September 10, 2025 

• 9–10 a.m. | Registration and Continental Breakfast

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• 9:30-10 a.m. | Opening Remarks

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• 10–10:45 a.m. | Keynote Address: Erica Colaianne

  Erica Colaianne is the Director of Social Media at the University Michigan, where she leads the social communications team that creates dynamic content every day for audiences of more than 2.6 million. Through her work cultivating engaged communities and building trust with audiences, she leads strategies that successfully meet audiences where they are while demonstrating the impact of the university and highlighting the most exciting aspects of the Wolverine experience. In her five years at Michigan, she has implemented communications plans to celebrate student achievements, tell compelling research stories, and consistently keep university leadership informed of audience feedback and sentiment. 

• 11–11:45 a.m. | Morning Sessions

  HUB 302 Data Driven-Social: Turning Numbers into Strategy that Sticks In this workshop, we'll dig into how to connect your institution's goals to the right social metrics, track what really matters, and translate insights into actionable decisions that drive engagement, reputation, and ROI. We'll cover UCR's 24/25 performance, higher ed benchmarks, what's working for UCR, trends to consider leaning into or away from, and real-world examples so your team can confidently show the impact of your social efforts and keep growing. Presenter:   Beth Corbley, Director of Strategic Growth, Higher Education | Hootsuite, Inc.

  HUB 367 Say It With Confidence! No matter what your job is on campus, there will come a time when you have to explain your work to someone else. Learn some tricks of the P.R. trade for delivering your points succinctly, and making them memorable with veteran media relations pros. Presenters: Jules Bernstein, Sr. Research Communications Manager | University Relations Iqbal Pittwala, Sr. Public Information Officer | University Relations

  HUB 379 SalesForce Discussion With the launch of SalesForce and the SalesForce marketing cloud, this is a time for staff for University Advancement to discuss its launch and uses.

• 12–12:45 p.m. | Lunch and UCR Brand Excellence Awards: The Scotties

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• 1–1:45 p.m. | Afternoon Sessions 1

  HUB 302 Event Planning & Execution Tips and Tricks from your Friendly University Events Team Planning events in a university setting requires a careful balance of creativity, logistics, and institutional know-how. In this practical and interactive session, the University Events team shares their go-to strategies and hard-earned lessons for producing impactful events of all sizes. Whether you're planning your first departmental conference or managing a major campus-wide celebration, you’ll walk away with actionable tips to make your process smoother and your events more successful. Presenters:   Marisa Ronca, Director | University Events  Jill Barber, Assistant Director | University Events  Jessica Garcia, Events Manager | University Events  Markettia Hull, Public Events Manager | University Events  Wendy Garcia, Public Events Manager | University Events

  HUB 367 Design for Non-Designers We'll help non-designers get in touch with their creative side. Aimed at beginners, featuring tips and tricks for people without graphic design training. This is a fun but informative workshop intended to take the fear out of designing and make attendees familiar with some design basics, the UCR brand, and resources that are available both on-campus and locally. Presenters: Robert Almanzar, Multimedia Graphic Designers | Health, Well-being & Safety Victor Perry, Multimedia Graphic Designer | Student Affairs Marketing and Communications

  HUB 379 iPhoneography Pending description Presenters: Gina Muscato, Social Media Manager | University Relations Stan Lim, Photography Manager | University Relations

• 2–2:45 p.m. | Afternoon Sessions 2

  HUB 302 From Crickets to Crowds: Bundling Events for Must-See Experiences Your events are great–but filling a room is tough, especially with so much competing for attention across campus. This session dives into how California Baptist University reimagined its approach to promoting theater events to break through the noise and fill seats. Three years in, and the momentum keeps building. Whether it’s theater, athletics, or any other type of event, join us to explore insights for driving attendance, building excitement, and creating lasting impact with events that truly connect. Presenter:   Angela Meluski, Vice President, Division for Marketing and Communications | California Baptist University

  HUB 367 Accessibility with Siteimprove Are you a web content editor and want to know more about common accessibility issues? Learn about the automatic testing tool, Siteimprove! We'll talk about available training and how to read an accessibility scan of your department website. Presenter: Michelle Tabula, Web Analyst | ITS

  HUB 379 How We're Using AI Now Pending Description Moderator: Kelly McGrail, Director of Digital Marketing and Analytics | University Relations

• 3:30–4:30 p.m. | Barn Mixer

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September 11, 2025

• 9-9:30 a.m. | Registration, Breakfast, Vendor Fair

  Register for the day and enjoy breakfast.
  
  Also enjoy a vendor fair with companies that provide printing, giveaways, and other services that your department may need for the coming year. Vendors will be available from 9 a.m. - 1 p.m.

