College of Arts & Sciences

Communications & Branding

From PowerPoint templates and brochures, to newsletter templates and social media how-tos, find extensive resources for College of Arts & Sciences communications & branding. 

Digital Signage Templates

UND digital signs are located in areas of campus with a high amount of foot traffic. Remember that each slide only shows for 6-10 seconds, so don't include too much information or long URLs. Find a Pre-Sized Template and formatting notes above.

Timing: Once submitted, allow one to two business days for content to be shared.

UND Calendar Templates

Anyone can submit events to the UND Calendar. Find information on eligible events, templates, and an overview of details to include with this outline by the Marketing & Communications team. 

Timing: Submit at least two weeks ahead of the event date. Calendar submissions may take two business days to be approved.

Document Templates

The Division of Marketing & Communications has built extensive templates for faculty and staff use. Find PowerPoint templates, designs for flyers, brochures, business cards, email signatures, stationary, and more. 

Timing: The UND Print Center requires two weeks lead time for printed materials. 

UND Brand Book

For more information on the UND Brand, check out the UND Brand Book. 

College of Arts & Sciences Logos

Find primary RGB (Digital) and CMYK (Print) logos for the College of Arts & Sciences. Vertical and informal logos are available upon request. 

Department Logos

Find primary, vertical, and informal Department logos in both RGB (Digital) and CMYK (Print). Access the sharepoint folder with a NDUS login.  

Student Organizations

Student organizations and clubs are not official entities of the University and can only include certain UND trademarks and logos. Student organization logos are not designed by campus communications staff and must be approved via email UND.licensing@UND.edu.

UND Brand Book

For more information on logo usage, check out the UND Brand Book. 

Department Newsletter Outline 

Schedule

Departments should plan to send a newsletter to alumni and donors at least twice a year. Plan for a regular schedule - Is it at the start of each semester in August and January to build excitement? It could be recapping what happened during the semester in December and May. Whatever the schedule may be, stay consistent. 

Timing: UNDAAF requires a minimum of two weeks lead time to distribute a completed newsletter. 

What to Include 

Alumni and donors are the primary audiences of a department newsletter. Because these people are not on campus as often, newsletters are the perfect place to stay connected with alumni by celebrating all of the good things happening in the department!

Hold a conversational tone for engagement, but don't make people dig for information. Be direct, concise, and make it easy for people to find what they need to know. Some items to include could be:  

  • Top things to know this month
  • Photos of activities
  • A look ahead at upcoming events, lectures, or things to register for
  • Staff spotlight: Include background, specialities, courses taught, etc. 
  • Alumni "Where are they now?": Graduation year, major/minor, speciality, background of work experience, what did they enjoy most in their time at UND, etc. 
  • Student project or testimonial
  • Calendar of upcoming events
  • Department-wide info such as Dean's Lists recipients, awards, Undergraduate Showcase participants, or club happenings
  • UND Today articles: Tease with a sentence or two, then link out to the full story
  • Social media spotlight and direct links: For applicable departments

Bonus: A lot of these pieces can also be shared on social media and embedded into a newsletter! 

College Newsletter Outline 

The College of Arts & Sciences newsletter is distributed to alumni and donors in January and June of each year.

With 18 departments, each discipline is included in the College of Arts & Sciences newsletter, however the College newsletter cannot get as in-depth for each department. Personalize a department's newsletter with detailed content and individual updates, as the College newsletter is more broad happenings and stories. 

Messaging Tips 

Newsletters are distributed through the University of North Dakota Alumni Association & Foundation database. When a newsletter is ready for distribution, contact Jenna Jorgensen to get the process started. 

Department newsletters are sent as a text-based email with a note of welcome from the department chair. Within the body of the email, there is a button with a link to read the full newsletter.

How to Build a Newsletter

Newsletters can be designed on the College of Arts & Sciences blog site with the College office staff, or created on another site such as Smore directly by a department.

On the Arts & Sciences blog, all newsletter blurbs require a photo sized to 1024x683 for each individual story. If a newsletter is created on another website, a written introductory note and the URL link to the newsletter is needed for distribution. 

Timing of Email Distribution

Any emails sent through the UNDAAF database requires two weeks lead time for scheduling purposes. For events and emails related to Homecoming, plan for four to six weeks lead time. Reach out to Jenna Jorgensen to get the process started. 

