Submitting Items to the Drexel Daily Digest

Contents:
1. How to Submit an Item Using the Digest Submission Form
2. Example of Items Formatted into the Digest Style
***Sample event listing
***About announcement articles
3. Important Tips for Digest Submissions
4. Guidelines for Images Submitted with Items
5. The Approval Process
***How do I determine my approving office?
***How do I contact my approving office?
6. When Your Submission Will Appear in the Digest
***What if I would like the listing to run on multiple dates?
7. Holidays and the Summer Schedule

How to Submit an Item Using the Digest Submission Form

The follwing points are guidelines for submitting an item for publication in the Digest. Important points have been bolded for quick reference:

• Click on http://www.drexel.edu/news/digest.aspx to access the Digest submission form.
  
  
• Please note that the submission deadline is 9 a.m. the business day before the Digest issue being requested for the submission to run in.
  
  
• Fill in all of the relevant information in the form. If one or more required fields have not been filled in, you will receive prompts to supply the relevant information. Please keep in mind that it is your responsibility to ensure the accuracy of the submission and permission for the use of copyrighted material, including text, quotes, photos, or photos of individuals. The Digest staff is not responsible for missing information or the accuracy of the content.
  
  
• If you would like to submit a photo or graphic with your submission, please attach an image file in the space provided in the form. (The final decision on image selection is made by the Office of University Relations). Please do not attach images that might be offensive, inappropriate, copyrighted or larger than 1 MB. Acceptable image types include .jpg (.jpeg), .gif and .png. Images should be no more than 200 pixels high and 500 pixels wide, preferably in landscape orientation.
  
  
• Provide all of the important information for your submission in the Details box. The more your item looks like a Digest article, the less likely it is that the item will be edited. Ask yourself: Who is invited? Is there an admission/ticket/other fee? Is registration required? Also, do not refer to Digest readers directly. Avoid statements such as: "You will enjoy; Come and find out; We look forward to seeing you there; Please stop by; Please contact...." Rather than addressing the reader directly, name the group for whom the message is intended.
  
  Incorrect: You may sign up.
  Correct:    Students and faculty may sign up.
  
  Note that the Details box will only accept plain text. HTML tags will not be properly read.
  
  
• Please note that the Digest staff in the Office of University Relations will edit the postings for spelling, grammar, clarity, length, and Digest style only.
  
  
• Most event and announcement items are under 250 words in length, but while an item length of 250 words or less is ideal, occasionally articles will run longer. Check the Digest archives for a visual idea of the appropriate length of articles.

• The Details box is also the place to provide any comments or special requests for approvers and for the Digest team.
  
  
• If  you would like to request that an event run in the Digest more than once, you will need to fill out a separate submission form for each requested date.
  
  All requests for specific dates are listed on the Digest calendar in the Office of University Relations.
  
  
• Fill in the information for the public contact (the person to contact for more information about the item--this information will be displayed with the article in the Digest).
  
  
• Select the appropriate approving office and click the "Submit for Approval" button. Your item will be sent to the office of the appropriate vice president, senior vice president, provost, or president for approval. (The senior level administrators who approve Digest submissions for the various organizations, offices, departments, and colleges are listed below).
  
  
• Once an item has been submitted, the submitter will receive email notification when the submission has been approved, and any comments the approver might wish to add. If the item cannot be run in the Digest even after approval, or if an approver does not wish to approve an item, notification will be sent to the submitter.

The Digest team strives to accomodate specific date requests, but it cannot guarantee that an item will run or that it will run on the requested date(s).

Be sure to see the important tips about Digest submissions below.

Example of Items Formatted into the Digest Style

The following example only serves as a guide to help submitters in writing their items for submission to the Digest. Therefore, some of the elements described here may or may not apply. Please keep in mind, however, that the closer the item matches the formatting of this example, the quicker the submission will be processed.

Sample event listing

The following article is an example of how an event item for the Digest should look, and a break down of the essential elements:

Keyboard Ensemble Spring Concert Today

The Drexel Keyboard Ensemble will present its spring concert today, June 6, 2008 at 7:30 p.m. at Mandell Theater (33rd and Chestnut Streets).

The Drexel Keyboard Ensemble is a performance based ensemble that prepares and plays a concert each term. For its spring term performance, it will feature classical, traditional and contemporary music by artists including J. S. Bach, Jean Sibelius, Jules Massenet, The Beatles, Larry K. Allen and Henry C. Work, among others.

This Keyboard Ensemble concert is free and open to the public.

For more information, call 215-895-ARTS or visit http://www.drexel.edu/westphal.

