Client Research Report: WMU Office of Service-learning Organization Background The Office of Service-Learning (OSL) was established in February

of 2010, and was officially integrated into University Curriculum beginning fall 2011. Since inauguration, OSL has worked to institutionalize service-learning at WMU. OSLs next milestone came when it moved under the direction of the Center for Academic Success Programs (CASP), which is a university-based office that focuses on enhancing teaching and promoting student servicelearning through collaborative, effective research- based programs. In joining the CASP team, OSL strategically aligns service-learning with the universitys goals of being a learner-centered, discovery-driven, and globally engaged institution of higher education. OSL is currently under the direction of Shawn Tenney, whom assisted in the upbringing of OSL in the University setting, as well as the integration processes with the CASP team. The mission of OSL is: To engage regional communities, the university, and its student body in a mutually beneficial, innovative learning and service enterprise for the purpose of mobilizing knowledge, talents, and energies to benefit the greater community. OSL strives to create a mutually beneficial endeavor in which course learning objectives are met by addressing community identified needsputting academics into practice. Furthermore, OSL assists in creating course objectives and guidelines where students participate in at least 15-20 hours of service-learning throughout the semester where critical reflection of work, interactions, and learning regarding service-learning through community partnerships is the most crucial part of the program. The Audiences of OSL: OSL plays a large role both in the University setting and the community. However, for this campaign, the primary audience of OSL is the students of WMU. OSL works to collaborate with community organizations to construct courses in which students can develop and achieve an understanding for service-learning through direct work with a community partnership. Therefore, OSL categorizes their secondary audience as the community, as a whole. In working with the community to advocate service-learning, OSL is dependent on creating partnerships, developing objectives, and achieving service-learning through the help of local nonprofit organizations. Lastly, OSLs tertiary audience is the WMU faculty, staff, and instructors; individuals whom assist in implementing service-learning to its fullest potential through the course. In meeting with the client, OSL immediately acknowledge that their greatest point of weakness is low student knowledge and involvement in OSL. OSL has asked for a campaign to be developed that strategically focuses on advocating for OSL in the University setting, specifically toward students. Therefore, a campaign will be developed that focuses on student curriculum, university socialization, and on campus presence. Goals, Objectives, Tactics, and Strategies Goals: Goals assist in establishing the programs direction and purpose and are often based on informing and educating, aiming to change the target publics interest level or attitude, or

changing an opinion or behavior. OSL goals will be based on informing and educating the target public: 1. Ensure a distinctive learning experience and foster the success of students 2. Promote innovative learning, discovery, and service Objectives: Objectives commonly state specific expectations for change within a given time frame. In this specific campaign, ensuring a distinctive learning experience and fostering the success of students is crucial. However, in order to ensure the success of this goal, OSL needs to ensure the promotion of their organization to gain an attentive student body interested in service-learning and OSL: 1. To increase campus knowledge of OSL by 10% within three months of campaign implementation and execution. 2. To increase OSL course registration numbers by 15% prior to the start of the fall 2014 semester. 3. To increase OSL campus involvement and organization transparency by 25% prior to the end of the spring 2014 semester. Strategies: Strategies are general approaches devised to reach goals and objectives. Focusing on the outlined objectives above, the strategies to compliment these objectives; developed in effort to achieve the overall goals, include: 1. Informing students about OSL through an online media pull. 2. Working with campus advising offices to inform students of servicelearning course registration opportunities. 3. Collaborating with registered student organizations to inform and recruit students about OSL. 4. Using campus activities and events as an opportunity to educate students about OSL. Tactics: Tactics are the tools used or a series of activities carried out to execute the strategies. The following tactics were devised to compliment the strategies outlined above: 1. Obtain Hootsuite to use social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) actively to reach the student body through innovative posts, such as short videos, multiple pictures, polls, giveaways, and surveys. 2. Prepare a strategic push during registration week where chalking, flyering, and on campus mailings are produced to both inform and persuade students to register for OSL courses. 3. Orient advising offices of OSL benefits for students through a packetprepared 30 minute information session ensuring and clarifying registration procedures, course qualifications, and diverse opportunities of service-learning engagements. 4. Seek out service-learning related organizations (RSO) to develop an on campus collaboration and community through informational sessions and partnered recruitment events, in effort to inform and recruit students of OSL. 5. Actively participate in on campus events with student or faculty representatives continuously advocating for OSL via marketing