For any department press releases, please add UND Today's David Dodds and Tom Dennis as well as the College office staff to the distribution list. 

There are amazing things happening in classrooms every day — stories to share with the greater community. But too many go by without anyone knowing they ever happened. We want to change that!

What makes a good story?

  • Specific department activities that differ from a “regular” class day. Are students doing a hands-on project? Are they working in groups? Are they using technology? Is there participation from community members or guest speakers?
  • Use of new equipment or technology designed to enhance student learning
  • Specialized training for teachers or students (conferences, workshops, etc.)
  • Human interest stories involving students, staff and/or community members
  • Has a student overcome an obstacle to find success? Did a faculty/staff member go out of their way to give students a better educational experience? Is a class or club collaborating to support a worthy cause?
  • Outstanding student or staff achievement/recognition
  • Creating a new academic program
  • Events that benefit or are of interest to the community

When in doubt, share anyway by completing the form below. Please provide as much information as possible; if more detail is needed, someone from the College office will reach out. Some stories are shared with local media outlets (print, radio and TV), as well as published on the UND Today website and/or shared through other College channels (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn). Exceptional story ideas are considered for video features and College and/or UNDAAF newsletters.

Who: First and last names of the people involved (students, faculty/staff, notable guests); for entire classes, “Dr. Smith’s class” or “the COMM210 class” will suffice.
What: Describe the story with specific details
Why: How did this come about
Where: For upcoming events; please provide exact location, including building and room number
When: For upcoming events; please include date and start/end times

Photo and/or Video: Please submit a clear, non-blurry photo and/or video clip. Make sure to have permission to share the image from the people in the photos as well as the photographer.

Share a Story

College of Arts & Science Website Updates

URLs starting with arts-sciences.UND.edu/ can be updated by the college office staff. Reach out to Jenna Jorgensen for assistance. 

Program Finder Webpage Updates

URLs that begin with UND.edu/programs are created with the course catalog. For updates, reach out to Peni Rosten.

CourseLeaf Updates

Some pages feed in course numbers and descriptions automatically from CourseLeaf. Find a guide online on how to make CourseLeaf updates to a course description. 

Faculty and Staff Directory Updates 

How directory information is built into the website varies across pages. The best place to start is by having a faculty/staff member update their own UND Directory profile.

Some pages that require specific information have faculty/staff information manually added to the page. If updating the faculty/staff directory information does not update information on a given page, contact the College office staff for manual updates. 

Plan an Event

Find resources, a checklist, and policies for how to plan an event at UND. 

Reach out to the College office for assistance in promoting the event, help get the word out, or brainstorm best ways to advertise on social media. 

Social Media 

It's the primary way alumni are staying connected with what's happening at UND and within departments, how new students are exploring programs, and informing current students of events and academic opportunities. This is why it's important to build a department's social media presence, stay engaged on platforms, and curate the content for various audiences. 

Connect on social media platforms! Official College of Arts & Sciences accounts can be found at the links below: 

 

 Facebook
 Instagram
LinkedIn

 

Department Accounts

Social media requires a visual element, whether that's a photo, video, or a branded infographic. The communications staff is always excited to visit departments to capture events, learning, and activities, so please let the College office know of upcoming items to cover.

Faculty/staff that send even three to five photos or video clips of an activity goes a long way in helping showcase all that is happening in the College of Arts & Sciences! Send the best that highlights the activity to the College office to share, spotlight a student's work, or participate in a trendy reel.

Tips to Take Better Photos and Videos

  • Have a Plan: This includes knowing to shoot in portrait (vertical) or landscape (horizontal) mode. Shooting photos or videos vertically is best for Instagram and Facebook, while horizontal is best for YouTube, the website, or presentations.
  • Stay Close Up: A close up shot where you can see what's going on, of a few key smiles, or capturing a solo presenter makes a much bigger impact than a wide shot of a whole room.
  • Forget the Zoom: Avoid pixelated and fuzzy photos/videos by physically moving closer to the action rather than using the camera's zoom feature.
  • Tuck Your Arms: When holding your camera or phone, tucking your elbows in and keeping the camera close to your body helps stabilize it.
  • Keep it Steady: Grab a tripod or find a table, book, or chair to stabilize a phone on.
  • Record Great Audio: Make sure you're close to what sound you want to record or in a quiet space. Bad audio = bad video.
  • Know Your Settings: Learn how to lock your focus and dial in exposure for the best lighting.
  • Avoid the Sun: Avoid putting subjects against bright backgrounds like windows or the sun. This leaves them in the shadow, while putting them in direct sunlight might be blown out and too bright to see what's going on. Indirect sunlight is your best friend!
  • Movement is Key: Steady shots are important, but adding a little movement, such as a slow pan side to side, can make a simple shot interesting and keep audiences engaged.