1. First paragraph:  The 4w's (in this order)

• (who) at Drexel is hosting/presenting the event
• (what) type of event, e.g. lecture, concert, seminar, etc.
• (when) is start time and day of the event
• (where) it is with a complete address, with most specific to least specific information, i.e. room number, building, street address

2. Second paragraph: More details about the event or announcement itself and/or the speaker(s) or performer(s)

3. Third paragraph: Who is invited and further instructions

Who is invited (e.g. just students, or students, faculty and staff, the general public? What is the charge? Are reservations or registration required?

4. Fourth paragraph: Public contact info for further information about the event (name, phone number, email address and sponsoring organization’s Web address)

There are also examples of Digest listings at these links:

Old Archive: http://www.drexel.edu/UnivRel/digest/archive/
New Archive: http://www.drexel.edu/news/digest/

About announcement articles

Announcements follow many of the same style elements listed above with a few exceptions:

• Since most announcements do not have a time, date or place in which they are taking place, the style tips pertaining to those items are irrelevent.
  
  
• Since there is no event to attend, information about who is invited, registration or fees is not required.
  
  
• Public contact information is also not required, but it is sometimes helpful for further information about the announcement itself. If no public contact information is available, you may type "none" in the phone number box to satisfy the requirement.

As with event articles, use of second person (or direct reference to the reader) is not used in announcements. Announcements will be edited for grammar, syntax, spelling, and style, but fewer elements of Digest style will apply.

Important Tips for Digest Submissions

• Alternate Phone Numbers - It might be a good idea to provide your alternate phone number even though it is not required. An alternate number might become a life-saver--if the Digest team needs to contact you about a sudden change, and if the team is unable to reach you via the daytime number, the alternate number might become their only means of contacting you and ensuring your item runs without delay in the Digest.
  
  
• Pre-Approved Text - If the submission has already run in an earlier edition of the Digest, submitters can access the Digest's archives page on Drexel's Web site to copy and paste the earlier wording. This process should take less than five minutes and the resulting submission will likely receive fewer changes, as articles in the Digest archives have already been edited to fit the Digest's style. To access the Digest's archives, both old and new, follow these steps:
  
  1. For the new archives, go to http://www.drexel.edu/news/digest/. (The Digest archives can also be accessed by going to Drexel's home page at http://www.drexel.edu and clicking "Drexel Daily Digest" under the Quick Links section).
  
  2. Type in keywords about the event or announcement in the search box.
  
  3. When the most recent example of the earlier listing is found, select all of the text for the listing and copy the text.
  
  4. Paste the copied text into the box for event/announcement details in the Digest submission form. Make any necessary changes or updates, fill in the required boxes, select your approving office, and click "Submit for Approval."
  
  For the old version of the Digest archives, go to http://www.drexel.edu/UnivRel/digest/archive/ and follow steps 2-4. When you are searching for similar listings, be sure to sort your results by the most recent dates.
  
  By using pre-approved text from the archive, the item will be processed more quickly.
  

• Web Addresses - It is highly recommended that you provide a Web address if one is associated with the event, announcement and/or sponsoring organization.
  
  
• Multiple Times and Missing Information - If your item contains information for more than one event, or if the event has multiple times and/or dates, you may fill in the information for the date, time, and place of the earliest event in the item. As long as it is clear in the Details box that there are multiple times and dates for your event(s), the Digest Editor will be able to format it correctly. Please note that if you wish the item to appear in the Digest on more than one date, you must submit a new form for each run date.
  
  If your item is missing some information, but you would still like it to run with the intent of providing the missing information at a later date, there are a couple of options. If the location of the event is to be announced (TBA), and if you plan to submit the item again with the location, you may choose "Other" for the location and leave a note in the box. Alternatively, you may use this option if the location will be provided upon registration. You may also make this note in the Details box for the Editor. If your event is an announcement that does not have public contact information, you may type "none" in the field for the phone number. Please note that the final decision to run your item rests with the Office of University Relations.

Guidelines for Images Submitted with Items

Following these guidelines will help the Digest team process the submission more quickly. Please do not attach images that might be offensive, inappropriate or in violation of applicable copyright laws.

Ideal settings:

Maximum File Size: 1 MB
(Please note that this size is an estimate. Depending on the approving office to which the submission is sent, a larger image might not show up)

File Type: .jpg (.jpeg)

Minimum Width:200 pixels
Maximum Width: 500 pixels

Minimum Height: 150 pixels
Maximum Height: 300 pixels

Orientation: Landscape (longer width than height)

About image settings

Images submitted to the Digest need not conform to all of the "ideal settings" with the possible exception of the maximum file size. However, conformation to these settings will speed up the submission process. Any image file type can be submitted, including .pdf, .gif and .doc files. When using images embedded in a .doc file, remove the image from the file and attach it as a separate file. (For Example: Copy the image in the .doc file and paste it into an image editing application such as Paint, then save the image to your Desktop as a .jpg file).

