Media Relations Policy
Members of the Office of Communication & Marketing are available to work with faculty, students, administrators and staff to publicize College events, accomplishments, initiatives, awards and research and to assist journalists seeking expert comment on issues in the news.
The Office of Communication & Marketing serves as the primary institutional contact with the media and all media inquiries should be coordinated through our office by contacting (845) 257-3245 or emailing Chrissie Williams, the assistant director of media relations. It is important when working with the media to respond to requests quickly. Media expect responsiveness and quick turnaround to questions, given the fast-paced deadline environment in which they work.
The Office of Communication & Marketing uses media opportunities to discuss the College and its activities in ways consistent with our overall institutional messaging and branding. In keeping with New Paltz values, we are a transparent campus and err on the side of sharing information. Our goal is to speak with one voice as an institution, with the hope of generating positive news coverage of the New Paltz campus community.
While the majority of our media inquiries are handled directly by the Office of Communication & Marketing, there are times when it makes sense for us to refer specific inquiries to administrators, faculty and staff who have distinctive areas of expertise. When this happens, consistent with past practice at New Paltz, staff in the Office of Communication & Marketing will be in touch with you before referring the reporter to you. It is always best to confer with our staff before responding. Our staff may be aware of other factors or institutional knowledge that will inform the response.
Because we have a strong journalism program and campus media at New Paltz, many inquiries come from our student journalists. Our policy has been to respond to student journalists when time allows, again because this is an opportunity not only to have our student journalists receive valuable hands-on experience, but also because it is an opportunity to educate students about the institution and how it works. Our interaction with campus student media has led to many articles that carried the institution's perspective on various issues in ways that have been beneficial to our overall efforts.
That said, it is not unusual for student journalists or professional media to contact faculty and staff directly. We ask that these requests are sent back to the Office of Communication and Marketing, where they will be appropriately vetted by our staff with various administrators and experts across campus.
- Op-eds and Letters to the Editor must be submitted to the newspaper or magazine with your name, address and phone number. If you are expressing a personal point of view on an issue, it is not appropriate to sign a letter including your College title, College affiliation or College address. Writing personal communications in a manner that could reasonably be interpreted as an official communication from SUNY New Paltz is not allowed per SUNY and UUP policies (SUNY policy 335.27 /UUP article 9.3: “ In their role as citizens, employees have the same freedoms as other citizens. However, in their extramural utterances employees have an obligation to indicate that they are not institutional spokespersons”).
If there is the possibility of confusion about whether you might be speaking on behalf of the College, it will be necessary to specifically indicate you are speaking as a private citizen and not as a representative of the College. The Office of Communication & Marketing can help clarify these situations, and administrators, faculty and staff are encouraged to contact us for advice and guidance.
