Policies & Procedures

I. PURPOSE 

The purpose of this policy is to establish a single, authoritative source of release of information about Longwood-related newsworthy information to the public and the media.

II. POLICY

1. Responsibility: To avoid confusion, possible duplication, and erroneous or incomplete statements to the media, the release of all information from and about the institution should be channeled through the Office of Public Relations (PR).
   
   The dissemination of information about Longwood University to the media is one of the responsibilities of the PR Office. This is accomplished through office-generated news releases and features, by working with reporters to obtain maximum coverage of Longwood programs and people, and by responding to inquiries from media representatives. In most cases, the information provided to the media must be obtained from other administrative offices, department heads, or individual faculty members. The PR Office is charged with obtaining complete and accurate information on all aspects of the institution, channeling that information to appropriate media outlets, and responding promptly and accurately to requests and questions from the media.
2. Scope of Information Covered by this Release of Information Policy:
   1. Decisions of the Board of Visitors.
   2. Administrative decisions.
   3. Academic offerings, new programs or majors, changes in academic requirements and regulations, etc.
   4. The athletic program (through the Office of Sports Information).
   5. Events that are open to the public.
   6. Official Longwood statements on circumstances of unusual nature, i.e., accidents, arrests, schedule changes/cancellations due to inclement weather.
3. Faculty Scholarship Exception: There may be times when faculty members are contacted directly by media representatives who are interested in their research, innovative projects, etc. In such a case, the faculty member is encouraged to contact the PR Office for any assistance the staff may be able to give in responding to the media. The faculty member is requested to inform the PR Office when such contacts are made.

Revised and approved by the Board of Visitors, September 7, 2002.