Mercy High School Boosts Social Media Presence | Schools

WESTWOOD, OH (FOX19) - During a time of ever-increasing technology, Mother of Mercy High School is paving a path on the social media scene. “Communication tools have evolved dramatically in recent years and in order for our school to connect across all generations and engage people in new and exciting ways, we’ve embraced the many opportunities social media provides," said Kirsten MacDougal, President of Mercy. "Jenny Kroner Jackson ‘00, our Communications & PR Specialist, has helped thrust Mercy ahead by building that “instant access to information” and loyal social following through Facebook, Twitter and Flickr. Her work is redefining how Mercy relates to its many constituents.”

The all-girls Catholic high school in Westwood has had a Facebook account for a few years now, but with the launch of the school’s new logo and tagline “Be Inspired” just last year, Mrs. Jackson re-created Mercy’s Facebook account, encouraging supporters of Mercy to "like" them.  With the announcement of its new brand last Fall, Mercy also launched a city-wide billboard campaign and rode that wave of promotion by holding a billboard competition during the two-month time frame the billboards were on display. "It was great," said Jackson. "We had students, parents and alumnae not only “liking” our Facebook page and following our updates but also posting comments about the locations of our billboards across the city. It created this buzz and built enthusiasm for the ‘new’ Mercy."  

Over the summer, Jackson, along with Cara Herman Hyland ‘01, Mercy's new Director of Admissions, continued to build other ways for supporters of Mercy and those interested in Mercy to connect with the school.  Jackson is diligent about updating their Twitter feed, @MMHBobcats1, with tweets of news and events taking place in the classroom and on campus.  In addition, Mercy has created a Flickr account uploading photos of a variety of school and sporting events as well as alumnae gatherings and fundraising events.

The last few weeks of summer, the incoming freshman class packed the school's library over the course of six days for iPad Training Sessions, as they are the first class to receive personal iPads. Just in time, Hyland created a series of screen savers and desktop wallpaper for students to download and share their Mercy spirit on their iPads, laptops or desktop computers at home.

"Our students and families are our greatest ambassadors. We want to give them a variety of opportunities to help support our school and spread the word to their friends, be it word-of-mouth or through social media," said Jackson. "We're still building up our numbers, but those who have connected with us seem to enjoy being able to stay in the loop with everything happening at Mercy."

In addition to their social media presence, Mercy's Broadcasting Department offers opportunities for Mercy fans and the general public to tune into the school. All home volleyball games and basketball games are streamed live via Maximum Media LLC. The first home volleyball game of the 2012 season will be August 28 when the Bobcats take on Alter followed by the Northwest game on August 30 and the Mount Notre Dame game on September 6. Interested viewers can visit http://mercy.maximummediastreaming.com/ to check out all the action.  Games are also archived for on-demand viewing.

For a full list of ways to connect with Mercy be sure to visit www.motherofmercy.org/Connect.

Editors note: Mercy will hold another billboard contest beginning September 1. Full details are available on the school's website at www.motherofmercy.org.