CHAPTER 21: NONPROFIT, HEALTH, AND EDUCATION
OBJECTIVES
After reading this chapter students should be able to:
1. Describe the variety of nonprofit organizations that rely on public relations to
achieve their goals.
2. Articulate the strategies and tactics employed by nonprofits to remain viable.
3. Understand the central place of fundraising in nonprofit organizations.
4. Describe the role of public relations in health communication and hospital efforts.
5. Distinguish among college, university, and school applications of public relations to
serve educational institutions.
SUGGESTED PROJECTS AND DISCUSSION
This chapter makes students aware of nonprofit, health and education and the numerous
public relations job opportunities in this field, especially early in one’s career. All too often
students perceive that there are jobs only in corporations or public relations firms. All of
these organizations must please a wide-ranging array of publics ranging from community
members and local governments to students and their families. The reputation of a
nonprofit organization, health care provider or school is critical for both its economic
success, and for trust among its publics.
1. Invite a public relations director of a significant membership group (such as
PRSA) or social agency (United Way) and discuss practitioner roles,
fundraising tactics, media relations issues, special event planning, and other key
points.
2. There are several motivations for giving in relation to fundraising mentioned in
the book on page 544. Have students conduct their own research on motivations
for giving by asking friends and family members why they donate their time and
money to a non-profit organization. Have the class compile the results from
their research and discuss the implications of their research for non-profit
organizations.
3. As the text mentions, volunteers are integral to the success of a non-profit
organization. To demonstrate the importance, and sometimes difficulty of
recruiting volunteers, choose a local non-profit and ask the class to develop a
volunteer recruitment plan for the organization. What type of person will make
an excellent volunteer (religious community, students, retired men and women,
mothers, etc.) and how can the organization recruit these potential volunteers?
4. Discuss any new or proposed major buildings on your campus. Who were the
major donors (naming rights, etc.) that received publicity in the form of news
releases that translated into published media accounts? Were there any
“pseudoevents” to butter up those donors and recognize them publicly?
5. In response to the heightened crime situations on school campuses, many
schools are developing crisis response plans to help them prepare for crisis
situations. Ask students to research school district or college websites for crisis
communication plans. Discuss the information that is included in these plans
and the role they play in tragic school incidents like Virginia Tech and
Columbine.
6. Many campuses are located in downtown/urban areas, and face the crunch of
available space, pedestrian and automobile traffic, and tight proximity with non–
campus publics. Look at websites of some campuses and see if there is a
website link that stresses the institution’s commitment to a better community?
What are some of the (ingratiating or awareness-related) events/tactics listed?
7. Have students discuss the reasons why they chose to attend your
school/university. What recruitment devices were used to attract them to the
school? Where did they turn to for additional information on the school? What
was most effective in facilitating their decision to attend the school?
8. Discuss creative methods for university practitioners to publicize the institution
at a national level. Prioritize tactics ranging from athletic teams, to academic
achievements of students, to publicizing faculty research and achievements, to
ratings in key guidebooks.
CASE ACTIVITY: CREATING A SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGY
To begin a social media campaign for Goodwill Industries, students should first conduct
extensive research of the target audience, including, for example, demographics,
psychographics, church membership, donation habits, and media consumption. Next, it will
be necessary to determine the “brand essence” of Goodwill Industries. Focus groups may
be useful here. What is distinctive about Goodwill Industries, as compared to similar
nonprofit organizations such as the Salvation Army? Students should then review the
results of their research to determine a fit between audience appeals, message design, and
unique brand attributes of Goodwill Industries. After determining goals and objectives,
students can move on to social media strategies and tactics to carry out the campaign. For
inspiration, they should review the best examples of social media use from this chapter. It
should be noted that most people remain wary of online solicitations. However,
organizations such as the Salvation Army and Greenpeace have found some success with
online solicitations. To make Goodwill Industries’ website more exciting, students should
consider enhancing it with social media tools to make it an interactive platform or
“launching pad” for the social media technologies they plan to use in the campaign.
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS FOR REVIEW AND DISCUSSION
1. What are the difference and similarities among trade associations, labor unions,
professional associations, and chambers of commerce?
2. Identify public relations strategies and tactics that advocacy groups use to further
their causes.
3. Name and describe some of the types of social organizations.
(pgs. 557-559) Foundations are started when money to establish a foundation is provided
4. What motivates people to serve as volunteer workers?
5. What are major roles of public relations professionals in health organizations?
6. What are some components of successful health campaigns?
7. How can social media be used to promote various health campaigns?
8. With what primary public does a sound university public relations program begin?
Why? List other major publics that must be addressed in such a program.
9. List and describe the various tactics that are commonly used for fund-raising.
10. What is a capital campaign?
11. A form of crowdsourcing is fundsourcing. How does this work?
12. What is the major source of charitable donations in the United States? What type of
organization gets the most donations?