CFAES Website Search Feature Enhancement Launched

You may not be aware, but CFAES has nearly 300 unique websites on our network. While they are all part of the same web environment (Drupal), they are stand-alone sites.

Because of this set up, in the past if you did a search from the CFAES home page, the search was pulling content just from cfaes.osu.edu. Likewise, if you did a search on a department website, the search was pulling content from only that department site.

Last week Marketing and Communications launched an enhancement that allows users to search all CFAES websites that are in our Drupal web environment.

By default, cfaes.osu.edu will return search results from all CFAES websites. All other CFAES websites, like departments and programs, will show only results on the individual site searched; however, once the search results appear, there will be a check box that allows users to unmark searching content only for that site.

This will make it easier for individuals to find our programs, people, and initiatives from our website.

CFAES and Brand Website Redesign and CFAES Identity Launch

The CFAES website and brand website redesign are the result of the creation of a CFAES identity that is enhancing our current brand. I want to highlight a few things about the CFAES identity, so you are clear about where we have been and where we hope to be in the near future.

CFAES Identity

As many of you know, in 2013, the university overhauled its brand. It changed the logo from the previous block style to the logo we have today; it also created standards for university colleges and units in utilizing the brand. These standards are:

  • A single logo for a college
  • An approved identifier for certain units within a college (scarlet band, which was approved for OARDC and Extension)
  • Four approved fonts for all publications and materials
  • An approved palette of colors for all publications and materials

The college adhered to the university brand standards and has done so for the past five years. In 2014, CFAES Marketing and Communications created a robust brand website with guidance and templates for the departments and units in support of the university brand. It also developed a brand advisory team to answer questions about the brand and approve all materials produced to ensure we were in compliance with university brand standards.

The launch of the CFAES identity is not creating a new brand; the university brand standards still apply today. The work is to enhance our existing brand and build a CFAES identity. This is being done in part by creating a graphic CFAES identifier, the CFAES tag. The tag is not a logo, but a graphic way to increase recognition of CFAES in the materials we produce. We also are introducing some optional graphic elements that can be used to build cohesion. These graphic elements (screened back photos, photo frames, textured backgrounds, etc.) can be used as departments and units see fit depending on the publication and audience.

Connecting all of our mission areas, departments, units and programs to the college (via the CFAES tag) enhances our recruitment, alumni engagement, legislative outreach, collaborative partnerships, and fundraising. If people know and understand the breadth and depth of the great work CFAES does, everyone benefits.

CFAES Brand Website

To support the launch of the CFAES identity, the brand website has been updated. To support the enhancements, we will have new templates for departments and units. These templates will help teams incorporate the CFAES tag as well as some of the optional graphic elements as they produce publications and materials.

The site also will be a landing page for additional guidance on publication development including the university and college editorial style guidelines, required nondiscrimination and accessibility statements, and social media guidelines. Having all of our guidelines in one place will make it easier for our users to create and produce publications and materials.

Website Redesign

As part of enhancing the materials we design in Marketing and Communications using the CFAES tag and the new graphic elements, we are gave the CFAES website a fresh look as well. The website design (color scheme and overall feel) has been the same for four years. It only seemed fitting as we refresh our look in printed materials, that we refresh our look online. Your departments and units will not need to do anything as a result of this refresh, and how your teams update and manage content will not change.

In addition to the redesigned look of the CFAES website, we also are launching two new features on the home page.

CFAES Stories

One of the new features you will notice on the new home page, is a section featuring stories. We have created a new section of the website called CFAES Stories, where we are writing feature stories on Who We Are, Discovery, Engagement, and Learning. This section allows us to tell stories showcasing the breadth and depth of our college that we may not have the opportunity to tell in our other communication vehicles.

CFAES Events

Another feature of the new home page is the enhancement of the Events section. Although users won’t see this change, individuals who manage content for CFAES websites will. We have added a feature to all of the event calendars on all of the websites, so individuals that add events to their sites can select the option to add their events to the CFAES calendar. Those events will be submitted for review, and upon approval, will appear on the CFAES calendar of events.

If you have any q1uestions about the CFAES brand and how it applies to the work you do, email CFAES_BAT@osu.edu.

Continuum Magazine Available Online

The Winter 2017-08 issue of Continuum is available online.

In this issue, see how we are attacking hunger in the world and at home. Learn how our friends support students — our future leaders — and research that is solving the world’s grand challenges. Read about our programs to support One Health, for people, animals and the environment.

Continuum is a biannual magazine from the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences. Every day faculty, staff and students in our college impact the lives of people in Ohio and beyond through amazing discoveries, powerful extension programming, and classroom learning.

