Storytelling in Promoting an Educational Program 

 1 . Challenge 

 As a higher education leader , I was tasked with developing a brand new undergraduate higher   education program that had to date existed only in graduate and doctorate offerings ( specific   program details withheld for confidentiality purposes ) . In addition , the field itself , which is   STEM - related , was known to be historically white male dominated . The target student   population for the program was women and under - represented populations . There are several   challenges to unpack here ; I have outlined a few below specific to this project : 

 1 ) The program itself had never been offered in an undergraduate credential anywhere in 

 the country and therefore no model or benchmark existed to glean best practices from . 

 2 ) Since the program only existed in the graduate and doctorate space , an element of 

 academic and professional resistance to the program was evident from the start .   Educational partners were not forthcoming in collaborating and industry partners   were unable to identify a clear pathway for employment . 

 3 ) Since the program had been offered in graduate and doctorate degrees , and due to the 

 STEM - related nature of the content , the program is perceived to be highly   challenging to students . 

 4 ) It is a continuous challenge to enroll women and under - represented populations in 

 STEM - related programs . 

 2 . Selection 

 The program had an image and branding problem out the gate . While the initiative was   innovative and groundbreaking , we needed to create a compelling image and brand quickly in   order to bolster enrollment and legitimize the program with employers and amongst other   educational institutions . In order to build the brand of the program , Storytelling ( week 2 ) was   selected as a tool to aid in overcoming the challenges outlined above . We needed to build that   connection with students and other stakeholders quickly and effectively .   We needed to appeal to   students using vocabulary that they could understand , while also building a reputation for   providing a quality program that met industry expectations ( see Storytelling Tool video , week 2 ) .   The very nature of Storytelling allowed us to build a continuous narrative specific to these   audiences by providing tailored but consistent messaging to various audiences across a variety of   venues and media . 

 3 . Application 

 The approach was to create specific messaging and use appropriate vocabulary for the various   audiences while maintaining consistency across venues and streams . In addressing students , print   collateral focused on employment opportunities , the supportive faculty in the program , student   resources at the college , and representative student faces . Student success stories were especially   important , featuring their life story and the contribution the program provided in their lives .   Representation here was very important . In addition , the program invited various guest speakers   relevant to both the program content and to the target student populations . These sessions were   open to the public . This connected the program to industry while providing students additional   insight into programmatic supports beyond the classroom that would ensure their success . 

 Storytelling in Promoting an Educational Program 

 In addressing industry , presentations and print collateral focused on program competencies and   student skill . We found that students sharing their work and projects completed in the program   was the most effective in addressing industry . The program leveraged this though open   showcases where the public was invited to view presentations and meet with the students .   Students were coached prior to these events in how to share their work effectively , as well as   how to best tell their personal story while networking . Here , students were able to tell industry   why they were qualified to work for them using language industry understood ( real work projects   and examples ) while also providing a compelling personal story of success . 

 Finally , communications with peer educational institutions and other academic organizations   focused on the both the rigor and competencies addressed in the program , as well as the   profound success of students completing the program . Here , language was important as we had   to depart from the general terms used in our everyday communications with the public and use   verbiage and terms expected within academic circles . In addition , we added concrete numbers   and data to validate one or two particularly noteworthy student success stories . Data is important   as this is the universal language of research and academia . It was especially important to draw   parallels with existing programs to demonstrate the rigor of the program . For instance , industry   certifications were a very important component of the program ; this was also true of several   other graduate programs . These certifications served as a means to identify standard   competencies and were provided by third - party vendors . In highlighting student pass rates of   these certifications within the program , we were able to find common ground , using a common   language with common benchmarks , to legitimize the program in comparison to our peers . 

 4 . Insight 

 We learned early on that students served as the most effective medium for promoting the   program . Their stories were authentic , compelling , and above all , spoke to the success of the   program design through the sharing of real - world project examples . We also learned that   students needed help in how to share their stories . Students first enrolled in the program were   often under - prepared or unable to articulate their experiences ; students nearing graduation had   both the practice and vocabulary to best share their story . Coaching and mentoring was   especially important in building their confidence . 

 5 . Approach 

 I think we underutilized social media ; this is a really important tool in today ’s media age ,   especially in Storytelling .   This medium could have been used much more effectively . We relied   almost exclusively on print and face - to - face presentations which is fairly limiting . Social media   would have also allowed us to leverage our contacts with industry and other organizations   through ‘ shout outs ’ and hashtags . In addition , managing Linkedin more effectively would have   afforded us an easy way to keep track of our students post - graduation and extend student success   stories beyond the program . 


