University of North Dakota

University Park and Sertoma Park

Communication Plan

Paige Kozak: Summary of Approaches

Samuel Skeith: Background and Project Goal/Vision
Maggie Larson: Communication Channels
Mario Maietta: Raising Awareness
Megan Mathison: Timeline Table
Project Background:i

Green spaces and parks have been found by multiple studies to be beneficial in different
ways to the people who visit them. Public parks can improve physical health by promoting
physical activity. They have also been found to improve the mental health of people who visit
them. Parks also have the added benefit of reducing crime and aggressive behavior in the
surrounding community. Although some people may think of public parks as locations where
crimes are more likely to occur, criminals are actually less likely to commit crime in a park when
compared to other areas. In total, parks have been found to reduce crime by up to 50% in the
surrounding communities.
In addition to the previously mentioned benefits that come with parks, they can also be
used as a place of communal bonding. Due to the nature of public parks, different kinds of
people from all walks of life visit them. By hosting events that take place in public parks, the
community is able to come together and enjoy the benefits of the parks.
Even though parks have been shown to be useful to the surrounding communities in the
previously mentioned ways, public parks have seen nationwide budget cuts in the last decade.
Grand Forks updated some of its parks about six years ago, but they still require an increase in
maintenance in order to reduce the amount of litter in the area.

Our project vision is to improve both University and Sertoma Parks by

making them more appealing for the surrounding community to visit and
engage with.

Target Audiences:

Audience Primary Purpose

Communication

Grand Forks Park District Business letter / Email In order to ensure that our project
vision is properly executed, we
will need to work closely with the
Grand Forks Park District to
realize any methods or
unforeseen setbacks that could
aid or possibly delay the
improvement of Grand Forks
Parks.

Grand Forks Community Posters/ Flyers, Social The purpose of this target
Media/Promotional audience of the Grand Forks
 Videos, Reports In The community is to reach as many
Paper/Websites people as possible. Since the
issue that we are trying to solve
revolves around parks in Grand
Forks, there is no better target
audience than the people who
live there and are affected by this.
Another reason why it is
important to target this audience
is because they are a major part
in helping to make a change.

The Mayor of Grand Forks Email / Phone call In order to properly raise
awareness for our project, it is
very important that the Mayor of
Grand Forks (Brandon
Bochenski) is behind us. With his
support and help, our project will
be polished and prepared for the
general public.

Timeline:

Outputs Responsible Member Deadline

Hiring of Employees Samuel Skeith December 27, 2023

Ordering of Supplies Mario Maietta January 30, 2023

Annual Volunteer Spring Maggie Larson April 18th, 2023

Clean Up

Auction Mario Maietta April 20th, 2023

Distributing of Supplies Paige Kozak April 25th, 2023

Distributing Posters/Flyers Samuel Skeith April 28th, 2023

Special Event Megan Mathison May 11th, 2023

Release of Promotional Maggie Larson May 22nd, 2023

 Video

Fundraiser Megan Mathison June 3, 2023

Annual Volunteer Summer Maggie Larson June 15th, 2023

Clean Up

Special Event Megan Mathison June 30th, 2023

Distribution of Supplies Paige Kozak July 12th, 2023

Community Picnic Mario Maietta July 23rd, 2023

Distributing of Posters/Flyers Samuel Skeith August 16th, 2023

Back to School Kickback Mario Maietta August 23rd, 2023

Fall Festival Megan Mathison September 22nd, 2023

Annual Volunteer Fall Clean Maggie Larson September 27th, 2023

Up

Greek Carnival Megan Mathison October 10th, 2023

Special Event Megan Mathison October 28th, 2023

Distribution of Supplies Paige Kozak November 1st, 2023

Summary of Approaches

There are many ways that can be done to communicate this specific plan to the
community of Grand Forks and put this proposal into action. One way that we could get our
point across would be to make some creative posters. These posters could be put up all around
the community of Grand Forks. By asking permission, there could be many options for places
that we can put these posters or flyers. Some places that we would like to put these posters or
flyers could be grocery stores around the area, coffee shops, restaurants, and bars. Since all of
these types of places are popular for the Grand Forks area, getting these flyers posted throughout
these businesses would be ideal. Even by taking it further we could plan to find a way to get
permission from bigger places like The Ralph Engelstad Arena and the Alerus Center. Getting
posters in these types of big facilities could communicate our plan to so many people that live in
Grand Forks. Printing reports to be put into the paper is another classic and impactful way to
reach a community. Reaching out to the Grand Forks herald to get this information in the paper
or even into the online news on their website.
 With social media having a huge impact on this generation, this could be a useful tool
that would help us communicate our plan in another way. We feel that a promotional video
spread via social media platforms would have the biggest effect on reaching the Grand Forks
community as a whole. The impact that social media plays in raising awareness for things is
mighty. Something like this on social media can easily spread like wildfire. It wouldn’t have to
be a long video, it could be less than a minute, simple and to the point. Videos like that can say
and provide a lot more information than most people would think. By finding someone to help us
put together a professional and fun promotional video, it could quickly and easily be shared via
social media and spread throughout the whole community of Grand Forks.

