured on the UMass Amherst home page
Each day six events from among those already approved and in the calenda are featured on the UMass Amherst home page — one in the center box under the heading “UPCOMING EVENT” and five more in the lower right quadrant under the heading “ARTS & EVENTS.” These are chosen several days in advance of the date of the event, based on a number of criteria, including: how much the event appeals to a relatively wide audience, how thorough the event listing is, and how the event mixes with the other featured events (we try to show a mixture of types of events on any day). It is helpful for us to know which events are priorities for your department or area, so if you have a particular event that is already listed in the calendar and would like to suggest it for featuring on the home page, please call or email me about a week before the day of the event. We can’t always promise that the event will be featured, but it’s good to hear from you.
I hope this has been helpful and keep those events coming. Please let me know if you have any questions — email me or use the Comments tag below.
-Nina
The second general meeting of 2007-08 of the Campus Communicators Network will be held on March 20, 2008 from 10 am to 12 noon in Room 137 at the Isenberg School of Management.
Agenda:
9:45 -10:00 Gathering
10:00-10:05 Welcome
Emily Silverman, Emcee and Director of Development & Communication for UMass Amherst Libraries
10:05-10:10 Reintroduction to Purpose of Campus Communicators Network
Nina Sossen, Web Communications Director, University Advancement
Campus Communicators Steering Committee
10:10-10:35 MassLive Overview
Ed Blaguszewski, Director, Office of News & Information
Marla Michel, Director of Research Liaison & Development
10:35-10:55 Alumni Association New Web Site and Online Community
Elena Lamontagne, Associate Director for Alumni Communication
10:55-11:15 Graphic Identity Update
Sandy Anderson, Director of Campus Services
Steve Robbins, Director of Creative Services
11:15-11:25 Graphic Identity Web Standards
Nina Sossen, Web Communications Director, University Advancement
11:25-11:40 Campus Building Update
Jim Hunt, Communications Manager, Facilities & Campus Planning
12:00 Adjourn