Over 2,500 students and 300 faculty and staff were affiliated with the University of Richmond’s School of Arts & Sciences, yet in 2007, the school lacked a suitable variety of communications channels by which to get information out to a wide internal audience.

A print newsletter was intended to do several things—inform faculty, staff and students about Arts & Sciences events and academic programs, complement what was going out via electronic channels, and also provide the school with a “leave behind” piece, something that could be distributed at alumni functions and admission events.

To convey a sense of intellectual curiosity and the concept of learning for learning’s sake, we named the newsletter Artes Liberales, Latin for “liberal arts.” The publication was produced twice per academic year and featured evergreen stories about faculty research and teaching, student learning, and the school’s focus on international and civic engagement.

At the 2009 Virginia Public Relations Awards, Artes Liberales took home a Bronze Medallion, top honors in the “newsletter” category.