Marketing students apply some lessons to make a holiday-timed impact in Newark

The students in Professor Yla Eason’s Marketing and Society class got a unique real-world lesson in the significance of building community support and making an impact – just in time for the holidays.

In the lobby of Rutgers Business School-Newark, Eason's undergraduate students urged students, staff and faculty to buy $1 raffle tickets for the chance to win $100. The raffle raised $1,200 for The Apostles' House women’s shelter in Newark. The money will be used to help buy toys and clothing and other holiday gifts for the 28 children living at the shelter.

The fund-raiser, which reflected the class’s interest in blending academic learning with real-world impact, was designed to raise awareness as well as money for toys and clothing to deliver to The Apostles' House.The students wanted to raise enough to give each of the 28 children a special gift.

“Leveraging marketing strategies learned in class, the students created a well-constructed fund-raiser to maximize the reach and impact of the initiative,” Professor Eason said. “The ultimate goal was to not only provide gifts to the children of Apostles' House but also to foster a sense of community engagement and responsibility among the class members and beyond.”

The Apostles' House is known for its commitment to providing shelter, support and resources to women and their children. The Newark non-profit works to help homeless and at-risk families transition to more stable housing and to empower women to become self-sufficient.

“By applying the knowledge from our class, the students are not only contributing to the well-being of those in need but are also learning invaluable lessons about the positive role that marketing can play in creating a better society," Eason said.