Who can submit?
Any member of the university community with an eID and an @vcu.edu email address
may submit to TelegRAM. This includes health system employees who are also employed
by the university. Those employed solely by the health system may not submit to
TelegRAM.
What kinds of submissions are eligible?
TelegRAM is used to announce VCU business and events that are relevant to a vast
majority of members of at least one audience — students, faculty/staff or both.
This includes notices about on-campus activities, social and cultural events and
information regarding facility hours or logistics. This does not include paid job
postings, classified ads, lost-and-found messages or regular club or organization
meetings. Initial organizational recruitment meetings of the semester, however,
will be considered.
Can I submit to both the student and faculty/staff issues?
Yes. However, student-only events should not be announced in the TelegRAM for faculty
and staff. Faculty and staff who wish to receive student TelegRAMs may do so by
contacting drgee@vcu.edu.
Can I publicize my fundraising event?
Submissions for fundraising activities will be considered only if they are sponsored
by a VCU entity to benefit a VCU organization or other specifically named 501(c)(3)
nonprofit group that does not directly compete with VCU organizations or programs.
Promotional discounts/events by merchants to benefit a charity will not be considered.
How can I ensure my item will appear in TelegRAM?
Items are published at the discretion of University Public Affairs. While there’s
no way to guarantee your item will run, here are some helpful tips:
- Submit early. Our deadline is 9 a.m. two business days before publication.
- Make sure to include the university-affiliated sponsor of your event or notice.
Please spell out the proper name of your organization or department.
- Include pertinent facts such as date, time and location of your event, as well as
deadlines and fees if applicable. Building names and room numbers also should be
included when appropriate. If the event takes place off campus, please include an
address.
- Include a VCU contact. Email is preferable, but we will also accept a phone number
or website. Please note that email addresses must be @vcu.edu.
- Also, you can refer to our checklist at the bottom of this page.
Remember, items that fail to meet the criteria will not be considered.
I want my submission to run as-is without editing. Is that possible?
That depends. University Public Affairs edits submissions for appropriate style
and length. If you’re a regular reader of TelegRAM, you should have no problem recognizing
our style. You can refer to the following
template:
Name of VCU organization is sponsoring/holding/presents
a name of event on
day, date at time at
location. [Brief description can go here
if you wish.] For more information, contact
email/phone or visit website.
Senders are responsible for the accuracy of the information submitted and for ensuring
the information is in a readable format. Therefore, submissions with incomplete
information or improper formatting will be rejected. To avoid the appearance of
spam, the use of capital letters (except acronyms) and improper or excessive use
of punctuation may result in your message being edited or rejected.
How many times can my item run?
Items are published at the discretion of University Public Affairs. Generally, this
means no more than two times.
Why didn’t my item show up in today’s TelegRAM?
Most likely, you submitted the item after our deadline of 9 a.m. two business days
before publication. Or it was missing required information, such as the university
sponsor, date, time or location.
Checklist
-
The event/notice is of universitywide interest
-
I’ve included the event sponsor
-
I’ve included the VCU contact for more information
-
I’ve included the date, time and location of my event
-
I’ve submitted before the deadline (9 a.m. two business days before publication)