Remember that a variety of content is helpful - short videos for the Instagram stories or "Behind the Scenes", still photos for an Instagram or Facebook post, or trendy audio for a Reel. Need some help? Let the communications team know of upcoming events or activities and ask of ways it can be shared!

Keys to Posting

  • Utilize the Collaboration Feature: On Instagram, accounts have the option to "Invite a Collaborator" on a post. This allows the same post to also be shared to the College's followers and a wider audience. When publishing a post, do this on the same page where there is the option to "tag" an account.
  • Avoid Graphics, Screenshots, or Collages: There are a lot of ways to make an announcement or reminder without using a Canva graphic in a post! If more info is needed, share across multiple Instagram stories, or add an infographic to a story with a link to more. Keep in mind that Instagram is a photo/video platform, so use it as such! Have multiple photos? Select them and add as a carousel post rather than a photo collage.  
  • Tag the College: In Instagram stories or on Facebook posts, be sure to tag the College so that it's easy to reshare to a wider audience! Keep in mind, tagging or mentioning the College's @UNDartsci is the best way for the College account to reshare an Instagram story.
  • Avoid Adding Links in Captions: People can't click links in the caption of Instagram posts. Rather than adding a website link in the post caption, share a post in an Instagram story and use the "Link" sticker - this way people can access the webpage directly by clicking.
  • Shorten URL Links on Facebook: For those who manage Facebook pages, adding a URL link to a post is an easy and direct way to get families to sign up, register, or find more information. Be sure to use a link shortener such as Bitly to add links without bogging down the post with a long URL. Remember - both Instagram and Facebook's algorithms avoid sharing posts with long or multiple URLs to followers so limit how you share URLs. 
  • Avoid Font Generators: Ever see the bold, italicized, or script fonts in social media post captions? While they are fun for some variety, they are not accessible to those that use screen readers. To keep content inclusive, do not use font generators as they make text difficult to read for people with dyslexia and causes screen readers to misinterpret or skip the text, often reading out each special character individually.
  • Shoot Vertical Photos/Videos: 89% of people check social media on their phone. Create content that fits where they'll see it! 
  • Pay Attention to Ratios: Consider a 16:9 vertical graphic for Instagram Stories, while a square or horizontal graphic can work on Facebook or LinkedIn.
  • Keep Captions Easy to Read: Limit hashtags or emojis to two per post to make captions clean and concise. Use spacing to create headlines, subject lines, and easy hashtag reading of text. Use the caption text to explain something that's not featured on the graphic. 
  • Avoid Using Stock Photos: We have a beautiful campus and facilities - show them off! Get creative by building a content library featuring photos of sunsets or snow on campus, close up photos of equipment, students doing hands-on projects, etc. 
  • Avoid QR Codes: People can't scan QR codes on social media from their own phone, so avoid sharing graphics with QR codes. In addition to battling against the algorithms, it eliminates a way for people to contact for more information. Save QR codes for digital signage around campus or printed materials.
  • Don't Sacrifice Quality for Quantity: Aim for two posts per week when starting out, then begin scheduling ahead, and adding quick Instagram stories to round out regular content. Students spend hours on social media daily, so make sure you're on their feed, but don't sacrifice quality for quantity. 
  • Use PNG logos: These have a transparent background to flow with the design of graphics better.
  • Hashtags: Use #UNDproud to filter onto campus feeds in Memorial Union, athletics video boards, UND.edu, website, and more. 

Facebook 

The most overarching content can be shared on Facebook. Facebook followers like to see academic and general announcements.

  • Demographic: The most active Facebook users are ages 50+. Keep this in mind when sharing content, as they might not be on-campus frequently to attend events, so content such as awards highlights, guest lecturers that spoke to a class, alumni socials, and general updates are better. 
  • Less time-sensitive content: Most times, posts don't get into follower newsfeeds for several days. This is why posts that say "Stop by the event today!" get missed. 
  • Both stories and posts can be scheduled through Meta Business Suite. Content can also be shared directly through the Instagram share link to make posting once in both places easier. 

