Archives: Projects

Public relations practitioners as language workers

A laptop sits on a desk by a coffee cup. Ethics on the Page Repositioning language, professional responsibility in public relations. Doctoral dissertation. Ethics on the Page Repositioning language, power, and professional responsibility in public relations

Purpose

PhD dissertation for the Communications & Media Studies doctoral program

Description

Public relations is a field of words, and yet very little is known about how professional communicators think about their ethical responsibilities when writing. I conducted 22 metalinguistic interviews with communicators to discuss the ethical concerns they encountered when writing.

My interdisciplinary framework examined professional communicators as a speech community of language workers with a responsibility for language. It began with ethical conscience theory and drew lessons from sociolinguistics, Technical and Professional Communications, and education to build an argument for moving the field to Critical Language Awareness.

Type of Project

Qualitative research, secondary research, interviews, interdisciplinary

Business case research

Powerpoint slide stating "Demonstrating framing choices as “relevant and real”: A content analysis of the diversity rhetoric used by Fortune 500 companies" by Sandra Boone (she/her) at the Communicating Diversity Conference in May 2023. Next to that, there is drawing of a computer screen sitting on a desk.

Title

Demonstrating framing choices as “relevant and real”: A content analysis of the diversity rhetoric used by Fortune 500 companies

Purpose

Creating a case study to demonstrate the importance for communicators to understand the impact of the frames and messages they share

Description

Since the 1980s, companies have increasingly turned to broad definitions of diversity (Akinola, 2016, 2017; Edelman et al., 2001; Mease, 2016) along with rhetoric emphasizing the direct and indirect companies gain from diversity (Georgeac & Rattan, 2023; Gutierrez & Kellar, 2023; Pasztor, 2019).

There are considerable concerns that this rhetoric “risks reducing people to resources, limits the possibilities for altering human interaction, and reinforces identity hierarchies” (Mease, 2012, p. 2). More recent research (Georgeac and Rattan, 2022) found that the use of business-centered rhetoric can have “detrimental consequences for the very applicants that companies seek to attract.”

This research is a quantitative content analysis examining the diversity case, definitions, and identities published by Fortune 500 companies to explain their diversity initiatives.

Type of Project

Quantitative research (currently), content analysis, secondary research

Research Status

Initial research was presented during a session at the Communicating Diversity Conference in Austin, Texas.

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HRL Move-In Guide and Checklist

Screenshot of a website with the headline "Move-In Guide" and a photo of Goldy Gopher wearing coveralls and pushing a moving cart

Organization

Housing & Residential Life (University of Minnesota)

Description

There’s a lot to do before move-in, both for incoming residents and Housing & Residential Life. For many years, Housing & Residential Life printed a large Move-In Guide that was sent to all incoming residents with their housing assignments. Before I arrived at the department, the information was migrated to the website to save on printing.

While useful from a fiscal standpoint, the information was spread across various pages/sections of the website. This made it difficult for incoming residents and HRL staff to find the information they needed, and it also meant there was no easy way for them to discover steps they were unaware of.

I significantly revised this website section, focusing on the needs of incoming students while also addressing items HRL needed to publicize. In particular, I added a comprehensive Move-In Checklist that included quick answers to the most frequently asked questions from students/families, along with links to additional information elsewhere on the website. This helped incoming residents and staff by providing them with one place to go for the information.

Type of Project

  • Writing
  • Information Design
  • Website Content
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Supporting International Students

Access the Document (Google Drive Link)

Organization

Immigration Response Team (University of Minnesota)

Description

International students were facing extreme challenges before the start of the fall 2021 semester. While they were determined to come, schools needed to take action to make connections across campus and with community members/local officials to help make their arrival smooth.

The Immigration Response Team was asked to create a handout with recommendations to share with other schools. It needed to be understandable both for administrators/staff who were familiar with immigration/international student concerns and those who were not.

I was provided a long bulleted list of potential items to include. Upon reviewing the list, I decided to organize the document to include 1) Items to consider, 2) Talking points, and 3) Actions to take.

Type of Project

  • Writing
  • Document design

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Immigration Response Team Email

Read a sample message (Google Drive link)

Organization

UMN Immigration Response Team

Description

I regularly write messages that must combine factual updates (including complex items) with an empathetic and caring tone. When developing these messages, I focus on the needs of the reader and a wish to recognize those most impacted by the information (for example, immigrant and international students).

Type of Project

  • Writing
  • Email Communications
  • Message Development
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GPS/ISSS Photography Policy

Read the policy (Google Drive link)

Organization

International Student and Scholar Services and the Global Programs and Strategy Alliance (University of Minnesota)

Description

While many organizations have all clients sign photo waivers as a matter of practice, there are many reasons why individuals do not want to be photographed for publicity purposes. These reasons can range from bad hair days to suspicions that their photo will be misused or cultural beliefs. As part of the GPS’s commitment to respecting all cultures, I worked with leadership to create a policy requiring staff to create plans to 1) give people every opportunity possible to refuse to allow their photo to be taken and 2) ensure individuals aren’t prevented from using services/attending events solely due to not wanting their photo taken.

Additional Information

Type of Project

  • Equity concerns in communications
  • Organizational policy

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BGA Editorial Calendar

View the calendar (Google Drive Link)

Organization

BlueGreen Alliance and BlueGreen Alliance Foundation

Description

Like many organizations, the BlueGreen Alliance had a variety of activities happening simultaneously, and many required support from the communications team. To streamline operations, I created the organization’s first comprehensive editorial calendar to track the message of the week, events, and the materials being made to support it.

Type of Project

  • Communications planning
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COVID-19 Response

Read the summary (Google Doc Link)

Organization

International Student and Scholar Services (University of Minnesota)

Project Description

In addition to the concerns all students held due to COVID-19, international students had to respond to frequently changing immigration regulations, questions of whether to travel home, and fear due to increased instances of xenophobia and anti-Asian hate. To help, I coordinated an ongoing communications plan for ISSS that used dedicated web pages, emails, videos, and webinars to share information. It also included updates for UMN staff and departments about the need to communicate with international students.

Type of Project

  • Communications planning
  • Message development

Ethical Storytelling Research

Purpose

Capstone Research for Strategic Communication MA and Literacy & Rhetorical Studies Minor

Description

For my Strategic Communication MA Capstone, I examined the communications practices of anti-trafficking organizations as an avenue to discuss the need for ethical/equitable storytelling approaches. I conducted 10 semi-structured interviews with communications professionals working in anti-trafficking and related organizations, along with 8 additional subject-matter experts. I also reviewed strategic communication/public relations research and practitioner conversations for discussions of ethics, equity, and power.

In this work, I sought to consider how communicators can balance both their responsibility to create communications that fulfill organizational objectives with a deeper responsibility to honor, respect, and consider the best interests of the individual(s) involved. I then recommended work practices for communicators working with victims of trauma and beyond.

Type of Project

Qualitative research, secondary research

Length of Time

4 months (April-July 2020)

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