How to select an image for the Digest

Images should reflect the message that is being sent. However, they need not be of the depicted event. Ideally, images are in full-color and are aesthetically pleasing. Try looking through past issues of the Digest to determine which images are most aesthetically pleasing. Submit images that invoke a similar feeling.

Here are some tips for image selection:

• Speakers/award winners - try to obtain a portrait or group photo of those individuals involved
• Events - use images from past years' events or print-quality posters
• Movie showings - obtain a screenshot of the film or a poster/DVD cover
• Organization event - try to depict something related to the event
• Logos - try to avoid these if possible, but if nothing else is suitable, attach the event/organization logo

Questions about Images?

Provide your contact information and comments/questions in the Details box of the item and someone from the Office of University Relations will contact you.

The Approval Process

As with all Drexel mass emails, announcements for the Digest require the authorization of a university official with the rank of vice president or higher. Approval is required for all articles. The responsibility to determine suitability for an article in the Digest rests with the offices of senior university administrators.

How do I determine my approving office?

The following is a list of the approving offices provided to help submitters choose the appropriate office for their submissions:

• For All Student Organizations - select Campus Activities
• For All Academic Departments - select Provost

Administrative Departments should choose their reporting senior vice president:

• Administrative Services (Athletics, Facilities, Procurement, Public Safety, etc.)
• Finance and Treasurer
• Government and Community Relations
• Human Resources
• Information Resources and Technology
• Institutional Advancement
• Enrollment Management
• DrexelMed
• External/Other (University Relations)

Although most items posted in the Digest are sponsored by internal University organizations and offices, items from external groups are occasionally accepted. If the approval of one of the listed internal approval offices is not appropriate, and a submission should instead receive the approval of an external group, select "External/Other (University Relations)."

How do I contact my approving office?

To contact these offices with questions about submissions, send an email to the appropriate approval office:

Office of Campus Activities - (AskOCA@drexel.edu or 215-895-1328)
Office of the Provost - (215-895-2200)
Office of the Senior Vice President for Student Life & Administrative Services - (Dorothy Edwards, edwardda@drexel.edu or 215-895-6851)
Office of Government and Community Relations - (Coming Soon)
Office of Information Resources and Technology - (Coming Soon)
Office of Human Resources - (Coming Soon)
Office of Institutional Advancement - (Coming Soon)
Office of the Senior Vice President for Finance and Treasurer - (Coming Soon)
Office of Enrollment Management - (Coming Soon)
DrexelMed - (Coming Soon)
External/Other (University Relations) - (Coming Soon)

Please do not email an event or announcement for the Digest directly to the Office of University Relations. Items submitted outside of the Digest submission form will not be placed in the Digest.

When Your Submission Will Appear in the Digest

Every effort is made to place listings in the Drexel Daily Digest on the requested date(s), but there is no guarantee that all submissions will run.

When a submission has been approved, you will receive an email with confirmation of the approval and any comments the approver might wish to include. If you have not received an email confirmation, you are encouraged to contact the relevant approving office for further information about the status of your submission.

Please note that all submissions, even after they have received approval from an acknowledged approver, must also be approved by the vice president of the Office of University Relations. If, for whatever reason, a submission will not be placed in the Digest even after it has received approval, you as the submitter will receive a notification from the Editor.

In general, submissions will not appear more than twice unless a specific request is made that can be accommodated. Listings will generally appear on the day of the event (or a date prior to the event, if requested). However, it is not possible to guarantee that a listing will appear on the requested date(s). Items might sometimes be delayed and staged for another day.

What if the Event Needs to Run on Multiple Dates?

If  you would like to request that an event run in the Digest more than once, you will need to fill out a separate submission form for each requested date.

Holidays and the Summer Schedule

The Drexel Daily Digest is, as the name suggests, produced on a daily basis (excluding weekends). However, the Digest does not run during holidays, and it does not run during term breaks. It does, however, run during the summer term. During summer, the Digest runs on a weekly basis (becoming the Drexel Weekly Digest) every Monday morning.

Please plan accordingly for these schedule changes when you are submitting items for the Digest. For a break down of school holidays and term breaks, please see the academic calendar at http://www.drexel.edu/events/academic-calendar.aspx.

Last updated on June 20, 2008, by Charlotte Lenox, IRT