March 29, 2024

The recent release of Student Advisor’s Top 100 Social Media Colleges has opened discussion among some students about the effectiveness of Wittenberg’s media practices.
Wittenberg did not make the website’s list this year. Ohio State University was the only college from Ohio to make the list. Wittenberg currently utilizes Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram among other platforms to inform students of campus events and keep alumni engaged and involved with their alma mater.
Senior Erin Duffy expressed disinterest in the amount of emails she receives from the university but said she appreciates the Twitter accounts because they are easily accessible and are able to be “retweeted” from her own account.
“I ignore most of the emails because there’s too many,” Duffy said. “I mostly read @Wittstats because I enjoy following sports. There has to be well over fifty accounts out there and while I don’t check Facebook much anymore, I miss Witt Compliments. That was a fun one.”
One of the greatest anxieties Wittenberg faces in the virtual world is the accessibility of the numerous student-run and authorized accounts and pages related to the university by prospective students. Even though Duffy stated that she was unaware of any of the accounts while searching for colleges four years ago, it is possible that prospective students and their parents are viewing pages that may not shed the best light on university life.
Office of Admission Counselor Intern, Kaitlyn Carter, says student-operated accounts should stay within the Wittenberg community. Carter, who runs the social media accounts for the Wittenberg Admissions office, said such accounts could possibly give the university a bad reputation as opposed to its goal of connecting prospective, new, current students and alumni as a whole.
However, university operated accounts are expanding and new platforms being used in response to student need. Google+ and television are now being thrown into the mix.
“After a recommendation from Zach Cole, a tour guide and Google ambassador, we started a Google+ account,” said Carter. “It is still fairly new to us. We’re just now getting around to making the page active.”
Makenzie Daniels, the student operator of Twitter pages for the Wittenberg Panhellenic Council and Witts Happening, agrees that there mostly likely over 50 Wittenberg related accounts on the internet, but says the university is taking a step in the right direction with utilizing social media.
‘The Office of Student Development and Student Involvement has the Witts Happening Twitter and Facebook page that is geared towards letting students know what is going on around campus all the time,” said Daniels ” The alumni office just started a new organization this year called Student Alumni Board in order for more current students to get in contact with and help and encourage alumni to be involved on campus.”
Along with starting the Witts Happening social media pages, the alumni office recently filmed a video for a competition with Capital University about getting young alumni involved on campus. This comes just weeks after the release of the official Wittenberg commercial. Witts Happening also began sending weekly event compilation emails in response to student suggestions.
 
 

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