Update: Advancement

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LAU’s story goes viral

To say that LAU’s marketing, communications and public relations have evolved over the last few years would be a massive understatement. The university has undertaken a complete rebranding effort that has introduced a new visual identity for LAU as well as a more focused marketing and communications program in recent years. LAU has also revamped its website and entered the brave new world of social media with a Facebook and Twitter presence for the university that is second-to-none among higher education institutions in Lebanon. Additionally LAU has experienced what can only be described as a virtual saturation of media coverage within Lebanon thanks to the hard work of Executive Director for University Relations Christian Oussi and his team in the Relations office. Additionally, media coverage and other communications activities have continued to improve and grow in North America thanks to the work of Greg Houle in LAU’s New York office.

In 2007, in conjunction with the university’s new strategic plan and under Vice President Rich Rumsey’s leadership, LAU created the new Marketing and Communications (MarCom) department. This department now oversees the development of all recruitment, promotional, and informational materials issued by LAU and works in close collaboration with the university community to maintain a consistent visual identity for the institution. Under the leadership of Assistant Vice President Peggy Hanna and her team, MarCom has worked hard to tell LAU’s story to as many of the university’s constituents, both internal and external, as consistently as possible.

In recent years LAU Magazine, the university’s award-winning flagship publication, has helped keep people informed about what is taking place throughout the entire LAU community worldwide, and it has done so with increasingly eloquent writing, design and imagery.

More recently LAU has started to diversify its communications efforts by reaching out to more specific constituencies. A geographically specific development and alumni publication called LAU Matters will be launched later this month. Soon a series of school-specific live chats will be rolled out as a way of promoting each of LAU’s schools to a larger audience, using a more modern method of two-way communication.

“All of the communications professionals on the Advancement team over the years have worked really hard to put into place systems that help us communicate as a university in an organized manner,” said Rumsey. “I’m proud of what we have accomplished and how we have been able to grow and innovate in this area.”

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