Despite being the CEO of an internet-based education company, I have had difficulty in getting my hands around the discussions about Web 2.0 and social marketing. Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies“, authored by Charlene Li and Josh Bernoff, may be the best text that I have read on the subject. The authors are partners at Forrester Research and provide 25 different examples of companies that have used relationship marketing, social networking, the internet, and various research tools to increase their customer satisfaction and either increase revenues or save costs. Their four step POST (people, objectives, strategy and technology) process for creating social marketing strategies is easier to remember for foundational purposes but important to consider implementing the technologies necessary. I enjoyed reviewing some of their charts that allow you to profile your customers regarding their critic/creator/joiner/spectator tendencies.

I read this book during a round-trip flight to the West Coast which is usually when I catch up on my sleep. I also sent emails to friends and colleagues recommending the book and took the initiative to subscribe to the Groundswell blog. I’ve even asked the gurus who maintain my website to add the same RSS or email subscription option. The book was great and I hope I learn a few things by subscribing to the blog as well.

Monday, May 26, is Memorial Day. The holiday originates with a day of recognition to honor the dead from the Civil War (or War Between the States) and was first observed on May 30, 1868 when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. By 1890, all northern states observed the holiday with the Southern states refusing to observe the holiday until after World War I when it was changed to honor the dead from all wars. In 1968, Congress passed the Uniform Holidays Bill which moved Memorial Day from May 30 to the last Monday in May.

When I was in elementary school, we were asked to sell poppies made by disabled veterans. That poppy program still exists today. The poem that spawned the idea is a stirring reminder of the sacrifices made by our soldiers then and now.

In Flander’s Field

In Flanders Fields the poppies blow,
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky,
The larks, still bravely singing, fly,
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the dead.
Short days ago,
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved and now we lie,
In Flanders Fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe
To you, from failing hands, we throw,
The torch, be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us, who die,
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow,

In Flanders Fields.

Col. John McCrae

Many years ago, we were asked to host a graduation ceremony for a graduate. It’s my understanding that prior to that date, we mailed the diplomas to students. That first ceremony spawned an annual event where we invite all graduates who have earned their degree since the previous year’s graduation to travel to the Washington, DC area where we conduct a traditional graduation albeit for an online university.

Approximately 2,140 students earned diplomas over the past year. They studied with us from around the world. We had approximately 185 who attended graduation over the weekend. They journeyed from states as far away as Washington and California and from countries as far away as Germany and Nigeria. Nearly 1200 of their friends and family attended graduation as well. Awards were given out to the top scholars in each school, the overall top graduate, and the top faculty members in each school as well as overall. Dr. Christopher Reynolds, Program Manager for our Emergency Management program, was voted best faculty member. We also awarded two posthumous degrees to students who gave their lives in the service of our country. Sergeant Edward Philpot earned a Bachelor’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies and Senior Chief Charles Zwierzynski earned a Bachelor’s degree in Transportation Logistics Management.

It’s my opinion that graduation is the best moment in the year for a faculty/staff member to see the result of our efforts. The graduate is excited, the family is excited, and the faculty and staff members enjoy meeting the graduates who journey to Washington, DC to accept his/her degree. Distance learning expands access to education for many, but the face-to-face contact which is unnecessary for the education is valuable for the emotional feedback of faculty and staff.

This day represents a milestone as I write my first official post on this blog. I have weighed the merits and detriments of blogging for months. Our communications staff suggested the idea of having a President’s blog. The first source that I consulted was my class from the Harvard New Presidents seminar. Nearly half of my classmates responded and the majority weighed in against the blog. The primary reason cited was the difficulty of keeping the blog current. Some cited the difficulty of communicating as President through a blog versus the traditional lines of university communications. I googled Presidents’ blogs and found a list of more than 30 university presidents who are blogging. I also found books like Debbie Weil’s The Corporate Blogging Book, that discussed the pros and cons and the rules by which a corporate blogger should abide.

I opted to move forward with the blog because of the ability to open a forum for communicating. I have a few items that I plan to discuss on a semi-regular basis. Affordability of education is the topic that interests me the most. Social networking and the Internet, the need for higher education, higher education access, and higher education as a business are other topical areas ripe for discussion. From time to time, however, I may take the liberty to discuss golf, a pursuit of mine that has diminished in frequency over the past five years, or other less academic topics.

Feel free to drop me a line when a topic interests you. We may not agree all the time, but listening to another point of view is always enlightening. It is, in fact, what blogging should be all about.

Best regards,

Wally Boston