Illuminating the Arts on Campus

ARTS ON CAMPUS COMMUNICATIONS

Arts on Campus

Arts on Campus is a multiplatform ongoing promotional campaign for the arts at UW–Madison designed to promote the wealth of campus arts programming and opportunities to students, faculty, staff, and community members. During the 2019-20 academic year, the Division of the Arts collaborated with and promoted numerous campus units via communication channels on campus and throughout the state including advertising, marketing, outreach, and resource fairs.

The Division had a long-standing advertising relationship with Isthmus, a local alternative weekly newspaper. Every month, arts units provided information to the Division for inclusion in a full-page print ad. The monthly Arts on Campus ad frequently received optimal placement on the inside back cover of Isthmus. However, Isthmus ended its print publication during the pandemic, and the final Arts on Campus ad ran in the paper’s March 5, 2020 issue.

Since then, the Division has been providing alternative support for campus arts departments, such as increased email and social media marketing.

Threads: React

The Division’s Integrated Marketing & Communications (IMC) team provided support to School of Human Ecology students enrolled in the Threads fashion show practicum course. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020 student fashion show went online for the first time. IMC advised students on branding, marketing, and outreach efforts. IMC also collaborated on a 26-minute video that premiered on the Threads Facebook Page in early May.

E-communications: 15,819 subscribers : 6,195 followers : 40,824 views

arts.wisc.edu

THE CREATIVE CAMPUS TOUR & ARTS RECRUITMENT SUPPORT

Arts Recruitment

The Arts Recruitment Initiative was launched in 2017 with the goal of boosting enrollments in academic arts programs. During the past year, in consultation with arts departments, the Division extended a multiplatform campaign to promote academic arts programs and our vibrant community of excellence in the arts.

Through coordinated online and printed materials, social media, tabling, promotional items, email campaigns, and direct mailings, the Division connected with students at all points of their decision process. Students staffing the Division’s SOAR table connected 1,380 incoming students with fine arts courses and programs. In partnership with the Office of Admissions and Recruitment, the third Admitted Students Day for the Arts was held on April 27, 2020, with a Zoom panel for an audience of admitted students.

Creative Campus Tour

Starting on September 3, 2019, the Division of the Arts presented the Creative Campus Tour for a second year. The tour is an introduction to the fine arts programs on campus and is supported by numerous campus partners, including Campus and Visitor Relations. The goal of the tour is to showcase the wide range of arts offerings on campus and to attract new students to campus programs. Led by UW–Madison students, the tour engages with and appeals to prospective and incoming students.

After the new Hamel Music Center opened in October 2019, the tour route, developed with input from Division staff and other campus partners, featured a stop at the new music venue.

This project marks the first cross-campus collaborative effort to highlight UW–Madison’s creative spaces. Though tours planned for 54 participants during the Spring 2020 semester were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, seven tours took place during the Fall 2019 semester, giving 53 participants the opportunity to learn more about the range of arts offerings on campus.

go.wisc.edu/creativecampustour