Samuel Merritt University (SMU) is a private university focused on health sciences education in the greater Bay Area. It offers hands-on learning and strong clinical partnerships and operates campuses in Oakland, Sacramento, Fresno and the San Francisco Peninsula.
The client engaged Bospar in early 2025 to raise visibility for its campuses’ health sciences programs and increase overall awareness about the university. Several months into the engagement, the client’s growing confidence in our efforts led them to task our team with focusing on the flagship Oakland campus opening, scheduled for early 2026.
The Bospar team would need to develop media and policymaker interest in the grand opening and its implications for Oakland. At the same time, we crafted narratives to counter perceptions of the city as defined solely by crime and high housing costs.
The client’s $240 million investment in the new campus was an important step in its growth and reflected confidence in Oakland’s ongoing revitalization. The campaign would need engaging content and media pitches that explained how the client’s campus could benefit downtown Oakland through increased foot traffic and support for local businesses.
Our approach combined high-profile media outreach, coordination with local and regional officials, strategic event planning and storytelling. The team highlighted the client’s strength in health science and its status as the center of the Oakland revitalization story, as it is the only university left in the city.
We built momentum in the months ahead of the grand opening, garnering media attention about the client’s goals for the city and its broader educational mission. We executed many moving parts for the ribbon-cutting ceremony, including the speakers’ program, media invites and relations, event management and coordination with government officials and philanthropic leaders.
Our team brought on an amazing emcee, Roberta Gonzales, local resident and KTVU anchor. And we arranged key highlighted speakers for the event, including Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee and Rep. Lateefah Simon, D-Calif., two major political figures who supported the opening and Oakland’s promising future. The mayor’s support was highlighted throughout the campaign, framing SMU as a partner in her vision for the city.
Bospar’s strategic media outreach and storytelling around Samuel Merritt University’s Oakland expansion generated impressive coverage, elevating awareness of the new campus and the community impact. Our team’s efforts promoting the opening and the exciting speakers led to coverage from every broadcast station in the Bay Area. The campaign leveraged both local and national outlets to maximize visibility, resulting in strong engagement and reach.
The media coverage focused on the Oakland campus opening, community impact and student programs offered by the client. Coverage included top-tier outlets:
The broader coverage reflected our work establishing the client as a leader in healthcare education and highlighted program excellence and community impact:
Bospar’s efforts also helped drive web traffic and user signups for the client. During the Oakland campus grand opening, the client saw a nearly 10% increase in website traffic compared to the prior week. The client’s campus hub pages also saw sharp increases in users and new users.
“Bospar has delivered millions of media impressions, which have contributed to expanding Samuel Merritt University’s visibility and reputation at a pivotal moment for both our institution and the City of Oakland. With their strategic counsel and media expertise, we’ve been able to shine a spotlight on our new downtown campus and the state-of-the-art simulation centers that will train the next generation of healthcare professionals. Just as importantly, Bospar has helped us connect our mission to create a larger community conversation, securing coverage that underscores SMU’s role in addressing post-COVID health disparities, mental health needs, and even complex issues like human trafficking. From broadcast features on NBC Bay Area, KTVU and KCBS Radio to national and vertical outlets such as Forbes Vetted, Health and MSN, Bospar has amplified our leadership as a top-tier health sciences institution and as a committed partner in building a healthier, stronger Oakland.”
— Gina Squara, Vice President, Strategic Growth and Marketing, SMU
