Public

Relations Plan by: Hayley Torswick

Public Relations Plan for: Alpha Epsilon Phi Sorority
For the Period of: September 1, 2015 through December 10, 2015

Introduction: For my research process I took advantage of being a member of this
sorority to be able to have an inside view of how the sorority works and what needs
we may have. Being such a small percentage of the campus it is hard for many
individuals to understand how Greek life works for those who are not involved.
Having the inside scoop of this kind of organization allows me to better understand
the needs and wants of a sorority.
For my research process I used the information I found at our weekly
executive board meeting for primary sources as well as one on one conversation
that I had with our president and other executive board members for research. As
far as one on one conversation I found out what was expected of the chapter as far
as community service and philanthropic work. From talking with the other
executive board members they expressed their desire to have a very successful
philanthropic event because last semester they had not been as successful as
previous years.
Past Vice President of Philanthropy, Emily Demirjian, stated in her interview
that It is important to start early in the semester when planning and advertising
for our philanthropic events. She explained to me the struggles that she went
through planning things last minute because of the busy schedule of the sorority
calendar. In addition in an interview with the president, Jess DiLello, it was
expressed that they wanted to boost their participation within the New Paltz
community and the SUNY New Paltz campus.

In order to gain a broader view outside of the sorority, I searched the

Internet for documents and information written about my sorority as well as similar
organizations. Through this research I was able to find other ways that the
sororities raised money through an MTV fundraising website as well as past
amounts that they had raised.
Through secondary research I found several announcements on the
Sharsheret philanthropy website announcing past events that the sorority has held
which allowed for increased awareness for all of those who have visited the website
or other chapters of Alpha Epsilon Phi in nearby areas to know this event was
happening. In addition although I couldnt find a specific article where this sorority
was featured in general for their philanthropy work, I did come across an article
that featured another chapters events and explained all the community service that
the sorority took part in. In this article the upcoming events of each sorority were
featured as well as details about their events. An article like this for Alpha Epsilon
Phi would allow the community to know about the event before it happened so that
attendance could increase by all who viewed that website. Such positive exposure is
an important aspect of getting their name out there and getting more attendance for
their events. In addition I found an article on Happy Hudson Valleys website where
the sorority was featured for doing community service at the Taste of New Paltz.
This exposure helps contribute to the positive opinions in others through
showcasing the philanthropic side of being in a sorority and highlights all the good
work that sororities do for their community and philanthropies. If a similar article

could be written about the sorority for its main philanthropy event it could receive a
lot of positive recognition.

SWOT Analysis:
Strengths: Strengths for this organization is that they have an established event that
has been occurring annually. They have people who look forward to this event
within their own chapter and the community. They have been raising money for
years and continually increasing the amount that they raise due to more
participation.

Weaknesses: Weaknesses can be that there isnt as much student involvement that
the org would like. You are not allowed to flyer on campus for an off campus event.

Opportunities: Opportunities include the possible involvement of chapter alumnae.
Alumnae are real people who have real jobs and make a living so they are capable
of donating or even coming to the event itself. We could also take advantage of the
town around us and the events that are held prior to their main philanthropic event
(such as flyering or tabeling at the local library fair which is the weekend before
their Tacos for Tatas event). There is a possibility of having a smaller event before
the main event on campus so that they can tell students on campus when the event
is.

Threats: Another org could have an event the same day. The school could not
approve the event on campus.

Needs of the Organization: A need of the organization is to have more involvement
so that they can raise as much money as possible for their philanthropy. They need
the involvement of the student community, the New Paltz community and their
alumnae connections.
Based on the primary and secondary research there needs to be an improvement in
the involvement and attendance of their events. As for students there are no current
student newspapers or online blogs writing about this chapter and keeping the
students updated. Although the sorority is lised under the University website as a
recognized sorority on campus no additional information about events are provided

for other students. Greek life, being such a small portion of this campus, is often
overlooked by those who arent involved. The majority of the student population is
often overlooked at possible attendees of events and they rely on fellow Greek
organizations to attend their events. If there were articles written about Alpha
Epsilon Phi on the SUNY New Paltz campus before their main philanthropy events
similar to the article written on the Colorado State Universitys website students
who view the schools website would be able to see when upcoming events are.

In addition alumnae of the sorority need to be involved in these events.

Alumnae of the sorority are most often adults who have established careers and
families who would be more than willing to help their fellow sisters out especially if
its for a good cause. The hundreds of alumnae are a good source of support that is
currently under utilized by the sorority.
As for the community the sorority needs to take advantage of already
existing community events that they could get the word about their events out to
the public. Although some community members may be skeptical and helping a
sorority because of negative connotations towards Greek life, showing the good that
a sorority can do for a community can help strengthen ties.

Goals of the Public Relations Campaigns:
The goal of the public relations campaign is to create awareness of the events
that the sorority has for its philanthropy and community service causes both on
campus and within themselves to make everyone excited about philanthropic work.
I would like to use the different elements of the campaign to target the
students and community in New Paltz to get their involvement for not just the Tacos

for Tatas event but also for other events that might be held to benefit the sorority in
general. For this plan I hope to create more community involvement by taking
advantage of fairs and farmers markets held weekly in the town of New Paltz. I hope
to get more exposure for the sorority by expanding their postings on social media
and the different groups of people that the messages reach. In addition I hope to
create a constant connection with the alumnae to gain their support and any
networking advantages that they may have to offer.