materials such as flyers, post cards, magnets, pens; to assist in rebranding OSL as a premiere office on campus with endless student benefits via service-learning. Detailed Tactics: Tactic #1: Using innovative social media, with the help of Hootsuite, OSL can reach students on their own, technological and social media level. Hootsuite will be a great asset to OSL as it will assist in in-office time management, as well as online consistency. Furthermore, OSL can engage students through innovative posts, such as posting pictures of videos of students currently engaging in service-learning; or even posting polls as simple as have you ever engaged in service-learning? allowing OSL to engage the student population while receiving constructive feedback. This will increase the notoriety of the organization in an online means, and will be a great asset to recruiting and informing students of OSL. Tactic #2: During registration week, a creative and easy way to gain student attention toward registering for a service-learning course can be accomplished through an campus street team. Using previous students whom have engaged in a service-learning project to advocate on behalf of OSL through chalking and fliering the campus is both a time sensitive and easy way to gain attention toward OSL. Additionally, this is very cost effective and will actively engage students on campus. Tactic #3: Additionally, working with advising offices will be a crucial asset to this campaign. In preparing a short presentation, as well as developing materials that permanently live in the advising offices, students will never miss an opportunity to learn about a new OSL course. Upon obtaining new knowledge, students can then hear a testimonial from an advisor, and be persuaded into a course; especially incoming freshmen whom are still unclear of their career or course paths for the semester. Again, this will be a critical partnership for OSL as the collaboration will expand OSLs networking alliance to an additional eight campus offices serving about 20,000 students. Tactic #4: Through on campus organization partnerships, OSL will develop the opportunity to become represented in multiple organizations across the campus community. From Greek life, to the Nonprofit Leadership Student Alliance, OSL can create and cultivate relationships with these students where advocacy becomes natural amongst both the organization and OSL. The long term outcome of this will prove that on campus partnerships can share knowledge, experience, and information to new and incoming students across campus. There are 300 registered student organization made up of over 8,000 students; a premiere opportunity for OSL. Tactic #5: Lastly, increasing presence on campus is crucial. Students want to associate themselves with an organization whom is readily available and a premiere leader on campus. By consistently attending events, such as Bronco Bash, Employment Fairs, Bernhard Center Days, and so forth, OSL can establish a presence and continuously use the event to hand out marketing materials. Again, this is a great opportunity for campus branding, allowing OSL to become both acknowledged and transparent on the Universitys campus. Summary Weaknesses:

OSLs primary concern, based off of the client interview, is that the number of students registering for OSL courses is currently experiencing a notable decline. 1. The premise of this is due to the fact that the office is made up of two individuals, both of whom who do not have the full ability to advocate for the organization as it needs to be. 2. Students are not being engaged effectively, consistently, or appropriately; there is a lack of innovation and creativity to capture an ever-changing student body. 3. Service-learning opportunities, outcomes, and accomplishments are not widely marketed to a diverse campus climate. Therefore, this campaign is being developed based on this premise, and will be constructed strategically for easy implementation with attainable and realistic goals, objectives, strategies and tactics. Strengths: 1. OSL has a multiple solid partnerships with community organizations to ensure exemplary learning and student service-learning achievements. 2. OSL strives to reach students through a social media context (Facebook). 3. OSL diligently works to market and advocate for OSL on a small budget. Conclusion Though small staffed accompanied by a compact budget, OSL still has the opportunity to make a big impact on the students of Western Michigan University. There are endless opportunities to further OSLs prominence on campus. A positive mindset, supported by some creativity and strategic planning and implementation using the above objectives, strategies, and tactics, OSL will be well on their way to increasing student service-learning involvement within the year.