Communications Tune-Up

A five-part summer series to help you plan now and make fall communications easier.

If communications are part of your job but not your whole job, this series is for you.

Our Summer Communications Tune-Up is designed to help Student Affairs colleagues take a look under the hood, make a few practical adjustments and head into the fall semester with a clearer plan.

Across five connected sessions, we’ll move from communications goals to planning, branding, resources and student social media supervision. Each session builds on the one before it, creating an intentional path from why you communicate to how you and your team will put that work into practice.

Who is this series for:

Short answer? Everyone!

Student Affairs staff at all levels are welcome to attend and participate. You do not need to be a communications expert to join.

This series is for colleagues who write emails, manage social media accounts, promote programs, create flyers, supervise student content creators or want to spend a little time now avoiding a lot of last-minute scrambling later.

What you’ll explore

Through the series, participants will explore how to:

• Connect communications work to a clear purpose
• Define success beyond likes, attendance or follower counts
• Use communications planning tools to prepare for fall events, campaigns and recurring messages
• Create greater consistency across department communications
• Make better use of available tools, templates and communications resources
• Prepare student employees to create thoughtful, goal-aligned social media content

Participants are welcome to attend individual sessions, but the full series is designed as a connected curriculum. Attend all five to complete the full Communications Tune-Up and receive a certificate of completion at the first All-Teams meeting in the fall.

Tune-Up Schedule

All sessions will be held from 2-3 p.m. Location details will be shared once confirmed. No RSVP is required.

This is a collapsible table.

Wednesday, June 17: Start with Your Why Location: Campus Living Center, Conference Room Before choosing a platform, drafting a post or creating a flyer, start with purpose. We’ll explore audiences, internal and external communications, communications goals and what success can look like beyond likes, followers or attendance. You’ll work on: identifying 1-3 meaningful measures of success for your department, program or initiative. Watch the recordingDownload the WorksheetDownload the Presentation

Wednesday, June 24: Build Your Communications Plan Location: Sadler Center, James Room A little planning now can prevent a lot of scrambling later. We’ll break down the parts of a practical communications plan, including audiences, messages, channels, timing, deliverables and ownership. You'll leave with a ready-to-use communication plan template. You’ll work on: turning a goal into a realistic communications plan for an event, campaign or semester-long initiative. Add to your calendar

Wednesday, July 15: Strengthen Your Department Brand Location: Campus Living Center, Conference Room Consistent communications help audiences recognize and connect with your work. We’ll review W&M brand basics and explore how department-level templates, colors, visual choices and Canva brand kits can help staff and students stay on the same road. You’ll work on: identifying what your department needs to create more consistent and recognizable communications. Add to your calendar

Wednesday, July 29: Find the Right Resources Location: Sadler Center, Lodge 1 You do not have to build every tool from scratch. We’ll explore the Student Affairs Communications Toolkit, MarComm support, photo resources and other tools that can help you work more efficiently. You’ll work on: matching common communications tasks with the resources, tools and partners available to support them. Add to your calendar

Wednesday, August 5: Prepare Your Student Social Media Team Location: Sadler Center, James Room Handing over the keys to a department social media account requires more than sharing the password. We’ll talk about goals, brand expectations, content planning, approval processes and how to train student employees to create thoughtful, consistent content. You’ll work on: drafting a training outline for your student social media manager or student communications assistant. Add to your calendar

Can’t make it?

It’s summer. We know there are vacations, conferences and plenty of other things competing for your calendar.

Each Communications Tune-Up session will be recorded, and we’ll send a recap to the division afterward with the recording and links to the tools, templates and resources covered.

Join us live when you can, catch up when you need to, and use the series in whatever way helps make your fall communications easier.

Questions?

Contact [[w|hmdeere, Heather Deere]] Director of Family Engagement & Student Affairs Communications.