College Possible makes college admission and success more achievable for low-income students through an intensive curriculum of coaching and support. As their program grew in Portland, Bevin knew pro bono could help share their story.
Starting from scratch
College Possible has been around for many years but we were new to Portland, Oregon and hadn’t put time or resources into marketing efforts. Now in College Possible Portland’s sixth year we had the time, need, and desire to tell our story in order to reach more people.
I was hired in January 2018 when goals to obtain several media hits were already in place. I had ZERO PR experience and was new to the Portland area, so I didn’t have any media relationships. I needed help!
Thankfully I knew of Taproot from working in the volunteer engagement field and quickly went to them for help. I knew that I would find a skilled, talented PR volunteer through Taproot… and I was right! Less than 24 hours after I posted the pro bono project, I received an email from a Portland local and public relations expert. She was looking to take on some volunteer work and was moved by our mission, having a daughter who recently went through the college application process.
Taproot set us up for success
Taproot had thorough information on what it takes to successfully engage a business professional. They also provided our PR volunteer with tools for what to expect from the nonprofit. Taproot suggested questions for both of us to ask during the initial meeting to help ensure that we were a good fit. They made the introduction seamless. Plus, we never would have found our awesome volunteer to begin with without Taproot’s posting and advertisement of our opportunity!
We set up a phone call and discussed what we both wanted out of the pro bono experience. The next week we sat down together at our office so she could learn more about our organization and begin working on a PR plan.
A game-changing experience
We had a GREAT story to tell: the first student through College Possible Portland programming was graduating with a degree in just three years! And, she was coming back to serve with us as an AmeriCorps coach in the fall so that she could support high school seniors through the college application process.
Our Taproot PR volunteer immediately went to work. She had many strong connections and before I knew it, we were booked for multiple radio shows, a television segment, news articles, and online features. It was incredible! We received more media hits in the last six months than I ever expected—all thanks to her pro bono help.
We want to thank our Taproot volunteer so much for this game-changing experience. We truly appreciate the time, dedication, and expertise that you’ve donated to help tell the story of College Possible and our students.