Raimey-Noland Campaign: Communications Toolkit

Summary

Launched in 2020, the Raimey-Noland Campaign is an effort to bring more perspectives to UW–Madison and create a greater sense of belonging in the campus community.

Named for the UW’s first known female and male Black graduates, the Raimey-Noland Campaign aims to inspire a new era of giving and honor the past. Diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging are top priorities at every level and within every program at UW–Madison — and the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association and campus partners want to work with donors and friends who can provide resources to support these efforts.

Part of the need for the campaign is to emphasize that all parts of campus are committed to creating a more inclusive environment and are working together to accomplish that goal. You can be a part of this effort by infusing Raimey-Noland Campaign language throughout your diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) communications to all audiences and using it to highlight and promote your own DEIB work. The campaign also features the Raimey-Noland Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging Fund within the Office of the Chancellor.

Why should you use these assets and this language?

The Raimey-Noland Campaign is not separate from individual campus unit DEIB priorities — it is the comprehensive effort that unites them all. By connecting your initiatives to the larger campaign, you’re indicating to your faculty, staff, students, alumni, and supporters that these values are important to your unit, and you are joining with all of campus to continuously evolve.

Overview language
Unit funds
Talking points
Social media and stories
Examples
Digital assets

OVERVIEW LANGUAGE

The following language can be used by any unit to describe the Raimey-Noland Campaign broadly:

Badgers open doors. The Raimey-Noland Campaign is another step in UW–Madison’s efforts to promote a sense of belonging among all members of the campus community. Within every program on campus, we are working to build a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment. This campaign draws attention to and seeks support for work that aims to create a community of many perspectives where people feel they belong — work going on at the broad campus level and within individual schools, colleges, and departments, as well as in athletics programs. Raimey-Noland supports a variety of funds that reflect its multifaceted goals: to enroll more students from underrepresented backgrounds; attract diverse faculty, staff, and mentors, support research on social and racial justice issues; and provide more academic support and career preparation to enable a thriving campus community. The campaign is named for the UW’s first known female and male Black graduates, Mabel Watson Raimey 1918 and William Smith Noland 1875, and it aims to inspire a new era of giving and honor the past.

UNIT FUNDS

Each unit should have dedicated DEIB funds tagged with the Raimey-Noland Fund (RNF) attribute — there are a total of more than 1,700 funds currently tagged. Gifts of all sizes, including deferred gifts, to any of the funds with the Raimey-Noland attribute count toward this campaign. Communications about those efforts or impact stories on those funds should mention that they are a part of the larger Raimey-Noland Campaign.

TALKING POINTS

As we message about the Raimey-Noland Campaign now and in future years, it is important that everyone understands the goals and potential impact of these efforts across campus. These are talking points that can be used to answer questions about the campaign from both internal and external audiences.

What is the Raimey-Noland Campaign?

The campaign is a campuswide effort to raise funds to support diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging (DEIB) at UW–Madison and create a greater sense of belonging in the campus community.

Named for the UW’s first known female and male Black graduates, the Raimey-Noland Campaign aims to inspire a new era of giving and honor the past. DEIB is a top priority at every level and within every program at UW–Madison — and WFAA wants to work with donors who can provide resources to support these efforts.

What are the goals of the campaign?

This university-wide, comprehensive effort focuses on five goals:

1. Increasing the diversity of the student body

2. Increasing faculty and staff diversity

3. Enhancing students’ academic success and career readiness

4. Supporting an inclusive campus community for individuals from every background

5. Investing in research addressing social and racial injustice

Who are Raimey and Noland?

In 1918, Mabel Watson Raimey earned a bachelor of arts degree, becoming the first known African American woman to graduate from the University of Wisconsin. She attended Marquette University Law School and was admitted to the Wisconsin Bar in 1927. Raimey was the first African American female attorney in Wisconsin.

William Smith Noland graduated in 1875 as a “prepared student in the Classical department of the University of Wisconsin.” Noland is the first known African American to enter and graduate from the UW with a bachelor’s degree. He was a member of the Hesperian Society, a campus literary club, and was elected class poet by his peers. Noland briefly attended law school at the UW.

Unfortunately, neither Raimey nor Noland have descendants who can help share their stories with future generations. We hope by naming this effort in their honor that we can both continue their legacies and create a more inclusive future at UW–Madison.

Is this a chancellor’s initiative?

No — this is a campuswide effort. We know that focusing on diversity and inclusion efforts will benefit every person at UW–Madison. The aim is to create an environment where everyone pursuing higher education feels like they belong and can thrive during their Wisconsin Experience.

How do the various areas of campus connect to the campaign?

All campus units, from schools and colleges to athletics, student affairs, and financial aid, have developed their own strategic plans for how to support diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging within their academic area or program. These initiatives should all be branded as components of the broad Raimey-Noland Campaign because they support the principles and goals of the overarching university effort. Wherever possible, we want to highlight ways in which DEIB programs in different campus units connect and offer an integrated, holistic experience for our students.

Why is this effort important?