 

CFAES Map

Per Dean Kress’ request, Marketing and Communications designed a geographic map of the college and its primary locations. The map will be printed as artwork in the open area outside of the dean’s suite in the Agricultural Administration building.

The unit wanted to make the map available to all CFAES employees. The attached PDF is designed for 11 x 17 printing.

CFAES Map

New Process for Purchasing CFAES Publications with a Credit Card

As of July 3, 2017, the CFAES Publications eStore (estore.osu-extension.org) will no longer be able to accept credit card payments through the website. Customers will still place their order using the website; however, after they have submitted their order, they will be prompted to call 1-800-678-6114 to provide their credit card information over the phone to complete their order. Customers may place their order at any time; however, the customer service line will be open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. EST Monday through Friday.

This change in process is not permanent, but will remain in effect for several months until a new system for managing the eStore is in place. During this time, the eStore is offering free shipping for any credit card orders totaling up to $100. Visit the eStore “About Us” page for more information.

For county offices of OSU Extension, the ordering and payment process using the CFAES Publications eStore website will remain the same. County offices do not need to call after placing an order.

Even though the ordering process for counties is not changing, county offices should be aware of the new process when they refer their clients to order directly from the eStore.

CFAES Has a New Twitter Handle

Good morning. On June 30, CFAES changed  the name of @FoodAgEnvNews on Twitter to @CFAES_OSU. The new name more closely mirrors the name of the college and will be easier to find on Twitter.

If you currently follow us, the change will be seamless. On June 30, you saw tweets from the new handle if you use Twitter.com or the Twitter mobile app. You will, however, need to update websites and third party apps that subscribe to the @FoodAgEnvNews feed.

To help us spread the word, please retweet the tweets and posts from June 30 or share on your social media accounts.

CFAES Social Media Survey

The College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences reached over eight million people through social media in 2015, and we would like to increase that in 2016 and beyond.  To do that, we are developing a strategic social media strategy for the college.

You can help us capture the impact of our current social media efforts by completing a brief survey.

The survey will help us learn about all of the social media sites that exist in the college, including departments, programs, Extension and OARDC, and how you use them to support your work. Not only do we want to know what “organizational” sites we have, but also which faculty and staff use their personal social media sites to promote their work.

The survey will take no more than 10 to 15 minutes to complete, and we need your response by May 27. If you use social media for Ohio State University business we need to hear from you.

Thank you for your help.  You will find the survey at this link.

https://osu.az1.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_cuWXyMQ88OUhYbz

Michelle Ball
Director, Marketing and Communications
The Ohio State University

College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences
267 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Road, Columbus, OH 43210
614-292-7538 Office / 614-537-2313 Mobile
ball.1893@osu.edu   cfaes.osu.edu

Director of Marketing and Communications

On March 1, Michelle Ball will begin as the new Director of Marketing and Communications for the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences.  Most recently, Michelle worked for the Department of Jobs and Family Services as Assistant Bureau Chief and prior to that worked at the LearningWork Connection and Center for Learning Excellence here at Ohio State University.  Michelle brings diverse experiences related to strategic planning, marketing, communications, professional development and organizational change to the position.  In her role with CFAES, Michelle will provide overall leadership to our marketing and communications initiatives and lead a team of 26 individuals on the Columbus and Wooster campuses.

Michelle is looking forward to beginning the position in the college and connecting or reconnecting with the outstanding professionals across the university.  Michelle will be housed in 267 Kottman Hall and may be reached, by email, at ball.1893.

Director of Marketing and Communications Named

I’m pleased to share with you that Michelle Ball has accepted our offer to become the next Director of Marketing and Communications, effective March 1. I’m grateful for all of the participation throughout the interview process, and for providing me and the search committee with helpful feedback. We were very fortunate to have had highly qualified candidates both apply and interview for this position.

In the coming weeks we will provide additional information on office location and contact information for Michelle.

Ron

Ronald Hendrick, PhD
Acting Dean and VP for Agricultural Administration

OhioLine Launched & Printing Instructions

The new Ohioline website (http://ohioline.osu.edu) is now live. Our thanks for bearing with as we prioritized projects over the past few years and worked through a lengthy website updating and rebranding process that will continue for the foreseeable future.The new site includes improved search functionality and is responsive to mobile devices, which is critically important in a growing and evolving digital environment.

In addition to the fact sheets being more accessible on mobile devices, they are also easy to print. Simply use the “Print” command in your browser to generate a printable version of the fact sheet that is branded to OSU Extension. You may then either print the fact sheet or save it as a PDF file.

The specific process for printing will vary depending on the web browser you’re using. For example, your web browser may automatically generate a header and footer on the print-out. If you don’t want these to print out, you can control this in your web browser “Preferences” settings or the printing settings.

