CLAS Office of Communications
The mission of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Office of Communications is to build the reputation and community of the College by telling stories about College achievements and the people behind them.
What We Do
Our office serves the College through internal and executive communications, constituent communications, and communications for departments and programs.
Internal and Executive Communications
The CLAS Office of Communications is the hub for College-level communications. We publish the monthly Inside CLAS newsletter and develop and maintain the CLAS website and social media. As a service to the College’s departments and centers, we archive and categorize by department all news about the College, including University news articles, media coverage, and awards and accolades. We produce internal marketing materials, such as signage and printed materials.
We also support the Dean with executive communications, such as speeches, internal and external memos, and donor communications, and produce the annual CLAS Dean’s Report.
Constituent Communications
Our office supports College communications to a wide array of audiences. For alumni and donors, we produce the biannual CLAS Alumni News newsletter and support the CLAS Office of Alumni Relations and Office of Development with event materials, College marketing materials, and donor communications. For prospective students and parents, we produce informational materials such as the CLAS Fact Sheet, and for current students, we advise the CLAS Student Leadership Board.
Communications for Departments and Programs
We publish news articles, photos, and videos about faculty, students, and staff of the College. We also regularly consult with CLAS departments and programs and help them with their specialized communications, including developing and sending alumni newsletters, liaising with the UConn Foundation, and consulting on social media, web, and branding best practices.
How You Can Help Us
Tell us!
Have a story idea? Did you receive an award or grant? Are you publishing a book or paper you think deserves publicity? Tell us all about it. Submit your ideas with our news request form, or contact the Director of Communications.
Publish Your Events
Are you having an event that might be of interest to the University community? List your departmental events, seminars, and colloquia on the UConn Events Calendar. That way can we can easily access it to help publicize it.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is CLAS Communications related to University Communications?
Can I get a UConn logo for my department?
Can I create a specialized logo for my department?
I have a story idea about a great person or research result in my department. What should I do?
How do I create/maintain a social media account for my department?
I get regular reports on people donating to my department. What do I do?
I want to e-mail my department’s alumni. How do I do it?
Our department keeps our own alumni contact list. Can we use this to send emails and/or newsletters?
How do I create and send a newsletter for my department?
I got a call from a reporter! Help! What do I do?!
How do I handle departmental scholarships given annually to students?
I want to create banners/signage for my department. What do I do?
How do I create/update/edit my department website?
I want to make a video/take photos of stuff going on in my department. How do I do it?
How is CLAS Communications related to University Communications?
The University has a tiered structure of communications consisting of the central Office of University Communications and individual college/unit communications offices.
University Communications serves the entire University and includes University-level writing, advertising, marketing, and media relations, and publishes the UConn website, UConn Today and the UConn Alumni Magazine.
The CLAS Communications Office reports to the Dean of CLAS and serves the Dean, the Dean’s Office, and the CLAS departments, centers, and programs. Among its various duties, the CLAS Office of Communications writes and produces College-level publications, including the CLAS website, the Inside CLAS internal newsletter, a CLAS alumni newsletter, and CLAS social media accounts.
Our office liaises with University Communications regarding news articles, media relations, and brand strategies. In general, units of CLAS that have news to disseminate should consult with the CLAS Director of Communications to determine how to publicize the work. When appropriate, the CLAS Office of Communications will connect faculty with University Communications.
Can I get a UConn logo for my department/program?
Yes. Please contact the CLAS Associate Director of Communications for branding, logo, and wordmark questions. All communications materials, including but not restricted to alumni newsletters, websites, printed materials, social media, videos, and event marketing materials must adhere to the current UConn brand standards.
The CLAS Office of Communications is available as a resource to help departments interpret and apply the University’s brand standards. You can find official wordmarks for CLAS here, and each department and center can access custom wordmarks by contacting the CLAS Associate Director of Communications.
Can I create a specialized logo for my department/program?
Departments should not create individualized wordmarks or logos without consulting with the CLAS Associate Director of Communications. Note that “secondary” logos that do not conform to UConn’s brand standards are not permitted.
I have a story idea about a great person or research result in my department/program. What should I do?
The Communications Office loves hearing your story ideas! We can use them for feature articles on the CLAS Website, the UConn Today website, Inside CLAS, the alumni newsletter, social media, in College points of pride, or in other ways. Use our handy news request form to help us understand the story.
I got an award/grant/book publication/fellowship/other accolade I’d like people to know about. What do I do?
Congratulations! Please submit your news using our news request form. This is the most effective way to communicate your accolade to the CLAS Communications Office. The form asks for necessary details about the news you’re looking to get out. You’ll receive a confirmation and a follow-up from our office.
How do I create/maintain a social media account for my department/program?
Social media is an important part of how members of the College communicate with students, alumni, and other key audiences. Social media accounts can require a significant commitment of time, resources, and planning. Before you create a new social media account for a CLAS department, center, or institute, you should:
– Review the University’s social media guidelines and guide to getting started
– Articulate goals and target audiences for the social media presence
– Contact the CLAS Associate Director of Communications for account approval
Please note that you should not create accounts for events, conferences, or any potentially temporary topics or initiatives. At least two full-time staff or faculty members should administer all UConn social media accounts. Students may assist with accounts, but cannot be the sole administrators/managers.
