Hispanic Population Proposal

Alexis Campbell

Executive Summary

There is a need to increase the percentage of Hispanics that attend the University of

Arkansas (U of A), and specifically, the School of Journalism and Strategic Media, to more

closely reflect the demographic breakdown of Washington County.

To create more interest in the journalism department for Hispanic students, we should

create more awareness of the program by visiting the Washington County schools, volunteering

with the high schools’ journalism programs, and create a social media campaign showcasing our

program's diversity and promoting better inclusion within the program. Social media is appealing

to high school students and will show our journalism in a professional and interesting light.

Visiting the schools will raise more awareness of the U of A journalism program and hopefully

spark interest in the program beginning at an earlier age. At the schools, journalism students will

talk about their experiences at programs and also volunteer with these high schools' journalism

programs. We will have a diverse team contribute to being in the posts and attending the school

visits to demonstrate that all people have a place in our program.

Situation Analysis

According to the 2010 United States census, the Hispanic population in America

accounted for 18.5% of the country and more recent census data estimated that the Hispanic

population accounted for more than 60 million people. Hispanic or Latino refers to a person of

Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin

regardless of race. The Latino population is the largest ethnic minority group in America.
 In Washington County, Arkansas, the Hispanic population accounts for 17.1% of the

overall population, including an estimated 40,900 people. The University of Arkansas campus,

located in the same county, has a significantly lower percentage of Hispanic students. In spring

2019, Hispanics accounted for 8.6% of the student population. Hispanics also account for nearly

that same percentage (9%) of the School of Journalism and Strategic Media. Many students who

attend the high schools in Washington County also attend the University of Arkansas.

Arkansas has experienced a dramatic shift in its citizens' ethnic composition as the

Hispanic population is increasing. International and domestic migration fueled a change

occurring in a place that previously has had little ethnic and racial diversity. The Hispanic

population introduces new social customs, foods and culture. Some members of the Hispanic

community may have less history of education and more limited English skills, but they make up

an essential part of our community and deserve the same opportunities as all other students.

Objectives

The objectives of this campaign are to increase the number of Hispanic students in the School of

Journalism and Strategic Media. The overall goal of this campaign is to see more students from

the local Washington County high schools feeding into the U of A journalism department. We

want to see more diversity and inclusion in the program and increase the sense of community

bond of students across all backgrounds and cultures in the journalism program. A measurable

objective is to increase the percentage of Hispanics in our journalism program by at least 1%

each year, reaching an overall number of 10% by 2022 and 17% by 2029. Additionally, by the

end of this campaign, our objective is to increase the amount of activity (likes, followers,

comments and views) on our Instagram page by 15%.

 Target Audience

The target demographic for this campaign is high school students, ages 15-18, that are Hispanic

and living in Northwest Arkansas. The target audience is also ideally those students that may be

interested in the University of Arkansas and our journalism school

Strategy and Tactics

To increase the number of Hispanic students in the journalism program, we will need to create

more awareness about the program among students feeding into our university. Visiting schools

and talking to these students about the program and what it includes will allow them to be

informed about what we have to offer.

We will provide students with our Instagram account handle to contact our program and

learn more about the program. Volunteering and assisting students with the newsrooms and

journalism programs offered at the high school level will allow these students who are already

interested in journalism to learn even more about our program and build relationships and

connections with our members and faculty.

The social media campaign will demonstrate how the journalism program values all

people in our program and recognizes all cultures. Many members of the Hispanic community

prefer advertisements that are in Spanish and we can make posts for our programs with Spanish

translations. High school students are avid users of Instagram and social media, so by targeting

this group via social media, they will learn a lot about what our program has to offer. Ideally,

more prospective students will become interested.

 Timetable

The social media campaign will begin in January 2022 and will run through June 2022. Visiting

schools and volunteering with the high school journalism programs will also take place during

these six months. Ideally, it will spark interest in college seniors that are still undecided about

their post-high school plans and encourage them to consider our program. If all goes well,

hopefully, this is a campaign that will continue every year.

Evaluation

We will evaluate the success of our campaign by checking the increase in our Instagram activity

(followers, comments, likes, views) to see if there is a 15% increase from before the plan began

until June 2022. We will also know that it was successful if there is at least a 1% increase in

Hispanic students enrolling in our School of Journalism and Strategic Media by the fall 2022

semester.