CC 250: Introduction to Public Relations

Fall 2021, Dr. Whitten

Mothers for Justice and Equality PR Plan

Adelaide Reville, Andrea Méndez, Annie Kew, Caitlyn Finnegan, Diego De Vidts, Faith Pinnow, Hanyu Zhang, Phil Han, Stephanie Wallace, Ulrica Xue, Yahan He and Yutong Wang

• Mothers for Justice and Equality (MJE) is a nonprofit organization that strives to end neighborhood violence by empowering mothers and youth to challenge the normalization of violence.
• MJE counters violence by trying to change internal and external expectations through two different programming segments, education and engagement. Education helps teach the importance of civic action while engagement offers community involvement.
• The opportunities that are available include increasing collaboration with other organizations, creating more regular and informative social media content, and offering more regular programming to increase engagement.

Situational Analysis

Internal Publics

• Board members
• David Dolbashain – Board Chair
• Bernard Johnson – Treasurer
• Eileen Paterson – Clerk/Secretary
• Monalisa Smith – President and CEO
• Partners:
• Brigham Health, Boston University, Imago Dei Fund
• Returning volunteers
• Returning donors & supporters
• Students in the MJE group of Emerson College’s CC 250 class

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External Publics

• Mothers
• Youth Parents (age 15-24)
• Mothers affected by neighborhood violence
• Boston Public Schools (BPS)
• Female-centered non-profits
• Girl Scouts
• Girls on the Run
• Girls Inc.
• Potential Volunteers
• High school students
• College students
• High-income families for donations
• School Board Members of Boston
• Boston Police
• Boston policymakers
• City council
• School board
• Legislative

• Emerson College
• Fraternities and sororities
• Athletic teams
• Volunteer clubs
• Non-profit/public relations classes and clubs
• Female faculty members
• Community Colleges (for potential enrollment opportunities)
• Bunker Hill Community College
• Roxbury Community College
• Urban College of Boston
• Local Banks and credit unions (providing external economic education)

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External Publics Cont. (Media)

• School Specific
• Berkeley Beacon (Emerson)
• The Intersectionalist (Emerson)
• WEBN (Emerson)
• Print
• The Dorchester Reporter
• The Boston Herald
• The Boston Globe
• Bay State Banner
• Boston Magazine
• TV
• NBC Boston
• Boston 25
• WHDH TV
• WCVB
• CBS Channel 4

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• Radio
• WERS (Emerson)
• WGBH 89.7
• WBZ 1030
• WBUR-FM 90.9
• Blogs/Bloggers/Websites
• Boston Neighborhood Network Media
• Nonprofit Quarterly – blog dedicated to help non-profit organizations

Key Messages (1)

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Mothers in the Greater Boston Community

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Are you passionate about protecting children from violence? Join our movement and become a catalyst for change in your home and community. Help us restore a sense of hope and purpose for all children and women by enrolling in our workshops and participating in our events. Visit our website at www.mothersforjusticeandequality.org to explore opportunities to help your local community.

High School:

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Do you want to help end neighborhood violence in your community, but don’t know how? Enroll today for FREE in the Mothers for Justice and Equality Youth Peer Program! Take part in a series of workshops and skill-building seminars and learn to become a leader inside and outside of the classroom. Sign up today and join the fight against neighborhood violence. For more information, visit www.mothersforjusticeandequality.org!

Key Messages (2)

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Partnerships: Boston Public Schools & Youth Organizations

Neighborhood violence is never okay. Help educate the greater Boston community about the importance of this issue by partnering with Mother’s for Justice and Equality! Our programming helps raise awareness and create change. We believe in the power of young people and are adamant about investing in their futures. Partner with us to help educate our youth. For more information please visit our website at www.mothersforjusticeandequality.org.

Local Sports Teams (Boston Red Sox)

Do you want to help mothers who are struggling after losing their child to gun violence? Unite the Boston youth community by partnering with mothers for justice and equality. We know that one of the Boston Red Sox’s main causes is the prevention of gun violence. By promoting our non-profit, you would be helping in our mission to end neighborhood violence. Call Mothers for Justice and Equality today at (617) 516-8086.