I get regular reports on people donating to my department/program. What do I do?
The short answer is: thank them! For the long answer, including how to thank them, when to thank them, and in what way to thank them, see the CLAS Alumni and Donor Engagement Guide, or contact the CLAS Donor Relations Specialist.
For privacy purposes, departments should NOT keep the donation reports in electronic or printed form after the reports have been reviewed and used to thank donors. The UConn Foundation maintains a comprehensive database that includes this information. For help accessing this information, contact the CLAS Donor Relations Specialist, who can provide it to you at your request.
I want to e-mail my department/program’s alumni. How do I do it?
The CLAS Office of Communications can help departments liaise with the UConn Foundation to e-mail their alumni when appropriate. For more information, see the CLAS Alumni and Donor Engagement Guide.
For privacy purposes, departments should NOT keep contact lists of alumni and donors. The UConn Foundation maintains a comprehensive database of alumni contact information, and can provide you with an up-to-date list at your request.
Our department keeps our own alumni contact list. Can we use this to send emails and/or newsletters?
The short answer is: no. The long answer is that the UConn Foundation maintains a comprehensive database of alumni and donor contact information on behalf of the University. As a result, the Foundation is the sole approved repository for alumni and donor information. This relationship was established to centralize record keeping, improve accuracy, and — most importantly — to ensure that legal privacy protections are maintained for alumni and donors.
Departments should NOT keep contact lists or other alumni information. The Foundation will work with you to incorporate any information you have separately maintained into their existing database. You can easily request a contact list from the Foundation at any point. For more information, see the CLAS Alumni and Donor Engagement Guide or contact the CLAS Donor Relations Specialist.
How do I create and send a newsletter for my department/program?
This is a great idea! Departments can produce newsletters to connect directly with alumni of their programs. Any new print or electronic newsletter should conform to UConn brand standards and be produced with input from the CLAS Communications Office.
Departments should contact the CLAS Director of Communications when developing, sending, or distributing a newsletter. We will consult with you to establish your newsletter goals, determine its content and frequency, and liaise with the UConn Foundation to schedule and send it.
I got a call from a reporter! Help! What do I do?!
Short answer: Call them back! Long answer: If you would like assistance in how to speak with reporters and/or how to handle a media request, please contact the Director of News and Information at University Communications.
If a reporter calls you looking for expert commentary, you are encouraged to express your professional opinion given your area of expertise. If the reporter asks for comment on the University as a whole or the administration, please refer them to the University Spokesperson.
Please give reporters your official academic title and mention that you are in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. After the article or story is published or broadcasted, notify the CLAS Director of Communications for inclusion in the CLAS media coverage Web page.
I think something I’ve done is worthy of media attention and would like to get the word out to the news media. What should I do?
If you would like to proactively reach out to media to publicize your research, see the University Communications “beat list” and contact the appropriate media relations associate for your area. If you receive publicity for your work, please notify the CLAS Director of Communications.
How do I handle departmental/program scholarships given annually to students?
You may have endowed and other scholarships given annually through your department. For best practices on how to handle these, please see the CLAS Alumni and Donor Engagement Guide, and contact the CLAS Donor Relations Specialist if you have any questions.
I want to create banners/signage for my department. What do I do?
We can consult with your department to make sure banners and signage conform to University brand standards. You can then purchase these items through UConn Design and Document Productions or an external vendor. Please contact the CLAS Associate Director of Communications for more information.
How do I create/update/edit my department/program website?
CLAS departments, centers, institutes, faculty, and graduate students are responsible for creating and maintaining their own websites. Departments and centers can use the University Aurora Wordpress platform, which allows ease of setup and maintenance, and conforms to University brand standards. Training on how to use Wordpress is available through UITS. Departments can also contract with the University Web Development Team for work designing and building websites. General website questions can be directed to the CLAS Associate Director of Communications.
How do I publicize an upcoming event in our department/program to the University community?
In general, departments and programs are responsible for publicity surrounding events presented by their unit. The CLAS Office of Communications can review any publicity materials for brand compliance. If you are hosting an event that will include alumni and/or donors of the University, please contact the Donor Relations Specialist.
Certain events are selected by the Dean’s Office for inclusion in the Inside CLAS monthly newsletter. To have your event considered, please put it on the UConn events calendar and submit it using a news request form.
I want to make a video/take photos of stuff going on in my department/program. How do I do it?
Departments and programs may produce their own original multimedia, including video, audio, and photography. Because multimedia – in particular, video – is time-consuming and resource-intensive to produce, programs should clearly articulate the goals and target audiences of multimedia endeavors before embarking on them. Please review the University Communications video guidelines before proceeding.
The Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning provides video equipment loans to UConn departments and programs. If you would like to contract with a professional videographer, please contact the Director of Communications for a list of local contractors.
For any questions not listed here, please contact the CLAS Director of Communications.
