The context

It was 2018 and Michigan State University was in crisis. The Larry Nassar scandal had shaken the institution to the core and in the aftermath, students across campus were processing grief, outrage and a complicated relationship with their alma mater.

The brief

With news of the scandal gaining national attention and criticism, communication departments across the university scrambled to promote content without being perceived as dismissive or tone deaf. As one of ComArtSci's primary content writers, I didn’t want to give any more attention to the criminal investigation or the institution’s disappointing response. It would be more empowering to shed some light on the student reaction instead.

The subject

What started as an Advertising class project became an interactive campaign designed to combat the toxic culture of sexual assault on campus. With a fusion of copywriting, photography and art direction, they sparked a movement called Go Teal.

The deliverable

I wrote a long-form narrative feature published on the ComArtSci site that told the story of the Go Teal campaign through the voices of the students behind it—their motivations, their grief and their hope for the movement.

The result

When the story was published, it had a record-breaking impact on views and engagement. And it didn’t just gain the attention of the ComArtSci community, but also that of Michigan State. MSU Today republished my article, which was subsequently the pinned post of the university's social media channels and the leading banner on MSU's homepage. The story was everywhere.

Up until this point, my role had been to track down stories of ComArtSci achievement and share them with the masses in the hopes of increasing our application rates. This story, however, was more than that. By highlighting these women and their efforts, I was able to ignite a conversation—to force the Spartan community to reckon with this difficult subject and consider their place in it. It was a way for me to participate in the student crusade against sexual abuse and coverup culture, to add my voice to a movement and advocate for survivors.