• 9:30–10:45 a.m. | Keynote Address: Shawn Shahani

  Shawn Shahani is Head of Strategy for Apple TV’s Content Design Team – helping bring Apple TV+ entertainment to millions of people inside the Apple TV app. His career has spanned a wide variety of industries – including entertainment marketing, advertising, brand transformation, and fashion retail – but has consistently focused on how storytelling and design. Shawn is also a UC Riverside alum (’08) – graduating with a Bachelor’s in Art History / Business Administration and serving as the Editor in Chief of the Highlander newspaper for two years.

• 11–11:45 a.m. | Morning Sessions

  HUB 302 Making the Case is FUNdamental Join in for a brief crash-course on the basics of crafting compelling case statements for individual projects, larger complex giving priorities or even broad capital campaigns. A simple one-pager can be as effective a tool as a multi-page proposal and we're going to discuss how to put one together Presenter:   Andrew S. Young, Senior Editorial Director, University Development and Alumni Relations | University of California, Berkeley

  HUB 367 Collaboration is Key!: Maximizing Resources to Maximize Your Message How do you get the most out of every available resource on campus – including from students, faculty, staff, and your fellow UCR colleagues? Join us for a discussion on collaborative marketing at the university level so that you can maximize resources in order to maximize your message. Ultimately, it's also the best way to maximize results! Presenters: James Rowland, Director of Marketing and Communications | School of Education Deisy Vaca, Assistant Director of Student Success | School of Public Policy Yolanda Vargas, Admissions Recruitment and Academic Program Specialist | School of Public Policy

  HUB 379 The Content Crew: Collaborating with Student Storytellers Learn how to effectively collaborate with student employees to create impactful social media and video content. We'll explore strategies for mentoring students, building a creative team culture, and leading productive brainstorming sessions that generate authentic, engaging ideas. Whether you're just starting to work with student content creators or looking to refresh your approach, this session offers practical tools to spark creativity and streamline your content process. Presenters: Dusan Stancic, Marketing Manager | Recreation John Stiles, Marketing Coordinator | Recreation

• 12–12:45 p.m. | Lunch, HUB 302

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• 1–1:45 p.m. | Afternoon Sessions 1

  HUB 302 Using AI to Create Virtual Audiences Pending description. Presenter:   Megan Jordan, Vice President of Executive Communications and Strategic Initiatives | University of Southern California

  HUB 367 Event Promotion 101: The Bear Essentials Leverage the UCR Events Calendar to get your event noticed. Learn best practices for completing the calendar's online submission form and discover which details matter most to potential attendees. We'll also cover how to request a Scotty the Bear appearance at your next on-campus gathering. Presenters: Colin Lewis, Sr. Coordinator for Student Organizations | Student Life Imran Ghori, Campus Communications Manager | University Relations Malinn Loeung, Digital Content Manager | University Relations

  HUB 379 Build It Right: Branding, Accessibility, and Best Practices for a Better Website Designed for digital marketers who are newcomers and returning users of Drupal. This session will cover how to update and manage your website using best practices in branding, accessibility, and SEO. You'll learn how to navigate Drupal fundamentals, integrate third-party tools, improve content workflows, and ensure your site aligns with UCR's brand and accessibility standards. From gaining access and training to exploring advanced features, this session will help you build a strong foundation and grow your Drupal skills for the future. The presenters will share practical guidance and resources to help you take ownership of your site and make smart, scalable decisions that support your marketing goals.   Presenters: Johnny Lam, Digital Marketing Manager, University Relations Evan Fields, Multimedia Graphic Designer, University Relations Rick Donato, Multimedia Graphic Designer, University Relations

• 2–2:45 p.m | Afternoon Sessions 2

  HUB 302 What's Working and Not Working: A UCR Student Panel For most departments, the target audience is current students or even younger, so this panel will allow the audience to learn from actual current UCR students and hear their experiences with marketing coming from the university. What communication methods do they prefer? Is shorter really better? We'll have pre-created questions to get the ball rolling, as well as time for audience Q&A with our panel. Moderator:  Adam Ryen Daniels, Enrollment Marketing Manager | University Relations

  HUB 367 Pending Crisis Communications Workshop Pending description. Presenters: Pending

  HUB 379 Getting Out of Your Story Rut: How a Culture of Generosity Can Inspire New, Impactful Narratives It’s easy to feel like you’ve run out of story ideas when every quarter, new brochures, newsletters, websites, social media accounts, and more make their way onto the content calendar. In this session, learn how to leverage existing tools to keep your channels stocked with fresh, engaging, and inspiring content. Presenters: Sarah Miller, Development Communications Manager | University Relations Devlin Smith, Asst. Director for Stewardship and Donor Communications | Advancement Services Kara Schnabel, Stewardship Associate Director | Mayo Clinic