[The following was provided by the Divisions of University Communications and Student Affairs and Enrollment Management.]

Border Schmorder. Forget the state line – UMKC is a great value for students whether they live on the Missouri side or the Kansas side. And UMKC has launched a new multimedia ad campaign to make that point.

The first salvo got underway Thursday with a TV ad campaign that will run during the first two rounds of the NCAA tournament – that’s 41 games between now and March 23. Almost a half-million households in the area will see the ads on CBS, TNT, TBS and TruTV through Time Warner Cable. The ad also is posted on Time Warner’s website. The commercial features Chancellor Leo Morton touting UMKC’s new Princeton Review Best Value designation and spotlights current UMKC students talking about what makes UMKC special. (See UMKC’s television commercial.)

Round 2 starts in early April, when two sets of billboards will go up around the metro area. One set touts UMKC’s metro rate tuition program that provides in-state tuition to Kansas students from 11 counties. Another highlights the new ranking as the ONLY Princeton Review Best Value College in Kansas City.

To add an element of fun to the new ad campaign launches, UComm has partnered with Student Affairs to sponsor a contest for faculty, staff and students. The prizes: 10 gift cards worth $25 anywhere Roo bucks are accepted, including Jazzman, UMKC Bookstore, etc. (Contest guidelines below.)

The TV ads and billboards are just the first steps in an integrated marketing and communications plan unfolding at UMKC.

“Since I arrived at UMKC, faculty and staff have told me again and again that not enough Kansas Citians realize what a great asset they have in our university,” said Anne Hartung Spenner, who became vice chancellor for marketing and communications six months ago.  “We are the only urban research university in the region, we have a great location in the heart of a vibrant city, we have small class sizes and first-rate faculty teaching our students. On top of that, we are one of the most affordable universities in the region, when you factor in scholarships and financial aid. What a great story to tell!”

Additional marketing and communications tactics will include website advertising, niche websites, print ads in regional publications, targeted email, digital storytelling and social media. UComm staff also hope that UMKC faculty, staff and students can help spread the word.

“The people who live and work on this campus know better than anyone the great things going on here,” Spenner said.

Contest guidelines: Ten prizes, three chances to win!

No. 1: Watch the Michigan State-Louisville game on TBS at 6:47 p.m. on Thursday, March 22. Send an email with the exact time and date the ad airs, along with your name and telephone number. We will randomly select three winners from the pool of people who send in correct information. Deadline for entries: 9 a.m. March 26, 2012.

No. 2: Watch the KU-North Carolina State game on TBS at 9:17 p.m. on Friday, March 23. Send an email with the exact time and date the ad airs, along with your name and telephone number. We will randomly select three winners from the pool of people who send in correct information. Deadline for entries: 9 a.m. March 26, 2012.

No. 3: Email in the Interstate route number and nearest mile marker for any of the Border Schmorder billboards being put up April 2. (Drive safely! You can look up mile marker on Google or other map software.) Send an email with that information, along with your name and telephone number. Four winners will be randomly selected from the pool of correct entries. Deadline for entries: 9:00 a.m., Monday, April 9, 2012.

Winners will be contacted individually. Each entrant may only win once. Employees of University Communications will not be eligible to participate.