To remain a world-class university, diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging are imperative. Diversity is a source of strength and innovation. Our efforts to diversify our students, faculty, and staff will not only broaden access for those who have been historically marginalized, but they will also make UW–Madison an even more powerful hub for research, ideas, and collaboration. Making these elements foundational to our campus culture will also effectively recruit and retain top talent among both students and faculty.

Is anything lost with a focus on diversity?

Diversity is not a stand-alone priority — it underpins work that is done across campus. Since its inception, UW–Madison has stood for the value of considering multiple perspectives — the core of the “sifting and winnowing” tradition. More perspectives, backgrounds, and identities, especially those that have historically not been represented at the UW, will enhance the Wisconsin Experience for all students.

How is this campaign helping so far?

As of October 2022, more than 7,200 donors have given more than $100 million to programs across campus. Gifts vary from scholarships and faculty fellowships to speaker series and research initiatives.

Which programs are providing or seem to have the potential to provide the greatest impact?

Each school and college across campus has tailored its approach to what can be most impactful to their academic area or unit.

For decades, the Mercile J. Lee Scholars Program (previously the Chancellor’s Scholarship Program) has brought students of diverse backgrounds to campus, allowing them to realize their dreams. That program, started in 1984, provides scholars with a substantial financial award and allows students to build meaningful relationships with faculty, staff, and peers.

Unit-specific programs that set up and support students while they are on campus are also showing results, such as the Wisconsin School of Business Emerging Leaders program, the Letters & Science Center for Academic Excellence, and the School of Education’s Wisconsin Equity and Inclusion Lab.

How is this effort different from what the university has done before?

Prior to the launch of the Raimey-Noland Campaign, deans and directors from across campus, leaders with the Division of Diversity, Equity & Educational Achievement, and alumni worked with the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association (WFAA) to discuss what the barriers were for earlier efforts to change campus climate. A key finding was the need for a unified effort — with one broad campus message and goal that each school and college could see and define their place within. In the same way that WFAA was able to successfully offer that vision for a successful All Ways Forward comprehensive campaign, we hope to do so on this meaningful effort to bring more perspectives to campus and create an environment of belonging.

Are there other ways to get involved?

The Raimey-Noland Campaign also aims to engage those who want to further efforts at equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging on campus. Alumni and friends are encouraged to get involved in programs like:

SuccessWorks: personal and professional development for L&S students
Wisconsin School of Business Multicultural Center
Fraternity and Sorority Life/Multicultural Greek Council/National Pan-Hellenic Council
Multicultural Student Center
Registered Student Organizations
Wisconsin Admissions Volunteers
Alumni Affinity Groups
Advocacy Activities
Student Affairs Advisory Council
Wisconsin Alumni Advisory Council

A primary goal of this campaign is to raise awareness that all units on campus are taking part in efforts to increase diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. Use the resources provided in this communications toolkit to add language and branding to your storytelling efforts on DEIB priorities — in both the solicitation and stewardship of funds.

Video

WFAA produced a Raimey-Noland Campaign video with LaVar Charleston MS’07, PhD’10, deputy vice chancellor for diversity and inclusion, vice provost and chief diversity officer, and Elzie Higginbottom Director of the Division of Diversity, Equity & Educational Achievement. The video is shareable across social media platforms and linkable within stories about Raimey-Noland efforts. Here is a description of the video for you to use:

“Diversity,” says Deputy Vice Chancellor LaVar Charleston MS’07, PhD’10, “is a source of strength. It encourages all Badgers to be their genuine selves, helping the UW get the best out of those who come here. With the Raimey-Noland Campaign, UW–Madison is working to ensure that every student with potential feels at home on campus. Join us in opening doors for future Badgers.“

We’ve also created shorter versions of this video for social media. Find these in various formats.

Stories

As you share stories about DEIB initiatives within various communication channels (stories, releases, newsletters, social media), please mention that the effort is a part of the Raimey-Noland Campaign. Here’s an example:

The XXX award was launched in October 2022 in partnership with UW–Madison. XXX donated $150,000 to endow the award supporting historically underrepresented students in the School of XXX. The fund is part of the broader Raimey-Noland Campaign, which aims to support efforts of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging across all schools and colleges.

Hashtags and Handles

Schools and colleges are encouraged to help promote the campaign by tagging #BadgersOpenDoors and the Wisconsin Foundation and Alumni Association (@wisalumni) in social posts.

Social Media Messaging

Below are a few sample posts for use on social media channels.

The School/College/Department of XXX is proud to be a part of the Raimey-Noland Campaign, a campuswide effort to support diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. #BadgersOpenDoors #RaimeyNoland

Named for the UW’s first known female and male Black graduates, the Raimey-Noland Campaign aims to honor the past and inspire a new era of giving to support diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging at UW–Madison. #BadgersOpenDoors

You Belong Here.
That’s the message UW–Madison aims to send to our campus community as we build support for the Raimey-Noland Campaign. Learn more about how you can get involved. (link) #BadgersOpenDoors