If you have questions about a fact sheet you already have in progress or an upcoming project, contact Dave Scardena in Marketing and Communications at scardena.1@osu.edu.

If you have questions about the Ohioline update in general or the fact sheet content review guidelines, contact Cheryl Buck at buck.19@osu.edu or 614-292-4880.

OhioLine Upgrade and Process for Fact Sheets Over 5 Years Old

We’re pleased to share with you that the new Ohioline website will be going live Wednesday, January 20. The new site will be easier to search, more easily accessed on mobile devices, and will provide a better user experience for visitors to the site.

During this upgrade of Ohioline, all fact sheets that were created during the last five years have been added to the new site. Editors in Marketing and Communications have worked ensure that the content in these fact sheets has been transferred to the new site in its entirety, including tables, graphs and links within each fact sheet.

Once the new site goes live:
· All content on the OLD Ohioline site will be unavailable online.
· If someone does a general search for a fact sheet online and gets an “error” page because that fact sheet is older than five years, he or she will see a note that informs the visitor whom to contact with questions.
· Please review the process below for validating or revising fact sheets created more than five years ago.

Process to Validate or Revise Fact Sheets Older than Five Years

Fact sheets that were created more than five years ago must be evaluated for relevance and content accuracy before they can be reposted on the new Ohioline site. If you authored or co-authored a fact sheet more than five years ago and you would like to revise and/or validate that the fact sheet content is still current, please use the following process.
· Click on this LINK to download the Fact Sheet Request Form.
· Follow the instructions on the form and complete the form, including appropriate signatures and dates.
· The form will ask you to select whether the fact sheet is being revised or validated.
o Revised: You have made revisions to an existing fact sheet. Please use the comments tool in Acrobat to make changes to the original PDF of the document and submit with the form.
o Validated: You have reviewed a fact sheet that is older than five years and no changes are needed. You are verifying that the content is still current and should be available on Ohioline.
· To help correctly identify fact sheets to be reviewed, see attached PDF for a list of fact sheets older than five years. The Marketing and Communications team can send you the content of previous fact sheets, if necessary. Email Wintringham.4@osu.edu and include the title and number of the fact sheet you are requesting. Fact_sheets_older_than_five_years[1]
· If the original author is no longer with the university, then the originating department can assign another content expert to revise or validate the fact sheet.
· All validated and revised fact sheet requests will be prioritized in the order they are received. The Marketing and Communications team will work with the fact sheet author(s) to determine next steps once the Fact Sheet Request Form has been submitted.
· As you consider whether a fact sheet needs to be revised or validated, please keep in mind that Ohioline is designed to provide access to the most current information that OSU Extension has available. The site is not designed as an archival system to record all scholarly publications for an infinite amount of time. The Knowledge Bank is a service of The Ohio State University Libraries that collects, permanently preserves and distributes the intellectual output of faculty, staff and students at The Ohio State University. For more information, visit https://kb.osu.edu.

This upgrade has not affected how NEW fact sheets are submitted, peer reviewed, or created by personnel. Click on this LINK to download the Fact Sheet Request Form. Follow the instructions on the form to complete your request.

If you have questions about a fact sheet you already have in progress or an upcoming project, contact Dave Scardena in Marketing and Communications at scardena.1@osu.edu.

If you have questions about the Ohioline update in general or the fact sheet content review guidelines, contact Cheryl Buck at buck.19@osu.edu or 614-292-4880.

Ryan J. Schmiesing, Ph.D.
Senior Administrative Officer &
Interim Director, Marketing and Communications

College of Food, Agricultural, & Environmental Sciences
140B Ag. Administration Building
2120 Fyffe Road
Columbus, Ohio 43210

614-688-4278 (O)
614-519-3780 (M)

schmiesing.3@osu.edu
cfaes.osu.edu

Director, Marketing and Communications Candidate Presentations

Good afternoon,

The search committee for the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences Director of Marketing and Communications has identified three individuals that will be on campus January 25-26 for interviews. Following is information regarding presentations that will be video linked between Columbus and Wooster.

January 25
Michelle Ball
9:30-10:30 Presentation-Ag. Engineering 219; Wooster, 130 Research Services

January 25
Suzanne Steel
1:45-2:45 Ag. Engineering room 219; Wooster, 130 Research Services

January 26
Gary Snyder
1:45-2:45 Presentation-Nationwide & Ohio Farm Bureau 4-H Center Room 216; Wooster, 130 Research Services

Candidate resumes will be available in the presentation rooms in Columbus and Wooster.

Sincerely,

Kathy Lechman, Ph.D.
Director, Equity and Inclusion
Search Committee Chair