Best of CASE District VIII Award
 

Institution: George Fox University

Title of entry: Journal

About this entry: Faith. Grit. Joy. It’s not just a tagline seen on George Fox University billboards, web pages, admissions brochures, and social media posts. It describes, in an aspirational way, the transformational four years we hope students will experience at George Fox. Acknowledging the hard times. Celebrating the moments of joy. And, above all else, affirming our commitment to a faith-based education, which we believe prepares students to think with clarity, act with integrity and serve with passion.

While some Christian universities across the country are seeking to downplay this commitment – taking note of national trends that show faith-based institutions struggling to fill classrooms – George Fox made the bold and, yes, strategic decision to lean into our Christian faith. To go all in on our heritage that dates back to Quaker founders in 1891.

Which brings us back to faith, grit and joy. It looks great on a billboard, but how do you define it? The university marketing department determined that the most effective way would be through story, and the most effective method of delivery, our university magazine, which reaches an audience of 33,500 students, parents, alumni, employees and donors.

The result was a strong collection of feature stories that could be used well beyond the magazine, especially in admissions materials both in print and online. And while it’s difficult to measure impact, these materials seem to be resonating with our target audience: George Fox is on pace to set a freshmen enrollment record in the fall of 2023.