Instagram

Instagram is a photo/video platform with 85% of its users being under the age of 45. This is where young alumni, current students, and future students are. 

64% of those use Instagram to seek out entertainment, while half use the app to keep up with news. Notably, 62.4% of people use Instagram to research brands (Hootsuite), so consider a department's Instagram account as an ongoing advertisement to future students! 

  • There are multiple ways to share on Instagram, including feed posts, stories, and highlights. 
  • Share image-driven content that is informative, behind-the-scenes, or entertaining. Consider how to make routine announcements more fun with a trending audio and plan ahead to avoid the use of flyers or graphics. In fact - Instagram's algorithm will limit the sharing of posts with text in the photo (graphics/flyers) to followers feeds.
  • Instagram Stories: These are often the first and primary piece of content followers see when on Instagram. They are featured at the top of a user's newsfeed and last for 24 hours. This is the best place to share time-specific information ("Event Today!"), or use multiple slides to share in-depth information. Instagram stories are also a great place for when infographics are needed. Vertical graphics that fill the screen make more of an impact over horizontal graphics, so design in 1080x1920. Of note: Graphics are not restricted in Instagram Stories like in a post!
  • Highlights: Save any Instagram Story indefinitely by adding it to a highlight. These highlights appear on an account's profile and can hold up to 100 posts. Some key highlights could be: Events, About Us, Building/Facility Tour, Student Takeovers, Staff Spotlights, etc. 
  • Use the Carousel Feature: Select multiple photos to share in a single post rather than a pic-stitch or collage graphic. 
  • Reels: Trending reels aren't just for TikTok dancers - adapt them to showcase staff members, students, or an event! Save examples to a folder for future reference and use inspiration reels as templates. Keep reel videos under a minute long, while they do best at 15 seconds in length.  
  • Always Select a Cover Photo: When posting a video/reels, select any frame from a video or upload a photo to be the featured photo on the feed. This keeps your feed clean, and makes followers more likely to click and watch a video. 
  • Keep captions short and free of URL links: Followers can't click them! Add links in a story instead.
  • When in doubt, think of Instagram for entertainment and timely information.  

LinkedIn 

LinkedIn has had a recent resurgence in popularity, with alumni and donors over the age of 40 becoming very active on LinkedIn. 

  • Share content such as professional awards, research, conference attendance, and job opportunities. 
  • Highlight a guest lecturer on LinkedIn for an additional thanks. 
  • Alumni spotlights build excellent connections and keep in touch with "Where are they now?" pieces. 
  • Consider that posts filter into follower feeds over the course of several days to a week. People may not see a post that day.
  • Any like or comment of a post adds it to your follower feeds as well - not just shares. 

Social Media Policy

UND's social media policy covers the how accounts should use the UND Brand, an enhanced social media policy, and custom social media. Examples show social media graphics that use different shapes, editing, effects, textures, and unique fonts, yet follow brand standards related to color, personality, and tone.

Content Ideas

  • "Day in the Life" of faculty, staff, or students
  • Explain a learning activity
  • Share something people might not know, resources, fun facts, or "Behind the Scenes": This is easy as families and potential future students aren't on campus and want to see what's happening!
  • Alumni "Where are they now?" features
  • Faculty spotlights: Their work at UND, prior experience, current research, etc. 
  • Create an "About Us" highlight spotlighting the department - more students than ever are researching programs on social media
  • Trending Reels: Make announcements more interesting or highlight an event with these short videos 

Remember - Students, faculty, and staff are your best advocates. Use their voice!

Coming Soon 

Monthly newsletters containing social media resources is coming soon, distributed with upcoming theme days and recognitions, trending items, tips & tricks, and social media shoutouts. To be added to the distribution list, contact Jenna Jorgensen. 

Examples of newsletter topics: 

  • How to add a URL link to an Instagram Story
  • How to change text and background colors
  • Find fun accounts to follow for inspiration
  • Tutorial on how to schedule posts and stories
  • What's okay to post over holidays
  • See from the numbers the importance of avoiding graphics
  • How to check analytics 

Have something you want to learn more about? Suggest what would be helpful to cover in upcoming newsletters! 

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