The IUS Board of Advisers recognized a need to educate the community about IU Southeast.
“The need to educate the community about IU Southeast is important,” Jenny Wolfe, director of University Communications, said.
The IUS Accreditation Committee said IU Southeast didn’t seem to be recognized in Southern Indiana for doing things in the community.
In response, a new sub-committee was formed. This group has been working toward fixing the problem and making IU Southeast a prominent figure in Southern Indiana.
“We’re starting to tell the community about the value of IU Southeast,” Wolfe said.
The new marketing campaign is targeted toward community awareness and aimed at local businesses and some political leaders.
The new marketing strategies include Fox 41 TV commercials, a Student Play of the Week during the Fox 41 newscast and ads targeted at business leaders.
Wolfe said, with the Fox 41 commercial, IU Southeast is exposed to 98 percent of households in Louisville.
“The new marketing will not replace the marketing campaigns aimed toward prospective students,” Wolfe said.
Another marketing strategy IU Southeast is sponsoring but hasn’t debuted is Journalism 101, which is designed for high school students in journalism classes. Students will compete in a competition with other participating high schools to produce a three-to-four minute video based on news stories with local interest. The classes will be partnered up with mentors from the Fox 41 News Department. The mentors include Fox 41’s Elizabeth Woolsey, David Scott, Candyce Clifft, Barry Bernson and other Fox reporters.
Finalists of the competition will be announced Nov. 24 and will be featured in 30-minute news special on Thanksgiving Day. The videos will then be uploaded online, where viewers will vote to determine the winner.
Wolfe said other efforts of the IUS Image Committee include improving alumni relations.
“The community doesn’t know the impact that IU Southeast alumni have on the area,” Wolfe said. “They’re all over the community.”
Wolfe said one way to improve alumni relations is to improve communications by talking to alumni and find out where they are now and what they do.
A new magazine designed to target IUS alumni, faculty, staff and business leaders in the area is also a part of the efforts.
“We’re ready to tell everyone about IU Southeast,” Wolfe said.
The magazine is a composite of previous publications produced by IU Southeast, which targeted specific groups instead of a combined effort.
The magazine will feature profile stories of IUS alumni and faculty, events on campus, news updates and more.
By JASON RUSSELL
Staff
jasoruss@ius.edu
