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Policy Manual
SECTION VIII: Public Affairs
The Dean’s Office of Public Affairs (DOPA) provides a comprehensive and coherent image for the College of Education through college publications, promotions, press releases, alumni relations, and development. The goal of the DOPA is to build informed support of the LSU College of Education by creating and communicating key messages to targeted audiences while advancing the image of the University and the College simultaneously. Policies and procedures for faculty and staff submissions and utilization of DOPA expertise, as well as for information found on the DOPA webpages are outlined below.
VIII.1 College-Sponsored Web Sites
While the main appearance of College of Education (COE) Web sites will be determined thematically and approved by the Dean, the Office of Public Affairs will assist the Dean in maintaining a uniformity of message and consistency with College and University style.
The Office of Public Affairs will also work in conjunction with College of Education Educational Technology Services for updating, technical support, and security. In addition, the Office of Public Affairs will work with several individuals within the College, the administrative units, and the departments in order to have mechanisms for making minor changes, uploading updates, or repairing pages on the College’s Web site pages. Through the use of style sheets, templates, and content management software, DOPA staff will assist COE personnel in quickly adding information to the Web while adhering to the LSU Visual Identity and College-level style standards already approved through the LSU Office of Public Affairs and the Dean.
The Web will be held to the same high standards as for professional publications. According to the LSU Visual Identity program, information published by student organizations and by individual faculty, students, and staff is considered “unofficial,” and the homepage of such sites must contain the following disclaimer:
The statements and opinions included in <insert organization or individual’s name here> pages are those of <insert organization or individual’s name here> only. Any statements and opinions included in these pages are not those of Louisiana State University or the LSU Board of Supervisors.
VIII.2 Publicizing Programs or College Events
Communications concerning college activities, events, and accomplishments require that faculty, staff, and students provide sufficient notice to DOPA staff in order to ensure appropriate coverage of events or preparation of print/Web materials. Whenever possible and with advance notice, DOPA staff can be available for photographing and facilitating programmatic and public relations events. Requests for event coverage need to be made with sufficient advance notice to allow DOPA staff to prepare for the event and assign staff. As a crucial communications component of the Dean’s Office, the DOPA will adhere to standards and styles as set forth by the Dean in publicizing College programs and events.
Requests for program and recruitment brochures or other marketing materials must be approved by the department chair. Funds for printing promotional, recruitment, or other materials also must be identified and approved by the respective Chair before DOPA can develop and produce them. Faculty and staff making requests for marketing materials must complete the Design, Marketing and Other Media Relations Services form.
Regular publications of the DOPA include the following.
- Peabody Bulletin, published 3 times per year, reports activities, events, and accomplishments of faculty, staff, students, alumni, and friends of the College.
- Annual Scholarly Productivity Report, published in the fall of each year, presents academic accomplishments to University and other professional constituencies, alumni, and friends. Most information is presented on an academic or fiscal year basis. Because faculty annual review data is collected on a calendar year basis, however, faculty publications and presentations in the Annual Report is presented for the previous calendar year.
- Research Report and Financial Statement, published in the fall of each year, summarizes on a fiscal year basis information on sponsored research, development, scholarships, and trend data pertaining to key College metrics (e.g., enrollment trends, faculty and graduate student profiles, financial analyses).
- Alumni Newsletters, published approximately five times per year, is a compilation of stories and information of particular interest to College alums.
VIII.3 Resources for Reporters and Other Public Press Inquiries
The DOPA can facilitate faculty and staff communications with the press and other public inquiries. Information concerning dealing with the press can be found on the DOPA webpage Media Faculty Resources. In particular, when faculty or staff are contacted by members of the press, the following should be considered.
- If faculty or staff receive a message that the media would like to be in contact, LSU Office of Public Affairs can speak with the media and provide those contacted with more details on the story and then assist in coordinating the interview.
- If contacted by the media, faculty or staff should ask the reporter if s/he has spoken with the LSU Office of Public Affairs.
To facilitate communications with the media, Resources for Reporters on the DOPA Web site lists faculty areas of expertise. Faculty are requested to provide information about areas of expertise and update these listings whenever appropriate.
Faculty Tip Sheets, also available for public access, contains a listing of briefs with contextual and background information written by faculty in areas of research focus or experience. Faculty are encouraged to work with DOPA to develop additional Tip Sheets on education and/or health-related topics.
College Highlights are presented on the DOPA webpages and kept current. Faculty who have had media coverage of events or activities are encouraged to provide DOPA with information and links so that their activities may be publicized.
All News Releases submitted by DOPA and published in a variety of media outlets can be found on the DOPA Webpages.
Dean’s Reports and Presentations are found on the Web site. Regular reports (e.g., the Annual College of Education Diversity Report), as well as special reports (e.g., Report to Chancellor Martin) and presentations (e.g., 2007 Fall Faculty Retreat), are made available for public viewing.
VIII.5 Alumni Relations and Development Information
Alumni outreach, communications, newsletters, and updates can be found on the Alumni Relations and Development Web site. Development information, including contact information for the COE Director for Development and the COE Coordinator of Alumni Relations, is included on this Web site. Also included are links to professorships and scholarships offered through the College, annual reports, donor and sponsorship lists, and giving opportunities.
Key advocacy groups, including the Peabody Society and Dean’s Circle, can be accessed from the Alumni Relations and Development Webpage. Information pertaining to the activities of these key alumni and development groups is presented and archived on these sites.
Faculty are encouraged to participate in alumni and development activities. The College adheres to a strict protocol system, however, and any development activity must be coordinated through the Dean’s Office or the COE Director of Development.
