Author: Debra Wexler

I am a strategic communications expert with experience in the public, education, and nonprofit sectors. I am a creative thinker with a gift for distilling complex information into compelling stories that win converts and effect change.
Carnegie Corporation of New York

THE LIFE-CHANGING IMPACT OF PHILANTHROPY

Since 2001, the international family of institutions established by Andrew Carnegie have sought to inspire a culture of giving by awarding the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy. In 2019, the biennial award ceremony took on added significance as it marked the centenary of Carnegie’s death, providing an occasion to pay tribute to their founder’s legacy while also honoring those who carry on his commitment to “doing … Continue reading THE LIFE-CHANGING IMPACT OF PHILANTHROPY

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
Carnegie Corporation of New York

CELEBRATING GREAT IMMIGRANTS

Every Fourth of July, Carnegie Corporation of New York celebrates immigrants who have invigorated our economy, strengthened our society, and enriched American culture. Since joining the Corporation in spring 2019, I have been primarily responsible for honoree selection, transforming and streamlining that process while ensuring that each annual class of Great Immigrants represents the diverse backgrounds and wide-ranging contributions of immigrants to American life. When … Continue reading CELEBRATING GREAT IMMIGRANTS

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
Carnegie Corporation of New York

BUILDING A FAMILY ENGAGEMENT AUDIENCE

Carnegie Corporation of New York is committed to supporting effective partnerships between families and schools and to fostering innovation in the family engagement field. Under my leadership, the Communications team has played a vital role in advancing those objectives. Since 2019, we have released three reports focused on family engagement, conducted a Gallup survey exploring family perspectives on postsecondary success, and published dozens of web … Continue reading BUILDING A FAMILY ENGAGEMENT AUDIENCE

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
Carnegie Corporation of New York

PUTTING THE ANDREW CARNEGIE FELLOWSHIP ON THE MAP

Over the past four years, I have led strategic communications around our foundation’s Andrew Carnegie Fellowship program, with the goal of bolstering the brand and elevating Fellows’ scholarship. Beginning in 2019, we introduced a key message regarding the vital role of the humanities and social sciences in addressing enduring challenges and pressing problems of our day. In a STEM-obsessed world, our aim was to highlight … Continue reading PUTTING THE ANDREW CARNEGIE FELLOWSHIP ON THE MAP

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
Carnegie Corporation of New York

THE ELEMENTS OF A HIGH-IMPACT REPORT

In early 2020, my Carnegie Corporation of New York colleague Jim Short hosted a convening of our foundation’s education grantees, with a focus on high-quality curriculum and instructional materials. Over the course of that day, it became clear that those tools could only do so much to advance student learning on their own. Realizing their potential also required professional learning grounded in the curriculum and … Continue reading THE ELEMENTS OF A HIGH-IMPACT REPORT

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
Hunter College

HUNTER COLLEGE WEBSITE GETS AN “EXTREME MAKEOVER”

When I arrived at Hunter College in spring 2018, one of the most pressing priorities was a total overhaul of the college website, which had not been updated since 2010. The existing website was built using an arcane CMS that offered limited flexibility to incorporate popular features like photo carousels and embedded videos. The site was also not mobile friendly, a major liability for any … Continue reading HUNTER COLLEGE WEBSITE GETS AN “EXTREME MAKEOVER”

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
The Human Project

10 REASONS TO SAY HELLO

As part of The Human Project’s recruitment strategy, we partnered with Ogilvy and Lonelyleap to produce a video series featuring everyday New Yorkers sharing their stories and their hopes about  how we can come together to build a better New York. A 90-second hero video introduces and frames the campaign. A separate suite of 15-second videos focuses on individual stories, from a Manhattan couple whose … Continue reading 10 REASONS TO SAY HELLO

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
The Human Project

SOLVING THE PUZZLE TO A BETTER, LONGER LIFE

In 2017, I led a complete overhaul of the existing Human Project website, which had previously been oriented to a scholarly audience. As we prepared to launch the study and begin recruiting participants, we needed a streamlined mobile-friendly platform with accessible and engaging messaging to inspire researchers, journalists, funders, and the broad public. The website was framed around our new brand narrative and upgraded to incorporate … Continue reading SOLVING THE PUZZLE TO A BETTER, LONGER LIFE

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
The Human Project

GETTING TO 10,000

One of the biggest challenges for The Human Project is persuading 10,000 New Yorkers to share a wide range of their personal data, from medical and financial records to geolocation and metadata generated from moment-to-moment as they go about their daily lives. To achieve that, we need to paint a picture of the better, brighter New York City that might be made possible through the simple … Continue reading GETTING TO 10,000

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler
The Human Project

REINVENTING CONSENT

The Human Project has an ambitious goal: recruiting 10,000 New Yorkers to help solve our community’s biggest challenges by sharing the bits of information they create from moment to moment, every day. The study has the potential to make groundbreaking discoveries that extend and improve lives — from preventing diabetes and asthma to improving schools and relieving financial stress. The opportunity to be part of such a … Continue reading REINVENTING CONSENT

Unknown's avatarDebra Wexler