Raising Awareness

A community's physical, social, environmental, and economic health depend on its parks
and recreational facilities. Given the current park conditions, our team has decided to take further
action toward raising awareness about the upkeep of our wonderful parks. The fact that parks and
other public places have been linked to better public health and well-being, is a major factor in
raising awareness. However, there are other factors to consider when promoting greater
awareness of parks and recreation, in addition to the health, safety, and welfare of locals.
Including preserving green spaces, protecting the environment, appreciating parks' beneficial
economic effects, and the fact that they offer spaces for mental, social, and physical activities.

Initially we plan on building new signs for the park. These signs will grab the
community's attention like never before. Second we have a plan to create posters explaining all
the renovations and upgrades that will be done to the parks. This will show the community that
we truly care about what we are doing and we want the best parks for our community. Another
great way to advertise this is through social media. While raising awareness through social
media, a younger group of the community is targeted. We also plan on having fundraising events
held at local bars. This will allow the community to come together for food and drink, while
learning more about our renovation and upkeep strategies. We will be auctioning off donated
items, for example a signed Minnesota Vikings jersey. The auctions will allow us to have some
funds to start our park recreation projects. Not only will this be a good event for the community
to come together and meet new people, but this will make sure that the community sees our
dedication and ideas with this project.

As a member of this community, I believe if we all come together we can have

renovated parks that are more clean and safe for the public. With all the sicknesses and viruses
going around today, park upkeep is one of our major priorities. My team has a vision and with
our dedication and hard work we will make Grand Forks a better city one project at a time.

Communication Channels:

Some different communication channels that we will use to promote our project include;
zoom, Email, posters, flyers, blogs, websites, etc. Using these various sources can help reach
different audiences and can increase our chance of having a successful project.

Using the video meetings online through zoom can help us with talking to park
coordinators, the mayor, the community, and many other people/companies that can aid in our
project. One benefit that zoom has over the other communication channels is that we can meet
face-to-face with people in our community which can sometimes be easier and more efficient in
helping with our project.
However along with zoom, we will also communicate using Email. This approach is a
fast and effortless way to spread awareness about our project to others, especially if they are too
busy with other projects. We will Email the mayor of Grand Forks (Brandon Bochenski) to
inform and persuade him to assist us in our project.

In addition to using Zoom meetings and Email, another fantastic communication channel
is through posters and flyers. Using this old-fashioned approach, it can target a different
audience, more likely to be regular citizens in the community instead of people that have
authority of making decisions. This is also a different point of view considering it does not use
technology which benefits an audience that does not use the internet, let alone technology at all.
This can also be more intriguing considering it can catch the attention of regular citizens who
may be walking with friends or family, which in turn attracts more people.

As previously mentioned, some people in the community may not use technology daily,
however there are some citizens that rely on technology and social media for their news outlet.
By creating a blog/website it promotes our project to various people. This is also a creative way
to encourage (more than likely young people) assistance in their community. On top of that,
blogs and websites that are posted to the internet are available for everyone in and out of the
community, which attracts even more people outside of Grand Forks.
 Works Cited

Arbegast, Meghan. “Plastic Bags Causing Problems for Recycling Efforts in Grand

Forks.” Grand Forks Herald, 1 Apr. 2022,

www.grandforksherald.com/news/local/plastic-bags-causing-problems-for-recycling-

efforts-in-grand-forks. Accessed 7 Nov. 2022.

Blumenthal, Ralph. “Parks Deteriorating for Lack of Upkeep.” The New York Times, 22

May 1972, www.nytimes.com/1972/05/22/archives/parks-deteriorating-for-lack-of-

upkeep.html. Accessed 7 Nov. 2022.

Caldwell, Jeff. “5 Ways for Cities to Make Parks More Health Friendly.” Meeting of the

Minds, 20 May 2014, meetingoftheminds.org/5-ways-cities-make-parks-health-friendly-

11057.

Cohen, Deborah A., et al. “Impact of Park Renovations on Park Use and Park-Based

Physical Activity.” Journal of Physical Activity and Health, vol. 12, no. 2, Feb. 2015, pp.

289–295, 10.1123/jpah.2013-0165. Accessed 18 Nov. 2019.

McCann, Michael. “Challenges Faced by Small Park Districts | Open Space | National

Recreation and Park Association.” Www.nrpa.org, 21 Jan. 2020,

www.nrpa.org/blog/challenges-faced-by-small-park-districts/.

“Parks.” Grand Forks Park District, www.gfparks.org/parks-facilities/parks/. Accessed 7

Nov. 2022.

“What Role Can Maintenance and Operations Play in Creating Safer Parks?”

Www.pps.org, 31 Dec. 2009, www.pps.org/article/torontosafety4.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/YV9Z95K