Key Messages (3)

Corporate Sponsors

Help us battle neighborhood violence by sponsoring Mothers for Justice and Equality. As a sponsor of Mothers for Justice and Equality you’ll become a partner of the community by helping us end neighborhood violence among young people and help mothers who are struggling after losing their child to gun violence. Sponsoring Mothers for Justice and Equality will show your dedication to help strengthen your neighborhood and your neighbors in need. Visit www.mothersforjusticeandequality.org to learn where to start.

Goals/Objectives (Informational)

• Increase awareness about MJE among Boston youth and parents - 20%
• Population = 33,688 in South Boston
• 14% of South Boston are Children
• 40% of households are family households.
• Increase awareness about the need for smaller, direct donations from more members of the community - 5%

Goals / Objectives (Motivational)

• Increase number of business partnerships by 3, donation levels of at least 500 (1500/year)
• Increase participation in programs by 70%
• Increase Boston Public School (BPS) participation by 5 schools (currently 2)

• Increase social media following
• Instagram (+500)
• Facebook (+1500)
• Twitter (+100)
• LinkedIn (+50)
• Increase volunteers by 10%

Radio PSA - Looking For Donations

• State MJE’s mission statement and end goal
• Where MJE is located
• Emphasize on the need for donations
• Need for publicity and community involvement
• How to help and where to get more information

Radio PSA - Event Promotion

• State MJE’s mission statement and end goal
• Where MJE is located
• Call-to-action inviting community members to attend upcoming events
• Start and ending dates of the upcoming event and where it is taking place
• How to help and where to get more information

MOTHER’S FOR JUSTICE & EQUALITY NATIONAL CONFERENCE 2017

Founder, Speaker: Monalisa Smith

Photo Release

Oct. 19, 2017 (Boston, MA) – Mothers for Justice & Equality hold a national conference at Wheelock College Brookline Campus, on Thursday, Oct. 19 & 20. Amanda Merricks, Lisa D. Daniels, Mayor Marty Walsh, Monalisa Smith, Meghan Irons, Tio Hardman, Rev. Dr. Janie Dow-Dandridge and Robert Lewis, Jr. are guest speakers in the conference. Participants from across the country share their experience about neighbor violence.

Sponsorship/Partnership Request

• Targets:
• Boston Public Schools
• Boston Department of Public Safety
• Boston Youth Organizations
• Local Sports Teams
• Other non-profits
• Lead can be reworded to best fit the sponsor
• Allows MJE to receive financial support if the potential sponsor/partner is interested

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Dear Potential Sponsor,

We are reaching out to you because Mothers for Justice and Equality needs your help.

Mothers for Justice and Equality (MJE) is an organization whose mission is to end neighborhood violence by empowering mothers and youth to challenge the normalization of violence and become effective catalysts for change in homes, schools, and communities. At MJE, we believe education and engagement are powerful tools for civic action-- that is why we built extensive programs designed for children and adults in order to combat urban violence. Please find further details about our programs here.

Join us in our battle against neighborhood violence by sponsoring Mothers for Justice and Equality. As a sponsor of Mothers for Justice and Equality you’ll become a partner of the community by helping us end neighborhood violence among young people and help mothers who have lost their child to gun violence. Violence is never okay; let's put an end to it together.

Thank you and looking forward to collaborating with you,

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Mothers for Justice and Equality

(617) 516-8086

2201 Washington Street

Roxbury, MA, MA 02119

E-Newsletter

• Monthly releases
• Links to MJE’s social media
• Should be featured on MJE’s website and sent via the emailing list.

Feature Story

Feature Story on Monalisa Smith, Founder and President

• How & Why
• Founded MJE following the loss of her nephew to urban violence.
• She gathered fellow mothers, many of whom were also suffering the loss of a child to violence, to share their concern with the amount of violence against children occurring within neighborhoods.

