Gonzaga's digital effort

Before spring break, the University publicly released a statement indicating a new launch of social media sites, including the official Gonzaga University Facebook page. This comes as no surprise because as most any student at Gonzaga, or any university for that matter, knows, sites like Facebook have quickly become the social standard of communication between students. The main addition to Gonzaga's arsenal of online communication sites was the Facebook page. Not long ago, members of the greater Gonzaga community began a non-official university Facebook page. After becoming aware of this, the University quickly came to realize the importance of this communication method and aimed to create an official page. When Dave Sonntag, assistant vice president of marketing and communications, came to the University three months ago, he cited it as one of his goals to increase Gonzaga's online presence. Only weeks ago, the Social Media Task Force Committee was formed with Sonntag at the head. Its aim was simple: Get Gonzaga better connected online. Before spring break, they took a big step in that direction by unveiling the new Facebook page. However, Sonntag is quick to say, this is not just supposed to be University-run. "We want this to become everyone's place; we want everyone to post pictures and stories about their Gonzaga experience," said Sonntag. "We are going into this trying to be as authentic to what Gonzaga is as possible." The task force, which is still in its early stages, was initially created with the goal of putting into operation an official Facebook page for all parts of the Gonzaga community. The committee is full of staff that represents many different parts of Gonzaga's community including the Development, Athletics, Alumni, and Admissions offices. However, the group is far from completing its objectives nor are its objectives through with being defined. "Our intent is to broaden the group," Sonntag. "It's a learning process. We also really want more student involvement." Sonntag invited all students to get in touch with the task force to voice their opinion. There are also plans in the works to have a paying internship opened up to students so as to better gain knowledge of what students' needs are. The Facebook site, which is titled the "Super Fan Page," is open to anyone. It is currently being regulated by the task force and all the latest Gonzaga news is posted on the site, as well as new pictures posted weekly. Other social sites the University has involved itself in include a You Tube channel. The task force hopes to integrate all the different media sites so they can easily be assessed from one another. The Alumni office also regulates the ZagsOnline Web page, which is a forum for alumni of Gonzaga to communicate. Another project of the task force is Share-Inspiration.org, which can be found at that Web address. The site is about sharing the message of Gonzaga with others and raising funds to help finance scholarships. Sonntag said they are very excited about a new project they hope to unveil sometime this spring on that Web site. Most Gonzaga students are well aware of the "wall," which is located just in front of Crosby Student Center; this wall acts as a form of communication between all different levels of the community. "Well, we hope to bring that tradition into the realm of technology," Sonntag said. The task force believes there is much yet in store for Gonzaga's involvement in the technological age.

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