Bringing real life into the classroom

Solving quadratic equations. Diagramming sentences. Memorizing the dates of key battles of the Civil War. As most students go through their years of schooling, they question the value of what they are learning, asking themselves and their teachers, "Will I ever really use this in the real world?"

For the students in Roger Woolsey's Advanced Public Relations class this semester, the answer is "Yes."

The class in Lyons 207 has transformed into a public relations firm, Eagle Enterprises, and students are using real-life PR skills to plan and promote a fundraiser for the David O. Nauss Memorial Scholarship, a scholarship in memory of Nauss, a Boston College graduate.

It is given annually to a BC student that has overcome a great difficulty or challenge in life. The 20 students in the class are divided into three groups, each responsible for different aspects of the fundraising event, including a beach volleyball tournament, a fashion show, and a silent auction and lobster bake that will take place July 2 at the Summer House restaurant on Nantucket.

The idea for the class began last summer when Spencer Nauss, the brother of David, ran into Kaitlyn Dowling, BC '05, vacationing on Nantucket.

"When I met Spencer, I immediately found this scholarship and cause to be so worthy and an amazing thing to be part of," says Dowling. "He was looking for the opportunity to make the scholarship more involved with the BC community and to create an awareness for the great work that it's doing."

Dowling, who works for O'Neill and Associates, a PR firm in Boston, brought the idea back to her boss, Thomas O'Neill, son of Tip O'Neill, who also serves on the BC Board of Trustees. Then she contacted her former professor, Roger Woolsey of the communication department, for advice.

"I called him [Woolsey] to get his sense of angles I should take. I was going to help do PR for Spencer, and Roger fell in love with the cause, and the fundraiser was a PR person's dream in event planning," says Dowling.

"Roger called me back the next day and said he'd like to dedicate his course to the cause."

The class was listed like any other during spring registration, and most students were not even aware of the unique aspect of the class before they signed up for it.

The class so far this semester has been speaker-based. Spencer Nauss came to speak about his brother to give the students an idea of the person they are representing, and Dowling, as well as O'Neill, have spoken to the class and provided guidance in terms of PR strategy and editing and proofreading press releases.

Four other PR professionals have also shared advice with the class, including Christine DeCarlo of Front Row and Associates, who spoke to the students about how to keep a PR campaign organized through databases and spreadsheets.

Beyond the guidance of their professor and the speakers, however, the students are largely on their own in planning the fundraising event.

"A majority of the students have taken Intro to PR and those professors get a lot of credit because they have prepared students to understand the conceptual model of PR. They [the students] have a good foundation in PR fundamentals," says Woolsey.

"It's not a lecture-based course, so students are learning as they're going. Sometimes in the real world, you're given a task or responsibility and you have to learn to do it on your own and [to] problem solve.

"I'm here to bounce ideas off of. I'm one of those people that believes in giving my students a sense of confidence."

The students are responsible for larger tasks, such as reaching out to alumni and the greater BC community to raise awareness and to encourage people to get involved, as well as more technical details like creating fliers, press releases, press kits, invitations, finding donors and sponsors, and coordinating the three main events: the volleyball tournament, fashion show, and silent auction.

Students have been in contact with professional and amateur volleyball associations to get players to come to the event. They have also been working toward having real fashion designers and models participate. The students have control over the budget and collateral for the event, as well.

Kate Lasaffre, LSOE '06, is considering a career in human resources and has found her role as the group leader for the volleyball tournament to be a valuable experience.

"Last semester I wasn't sure what I wanted to take, but I wanted to find something worthwhile that would prepare me for next year when I graduate," she says. "In terms of event planning, I don't know if that's something I want to do.

"In terms of working in groups and having a leadership role, I think that's helpful in so many situations, and I think human resources is something I would want to go into. Working with so many people, bridging gaps in your organization, and leading in a way so everyone feels that they have power is really important."

For Karen Steinfeld, an exchange student from Norway, the class has opened her eyes to the opportunities that exist in the PR field.

"I had never taken a class [that incorporates] first-hand experience. Especially being a foreign student in this country, it's nice to get this experience," she says.

"I think it's excellent to be able to get into [the business]. At home it's such a hard process to get in, but here, because of contacts, I've found it much easier."

As the leader of the media strategy team that is coordinating the silent auction, Steinfeld has a long list of tasks to complete.

"We are formulating what the scholarship is on paper and working to re-brand it," she says. "We're making logos and headers, figuring out how to pitch events to the press, how to target alumni, and how to get the bigger BC community to know about it. We're hoping to spread the word all the way down to New York."