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February 2008 Office Puts Emphasis on Community Relations
By Julia Parmley With a new name, Web site, and position dedicated to community relations, GW’s Office of Government, International, and Community Relations is highlighting its extensive outreach to the University’s neighbors and the greater Washington community. “We are only as effective as the relationships we develop inside and outside the institution,” says Richard Sawaya, vice president for government, international, and community relations. Last September, the office changed its name from Government, International, and Corporate Affairs to reflect its efforts over the past five years to forge stronger relationships with the surrounding community—something that’s also a top priority for President Steven Knapp. Along with the name change, the office revamped its Web site, www.gwu.edu~gicr, to make it more accessible and user friendly. A brochure—“Campus, Community, City: GW In and Of D.C.”—details the myriad contributions GW makes to the District. “We think our effort is bearing dividends,” says Michael Akin, director of community relations. “More than 300 supporters, many of them neighbors, attended last year’s hearings for the University’s 20-year campus plan and School Without Walls renovations. More than 3,000 neighbors and GW students and 100 vendors came to the Foggy Bottom/West End Neighborhood Block Party in October.” Akin and Assistant Director of Community Relations Britany J. Waddell, the newest member of the staff, redesigned their community Web site, neighborhood.gwu.edu, as well as the guide “Discover GW,” which Akin says is in its third printing. Waddell helps update and maintain the events calendar on the community Web site, ensures community concerns are addressed, and supports various projects, including the Block Party. Akin and Waddell also help facilitate FRIENDS, a group started in 2001 at the request of local residents that fosters and maintains a relationship between the University and its neighbors. For more information, visit neighborhood.gwu.edu. The office’s relationship building also focuses on local government. Bernard Demczuk, assistant vice president for District of Columbia relations, cultivates relationships with the mayor’s office and the D.C. Council. Demczuk says he works to communicate the University’s role in the city, using the GW Minute, a monthly publication that highlights local University activities, and quarterly meetings with the D.C. Council members’ chiefs of staff that showcase GW faculty research and expertise on issues of concern to the council. Demczuk says he also makes sure he connects with new council and committee members. “If they don’t know who the University is, they don’t want to deal with us,” says Demczuk. “We have to develop personal relationships with them. In any case, I can’t be effective unless our community relations are well managed.” Marie Rudolph, director of government, international, and community relations, works to build strong relationships with the federal government. Rudolph coordinates outreach to GW alumni in the government, including a quarterly House and Senate brown bag series featuring presentations by University faculty and an annual GW alumni reception on Capitol Hill. President Knapp has already met with most of the 14 GW alumni who serve in Congress. “We want to make sure all our friends on Capitol Hill are well acquainted with the signature academic programs of the University that are relevant to public policymaking,” she says. “We hope our GW network will continue to help as the University grows its research portfolio.” The office also maintains relationships with Washington’s ambassadorial corps. “Educational partnerships are multiplying worldwide, and GW again enjoys the advantage of our location in the global crossroads that is Washington,” says Sawaya. “We engage the embassies of the countries with which we have relationships. Conversely, our Elliott School programs are well known to the State Department.” He cites the Elliott School’s new Institute for Middle East Studies as one case in point. Sawaya says the seven-member team is constantly focused on developing relationships to increase awareness of the University’s identity. “Our mission drives us to be knowledgeable about and connected with the entire University. We work to grow our University’s reputation in what is our undoubted prize resource—our location in the nation’s capital, the District of Columbia.”
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