EMAIL: 
ID_NUM: 
NAME_STUDENT: 
PHONE_NUM: 
STREET_ADDRESS: 
URL_PERSONAL: 
USERNAME: 

### Task: You are a PII (Personal Identity Information) Detection. Given a essays written by students, you have to identify ONLY the following:
NAME_STUDENT - The full or partial name of a student that is not necessarily the author of the essay. This excludes instructors, authors, and other person names.
EMAIL - A student’s email address.
USERNAME - A student's username on any platform.
ID_NUM - A number or sequence of characters that could be used to identify a student, such as a student ID or a social security number.
PHONE_NUM - A phone number associated with a student.
URL_PERSONAL - A URL that might be used to identify a student.
STREET_ADDRESS - A full or partial street address that is associated with the student, such as their home address.
### Input: Storytelling in Promoting an Educational Program 

 1 . Challenge 

 As a higher education leader , I was tasked with developing a brand new undergraduate higher   education program that had to date existed only in graduate and doctorate offerings ( specific   program details withheld for confidentiality purposes ) . In addition , the field itself , which is   STEM - related , was known to be historically white male dominated . The target student   population for the program was women and under - represented populations . There are several   challenges to unpack here ; I have outlined a few below specific to this project : 

 1 ) The program itself had never been offered in an undergraduate credential anywhere in 

 the country and therefore no model or benchmark existed to glean best practices from . 

 2 ) Since the program only existed in the graduate and doctorate space , an element of 

 academic and professional resistance to the program was evident from the start .   Educational partners were not forthcoming in collaborating and industry partners   were unable to identify a clear pathway for employment . 

 3 ) Since the program had been offered in graduate and doctorate degrees , and due to the 

 STEM - related nature of the content , the program is perceived to be highly   challenging to students . 

 4 ) It is a continuous challenge to enroll women and under - represented populations in 

 STEM - related programs . 

 2 . Selection 

 The program had an image and branding problem out the gate . While the initiative was   innovative and groundbreaking , we needed to create a compelling image and brand quickly in   order to bolster enrollment and legitimize the program with employers and amongst other   educational institutions . In order to build the brand of the program , Storytelling ( week 2 ) was   selected as a tool to aid in overcoming the challenges outlined above . We needed to build that   connection with students and other stakeholders quickly and effectively .   We needed to appeal to   students using vocabulary that they could understand , while also building a reputation for   providing a quality program that met industry expectations ( see Storytelling Tool video , week 2 ) .   The very nature of Storytelling allowed us to build a continuous narrative specific to these   audiences by providing tailored but consistent messaging to various audiences across a variety of   venues and media . 

 3 . Application 

 The approach was to create specific messaging and use appropriate vocabulary for the various   audiences while maintaining consistency across venues and streams . In addressing students , print   collateral focused on employment opportunities , the supportive faculty in the program , student   resources at the college , and representative student faces . Student success stories were especially   important , featuring their life story and the contribution the program provided in their lives .   Representation here was very important . In addition , the program invited various guest speakers   relevant to both the program content and to the target student populations . These sessions were   open to the public . This connected the program to industry while providing students additional   insight into programmatic supports beyond the classroom that would ensure their success . 

 Storytelling in Promoting an Educational Program 

 In addressing industry , presentations and print collateral focused on program competencies and   student skill . We found that students sharing their work and projects completed in the program   was the most effective in addressing industry . The program leveraged this though open   showcases where the public was invited to view presentations and meet with the students .   Students were coached prior to these events in how to share their work effectively , as well as   how to best tell their personal story while networking . Here , students were able to tell industry   why they were qualified to work for them using language industry understood ( real work projects   and examples ) while also providing a compelling personal story of success . 

 Finally , communications with peer educational institutions and other academic organizations   focused on the both the rigor and competencies addressed in the program , as well as the   profound success of students completing the program . Here , language was important as we had   to depart from the general terms used in our everyday communications with the public and use   verbiage and terms expected within academic circles . In addition , we added concrete numbers   and data to validate one or two particularly noteworthy student success stories . Data is important   as this is the universal language of research and academia . It was especially important to draw   parallels with existing programs to demonstrate the rigor of the program . For instance , industry   certifications were a very important component of the program ; this was also true of several   other graduate programs . These certifications served as a means to identify standard   competencies and were provided by third - party vendors . In highlighting student pass rates of   these certifications within the program , we were able to find common ground , using a common   language with common benchmarks , to legitimize the program in comparison to our peers . 

 4 . Insight 

 We learned early on that students served as the most effective medium for promoting the   program . Their stories were authentic , compelling , and above all , spoke to the success of the   program design through the sharing of real - world project examples . We also learned that   students needed help in how to share their stories . Students first enrolled in the program were   often under - prepared or unable to articulate their experiences ; students nearing graduation had   both the practice and vocabulary to best share their story . Coaching and mentoring was   especially important in building their confidence . 

 5 . Approach 

 I think we underutilized social media ; this is a really important tool in today ’s media age ,   especially in Storytelling .   This medium could have been used much more effectively . We relied   almost exclusively on print and face - to - face presentations which is fairly limiting . Social media   would have also allowed us to leverage our contacts with industry and other organizations   through ‘ shout outs ’ and hashtags . In addition , managing Linkedin more effectively would have   afforded us an easy way to keep track of our students post - graduation and extend student success   stories beyond the program .
### Output: 