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The leveraging value of celebrating a university’s centennial
Journal of Education Advancement & Marketing,
4
(4),
321-331
(2020)
Abstract
This paper first summarises the focused and collaborative planning process Ball State University employed with its stakeholders to create a yearlong drumbeat of activities to mark its centennial. Secondly, it will make the case to craft research-informed institutional identity and marketing campaign in advance of embarking on marking a milestone. Thirdly, it will outline the many audiences targeted to advance strategic goals for giving, participation, and marketing the institution during the milestone year; and finally, it will conclude with the impact of the new marketing campaign as the university experienced record enrollment for its 2019 freshman class and the results of the alumni re-engagement campaign and record one day giving totals.
Keywords: centennial; milestone celebration; branding; alumni engagement; marketing campaign; alumni relations
The full article is available to subscribers to the journal.
Author's Biography
Mary G. Barr is a leader in strategic marketing and branding for higher education, and she’s delighted to bring those skills back to her alma mater. She has strong instincts for creating narratives and characters within an institution’s story and has managed creative teams of writers, designers, photographers, videographers, web developers and media relations professionals at public and private institutions. Currently, Mary manages the ‘We Fly’ marketing campaign, its rollout and marketplace presence, its messages and aesthetic and brand monitoring. Previously, Mary managed and evolved Ball State’s ‘Education Redefined’ campaign as director of marketing. She also was the creative lead of ‘Ball State Bold’ — a successful US$211m fundraising campaign — from crafting the name to developing the nontraditional components of its highly segmented marketing mix. In between her times at Ball State, Mary was vice president for communications and marketing at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology and was a strategic marketing consultant on fundraising campaigns for other national universities.
Lori Corvino is a development and community engagement leader with more than 15 years of diverse experience in academia, nonprofit, volunteer management and community attractions. She is recognised for planning premier special events and extensive expertise in identification, engagement, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of both large and small donors. Currently, Lori serves as senior director of alumni engagement at Ball State University, providing strategy and direction for all signature alumni events, alumni awards and the alumni legacy scholarship programme. She also serves as the primary coordinator and Foundation liaison for the Ball State University Alumni Council. During her time at Ball State, Lori established the engagement initiatives Your Ball State: Proud and Loyal, Day of Beneficence and Alumni Winter College in addition to serving as the Foundation representative for Ball State’s Presidential Centennial Committee. Before joining Ball State, Lori served as director of donor relations and stewardship at both the Salvation Army Indiana Division and DePauw University. She began her tenure in higher education at her two-time alma mater, Bowling Green State University, with the Alumni Association. Over the years, Lori has worked with alumni chapter and regional programming, annual giving, athletic events, volunteer recruitment and training, reunions, donor recognition, groundbreakings, Homecoming and more.
