October 13, 2020
From September 14 to 20, the LCWA healthcare PR team helped the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) hold the inaugural Student Sleep Health Week. Amidst a back-to-school season unlike any other, the observance amplified critical messaging surrounding student sleep health, powered by expert spokespersons, influencers, partner organizations – and even Congress!
We kicked off the campaign by obtaining newsworthy statistics with a survey of 2,000 adults across the U.S. In the survey, over half (57%) of parents of school-age children said that they have a child or teen who does not get enough sleep on school nights. This stat, and others from the survey, were highlighted on the Student Sleep Health Week landing page and throughout content.
To widen the campaign’s reach, we coordinated outreach to other organizations which have stakeholders in the student health and wellness arena. Signing on to support the week were American School Counselor Association, American School Health Association, National Association of School Nurses, National PTA, National Safety Council, Project Sleep, Society for Health and Physical Educators, and Sleep Research Society. Partners, along with state and county health departments, were provided toolkits including press releases, custom social media content and graphics, and copy for newsletters and websites.
A press release highlighting the stats drove editorial media coverage, including The Houston Chronicle, The Herald News and Seattle Post-Intelligencer. We also placed byline articles by experts across a range of thought-leadership media outlets, including Medium, ThriveGlobal and ScaryMommy.
To drive the buzz on social media, we had partnerships with 16 online influencers, who drove conversations about the benefits of student sleep with content on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and blogs. Instagram Live interviews also drove buzz and covered a range of topics related to student sleep, from the benefits of melatonin to the importance of a consistent bed and waketime.
This first Student Sleep Health Week will become a first annual — Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren and Congressman Rodney Davis introduced House Resolution 1103 to support that National Student Sleep Health Week be held annually during the third week of September.
We look forward to working with the AASM to continue holding Student Sleep Health Week for years to come!