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• Accomplishments
• Boston Business Journal’s Extraordinary Leadership Award
• Codman Square Neighborhood Development Corporation’s Community Leadership Award
• Boston Globe 100 innovation award

Press Release

Media Targets

• Announcement of new partnerships within the Boston Public School system.
• History of the peer leadership program.
• “Our expansion into five more schools in the Boston area demonstrates the determination our leaders share to raise awareness about neighborhood violence and create meaningful change for mothers and their children,” said Dominique Smith, Director of Programs at Mothers For Justice and Equality. “We believe in the power of young people and are adamant about investing in their futures. Expanding our programming throughout the Boston Public School system is a step in the right direction to reclaim community identities and to restore a sense of hope in children, youth, and adults.

Brochure

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• Brochure includes key messages of Mother’s for Justice and Equality.
• Includes MJE’s contact information
• Promoting MJE’s programming for prospective participants.
• Reviews from past collaborators.

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Fact Sheet

• Highlights essential information about Mother’s for Justice and Equality.�
• Allows its audience to get a feel of who they are�
• Easily see what they offer and how to contact them

Brochure for Prospective School Partners

Event Calendar Listing

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• Different events in each month
• Invite journalists and celebrities
• Update events on the website
• Send to local media outlets
• Post on local event listing sites

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Social Media Goals and Examples

• Consistency with all usernames/handles
• Consistency of posting
• Youth Peer Leadership Program!
• Protecting children from violence
• Help us battle neighborhood violence

Different ways to improve social media platforms

Facebook

• Utilize facebook live for zoom events

LinkedIn

• Add link to website
• Platform for volunteer opportunities

Twitter

• Community shoutouts (i.e. officers and respected local shop owners)

Youtube

• Upload short testimonials
• Talks with key members of the organization
• Interviews with community figures.

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Evaluation

• Social Media:
• Measure increases in MJE’s social media presence.
• More / better engagement
• Increase in followers/connections/likes and comments
• Compare these numbers to the number of likes and comments before the campaign took place.
• Increase in reposts

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• Donations:
• Before donating, asking the audience where they heard about MJE so that way we can track the demographic.
• Flier, social media, article in the paper (which one?), friend, newsletter/email, other?

Evaluation

• Website:
• Once someone goes on the website, there can be a pop up that asks for them to put in their email before continuing.
• Offer a subscription to e-newsletter - Offer a prize for submitting

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• Emails / E-Newsletters:
• End e-newsletters with a poll asking to rate the relevance of the information presented on a scale from 1-10 and a text box asking what information the audience would want to see. This would serve for content adjustment and have effective, informative e-newsletters
• Track opened emails through email tracking apps (such as: Gmass). Compare the number of opened emails with the amount of people who answer the polls to understand the newsletter’s engagement rate.

Evaluation

• Volunteers:
• Keep track of how many new volunteers are participating in events or helping out. Offer a quick survey during their first time volunteering.
• Questions
• Name and Email
• How did you hear about us?
• Social Media (specifically which site), a friend, family member, work/business, flier, or other
• Would there be other events that you are interested in volunteering in?
• Offer the upcoming events as options
• Will you be volunteering again? OR Can we rely on your assistance again?

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Evaluation

• Programs/Events / School Partnerships / Boys & Girls Club
• Track Increases in program participation
• Track increases in social media and web site traffic from these schools and after events/programs
• Track school participation, partnerships in response to outreach
• At each event/program, have each attendee fill out a short survey
• Demographics
• School attend
• Email address (provide for a chance to win a small prize)... and send out follow-up emails/e-newsletter
• What social media channels do you use?
• Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok
• Do you follow us on social media for updates on events, programs?
• Do you know someone you should refer our programs to / we should send our information to / should connect with us on social media?

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Flyer

• Flyers would be somewhat monthly and highlight about three months with each one.

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• Used to spread the word about the events that MJE would be hosting.

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• Provides information about how to contact or look further into events

(Front)

(Back)

THANKS