| Sumario: | In the fall of 2014, administrators at colleges and universities in the greater St. Louis, Missouri area prepared for the grand jury announcement regarding the potential indictment of police officer Darren Wilson. Weeks prior, Wilson had shot and killed Michael Brown, in the city of Ferguson, Missouri. In the wake of the shooting and subsequent grandjury proceedings the St. Louis area saw an onslaught of public debate, outraged citizens, and increased tensions between those who supported Wilson, and those who believed he should be indicted. During this time of unrest, area colleges and universities responded in a number of ways. Some were transparent in their communications, sending emails to their respective communities; others chose to abstain from sending out any formal communication about the matter. In light of the varying responses from area institutions, the purpose of this study is to analyze the major themes present in the communications sent by various administrators, and to examine how the various university officials handled the communication efforts in the weeks leading up to the grand jury decision. This analysis was done by implementing qualitative data analysis software throughout.
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