Hello, blog readers. Somehow I blinked and June is almost over… does this happen to anyone else?

I thought I would use today’s update to tell you about an exciting new service we will be implementing hopefully later this year. It has to do with how you access photography depicting the College.

Right now, if you wanted an image of the College campus, of an event, or other official photographs, you’d have to email the College Communications office directly to request it. My guess is that some of you don’t even get that far, preferring to either use Google Images or stock photography or whatever you already have handy. But we can do better!

With the advent of digital technologies, and cloud storage, there is a digital solution available that helps to organize large sets of files and make them easily searchable and retrievable. The name of this technology is called Digital Asset Management, or, because it is always fun to say, a DAM. (Cue the dad jokes.)

There are many DAM solutions out in the marketplace, and many of our peers have implemented these sorts of software options. It essentially makes finding things like photography, and eventually videography, graphic files, etc., so much easier. Also, it means you can self-serve and use a website interface to find what you might need. Lastly, but not least important, some of them surface the organizational structure right in front of you so you can sort of browse folders to window shop, if you like.

Members of our creative services team here in College Communications and I have been researching DAM options, and have landed on a preferred vendor. Once the contract is signed, we will be spending the next several weeks/months uploading lots of images for your browsing pleasure. Once we have a critical mass, we will release access to the database campuswide.

My hope in launching this new service is to improve the visual way we all depict the College when you have the chance to do so. It will also give us a good sense of the holes in our photography coverage, and we will welcome your feedback on areas we can improve on.

In other news, work continues on setting up some training opportunities for late August and fall semester, boilerplate language about the College, and some general messaging guidance. This week, we are launching a boatload of design and writing projects with undergraduate admissions to start applying some of this work to the printed materials the office uses to recruit the incoming class. We will also be looking to our partner SimpsonScarborough to help us position our Master’s in Social Service and attract new applicants. I’ll also be working on a new overview brochure for the College this summer into the fall (because we don’t have one!) And some other things I’ll tell you more about next week.

I hope to see some of you at our second annual College Communications open house today from 12:30-2 p.m at Dolwen House on Cambrian Row. Come meet my team and ask us any communications questions you might have!