USF Zimmerman School students create COVID-19 vaccination campaign run by professional corporate organization I USF News

The Manasota Black Chamber of Commerce (MBCC) is in the process of running a COVD-19 vaccination campaign launched by students at the USF Zimmerman School of Advertising & Mass Communications. For their year-end project, advanced public relations students and strategic communication campaigns graduates worked together to create a mass communication campaign for MBCC that would support its efforts to encourage colored communities to vaccinate.

They launched the #VaxUpManasota campaign, in which students created graphics that included the MBCC logo and images depicting COVID-19 and the vaccine. The pictures, hashtags, and materials will be used on social media, through videos, and on printed materials containing information about the vaccine to dispel myths. Before creating the visual assets, the students did extensive research and interviewed members of the community to effectively influence their target audience.

“The MBCC and COVID-19 campaign itself provided an opportunity to show students how their skills can be used to positively impact the health and wellbeing of color communities,” said Associate Professor Kimberly Walker. “By working together we were able to sharpen and expand our core competencies in order to improve understanding of cultural competence, the design of racially and ethnically sensitive messages and crisis communication in real time. I hope students left class proud of their accomplishments and, most importantly, graduated with the big picture of how their degree and skills are useful for social change and wellbeing.

Each semester, Walker selects a different organization or company to serve as the students’ clients. After connecting with MBCC President and Founder / CEO Tarnisha Cliatt, they jointly selected the topic of vaccination hesitation. Cliatt attended the class presentations and later invited some of the students to share their campaign plan at the MBCC board meeting in June. Cliatt said while they are young in their careers, she stressed the importance of recognizing that students are part of the community.

“This has affected all of us, so they all have a personal interest in creating something that will potentially help everyone achieve herd immunity because everyone has a direct bond,” said Cliatt. “It is obvious that members of the African American community are not the first to get vaccinated. We are the lowest population group yet to be vaccinated, so it is an ongoing effort by all parties with an area of ​​influence to encourage our community to vaccinate. ”

The “VaxUpManasota” campaign is in line with the Mask Up Manatee! / Vax Up Mantee! Coalition to which the MBCC belongs, as does the USF. Kevin Sneed, Senior Associate Vice President of USF Health and Dean, and Angela Hill, Associate Dean and Professor, of the USF College of Pharmacy, were actively involved in reaching out to colored communities and promoting the importance of the vaccine. Both are currently working with Walker on the class survey to continue to monitor community perceptions about vaccinations.

Brenda Santos and Ramya Harika Pucha chaired the MBCC presentation. Santos completed her bachelor’s degree in integrated public relations and advertising in the spring and is in her final round of applications to become a marketing project specialist in Tennessee.

“Being a young Hispanic professional allowed me to represent my community and have a voice in a campaign that would greatly improve the quality of life for my family and friends,” said Santos. “We were very honored that the MBCC allowed us to create and learn while creating this campaign. This collaboration between students and graduates in an online environment was unique as the students learned through hands-on experience and were able to adapt to real changes during the campaign. ”

Pucha said her personal goal for the project is to develop a better understanding of the reluctance of the black community towards the vaccine and to strengthen their skills in achieving actionable results. She was thrilled to see a campaign develop from planning to execution.

“It was incredibly fulfilling to have MBCC actively listen and appreciate our work toward the goal,” said Pucha. “It was an honor to work on this very important project that was life changing in every way. Also, I am now sure that I want to work in public health and study people’s health behavior. ”

Pucha expects to graduate with a Masters in Mass Communication in December. She says she seeks an academic career in public health education and behavior to improve the health of women in her home country, India.