11:00–11:30 AM

Log in and test your connectivity. Attendees will receive additional directions via email. 

11:30–Noon

Welcome and Introductions

Join conference leadership to meet the faculty, review conference highlights and learn how to get the most out of your time online.

Noon–1:00 PM

Opening Session

Taking Care of Ourselves While Managing Community

We're always thinking on our feet and thinking of our communities, but when was the last time you thought about yourself? Taking care of your mental health when dealing with a seemingly 24/7 job with high, public risk, crisis situations and toxic comments is extremely important to your success. Krista and Erin will touch on their personal mental health journeys while working in higher ed social and show you how to set boundaries and know your limits. You'll come away from this talk some tried and tested tricks that can help you create healthier habits tailored to our specific field of work.

Krista Boniface, Senior Social Media Strategist, University of Toronto

Erin Supinka, Associate Director for Digital Engagement, Dartmouth College

1:15–2:15 

General Session

Results of WVU’s Social Media Manager Survey

Continuing with the theme of taking care of ourselves, we’ll share publicly for the first time the findings from a West Virginia University survey of higher ed social media managers about mental health concerns in regard to their everyday jobs but especially in crisis situations like the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to the findings, we'll share ideas from social media managers across the country on how to stay well while working in crisis mode.

Tony Dobies, Senior Director of Marketing, West Virginia University

To contribute to the survey: https://wvu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_9tnRQ34NM2KHVSB

2:15–2:45 

Stretch Break

Use this time to move around a bit, check out resources in the library, or participate in a live chat.

2:45–3:30 

Elective Sessions

Select one of the sessions to enter. Attendees can choose to attend one elective session live and view other recordings at a later date.

• Social Media is the First Line of Defense: Defusing and Managing Issues
  
  Social Media is the front line for wonderful interactions with our community, but also the very visible space where customer service problems and issues that, left unaddressed, can escalate and damage our reputation. In this session we will look at some of the strategies and practices in place at the University at Buffalo for identifying, managing and defusing the types of interactions that occur everyday, as well as case studies walking us through responses in small and large issues that could very well happen at your institution.
  
  Rebecca Bernstein, Director, Strategy and Digital Communications, University at Buffalo
• Content Strategy on a Budget
  
  Learn how one university secured rapid and significant gains in site traffic, email reach, and social engagement through an integrated approach to digital strategy and storytelling grounded in research and analytics. No gimmicks. No consultants. Whether you are a digital marketer, storyteller, creative professional, or team leader, this session features your role in creating a more engaged online community.

  Johnny Cruz, Assistant Vice Chancellor, University Communications, University of California, Riverside
  
  Kelly McGrail, Director of Digital Marketing and Analytics, UC Riverside

3:45–4:30

Lightning Talks

Join presenters from peer institutions to hear about lessons learned, their struggles and triumphs in ten-minute flash sessions.

• Hitting Qualitative Communications Goals Through Social Media
  
  Do you ever ask yourself, “Why am I doing this?” Often times, “being on social” becomes the goal of “doing” social media, and that’s not the recommended approach. Social media is one of many options in our communications toolbox that can help hit the communications goals of our university. But how do we do that, especially when those goals are often hard to measure? In this talk, Jenny will show attendees how MIT strategically uses comments on social media, and how that strategy has changed since the COVID-19 pandemic.
  
  Jenny Li Fowler, Director of Social Media Strategy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
• We Don’t Have a Social Media Manager. Now What?
  
  In 2019, Babson College's Marketing team underwent a seismic shift in their approach to digital storytelling. Part of that disruption: ditching the social media manager position. Yes, that's right - the College doesn't have a social media manager. Hear how Babson's content team went from panic at the thought of losing that team member to becoming silo-busting storytellers with serious social skills, all thanks to an integrated content strategy that puts the story at the start of every single conversation.
  
  Kait Lanthier, Director, Content Strategy, Babson College
• “Zooming” into Virtual Engagement
  
  As students adjust to learning remotely, Student Affairs departments scramble to find ways to continue to keep supporting – and engaging – students through the crisis. Learn how NCCU has risen to the occasion to adapt to new technology to continue to engage our students, celebrate them, and adapt to the new normal. Learn from our mistakes, and how we’ve utilized social media and conferencing tools in unique ways to help students adapt during this difficult time.
  
  Chelsey Holts, Director of Marketing and Communications, Division of Student Affairs, North Carolina Central University
• Crisis, Community, Crowdsourcing and COVID
  
  When crisis hits, how do we rally and leverage our community when we need it the most? While nailing the immediate crisis response is crucial, we can’t forget what makes our social media communities what they are. It’s never just been about top-down messaging, and it’s the same in a crisis. Amid the chaos, panic and uncertainty, we’ve got to be able to step back from just sharing announcements and news alerts. Look to your community for vitally-important content during these times. In this lighting talk, see how BYU was able to crowdsource content amid the COVID-19 madness that brought an important measure of support, encouragement and peace as community members spoke to community members.
  
  Jon McBride, Media Relations and Social Media Manager, Brigham Young University
• Social VR: Give the Gift of Presence to Your Audiences
  
  The idea of online community is constantly evolving. The latest developments in the social media space (privacy issues, foreign interference) could lead to an erosion of trust and impact engagement for higher ed institutions. A technology born in the mid-1960s could help rebuild strong connections with audiences: Virtual Reality. This session explain how VR is uniquely positioned to do that, what the current state of Social VR is, and how one can get started.
  
  Thomas Deneuville, Director of Web Services and UX, Cornell University
• Lightning Talk Q&A

4:30–5:00

Faculty Q&A

Close the day with an open Q&A with our faculty experts.

Questions can be submitted live via chat or before the panel begins.

5:00–6:00

Optional Networking Social Hour

Pour yourself a cocktail (or mocktail) and meet virtually with conference attendees and faculty members.

6:00

Conference Adjourns for the Day

11:00 AM–NOON

Roundtable Discussions

Bring your breakfast or lunch and connect with attendees in small groups. Each group will receive discussion prompts and will be encouraged to participate in the conversation on timely topics effecting our industry. This is a great time to connect with peers to share best practices, ideas and support.

NOON–1:00 PM

General Session

An Analysis of 700,000 Conversations About COVID-19

Higher education is, in many ways, a cyclical game. A new class of students starts every August. Prospective students submit applications in the fall. Admitted students visit campus and submit deposits in the spring and summer. Students graduate each May. Rinse and repeat.

But there’s nothing cyclical about our current environment. The global COVID-19 pandemic hit campuses across the country in the blink of an eye. In rapid succession, campuses closed, courses moved online, and our lives—personally and professionally—were permanently altered.

Campus Sonar started tracking public online conversations related to higher education and the coronavirus. We analyzed over 5 million conversations in just six weeks, including over 100,000 first-person mentions from current, prospective, and admitted students. In this session, Liz Gross and Steve App share takeaways from this research. You’ll learn what students have been talking about and how you can find these conversations yourself. We’ll examine how the conversation shifted since the arrival of the coronavirus, and what you can do right now to support students enrolled in your institution and those who will be in the future.

Steve App, Business Development Manager, Campus Sonar

Liz Gross, Founder and CEO, Campus Sonar

1:15–2:00

Elective Sessions

Select one of the sessions to enter. Attendees can choose to attend one elective session live and view other recordings at a later date. 

• Ad It Up: Using Facebook's Transparency Tool to Look at Social Advertising Trends
  
  Unlike a billboard, social media ads are hidden from all those who are not in the ad's target demographic--until now. Using Facebook's new page transparency tool we can look at ads from any page and learn from them. In this session, we will discuss how we used this tool to analyze the ads from our peer institutions in order to improve our own ads, ad targeting, and advocate for a greater budget for paid social media advertising. We will discuss the benefits and limits of Facebook's page transparency tool look at examples of current trends in paid Facebook ads in higher education for purposes of student recruitment, fundraising, and increased brand awareness.
  
  Jon-Stephen Stansel, Digital Media Specialist, University of Central Arkansas
• PR Newsroom
  
  In 2018, Texas State University launched what we thought would be an online newsroom to provide journalists with run-ready articles and assets illustrating the story arch of the university’s journey to grow its prominence and reputation in research. The newsroom accomplished that goal, but after one-year, has evolved into the main content driver for almost all university advancement digital engagement and national PR efforts. This session dives into developing a content strategy that supports the university’s brand while providing relevant information for journalists. We will explore topics such as how to drive the right audience to the right content, feeding the content beast, involving university influencers in promoting and providing content, aligning your social strategy with content development, and creating content appealing to multiple audiences.

  Sandy Pantlik, AVP for Communications, University Advancement, Texas State University
  
  Kelly Raaz, Digital Content Strategist, Texas State University

2:00–2:30

Stretch Break

Use this time to move around a bit, check out resources in the library, or participate in a live chat.

2:30–3:15

General Session

Inclusion for All: Creating Accessible and Inclusive Social Media

If you've kept up with the news, you have probably seen lots of talk about accessibility lawsuits and questionable exclusionary social media content in higher education. This session will combine tactics and strategy for participants to learn step-by-step how to create accessible content on popular social media platforms as well as important considerations for diversity and inclusion while creating content. No experience with accessibility in digital needed, as we will cover the basics as well as the next steps.

Erika F. Boltz, Inclusive Communications and Social Media Strategist; Project Manager, Dr. Josie Ahlquist

3:30–4:30

Closing Session

Social Media Managers, Tear Down These Walls!

The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way we communicate. Stay-at-home orders have halted our ability to meet in-person and increased our capacity and interest in connecting online. Now, in-person events are a non-starter. Digital content is in high demand and our entire world is being forced to think digital-first. Digital content producers are rejoicing!

How do you manage a firehose of digital content requests? In this new world, digital strategy needs to align with how communication styles and preferences have changed. If you work in a decentralized environment, now is the time to prioritize collaboration and take advantage of silo walls that are coming down.

Ashley Budd, Director of Digital Marketing for Alumni Affairs and Development, Cornell University

4:30–5:00

Closing Faculty Panel

5:00

Conference Adjourns