‘We are here’: New ad highlights national reach of Big Ten universities
This week, Badger football kicks off a new season that includes big-time matchups with Big Ten rivals Michigan, Ohio State and Minnesota. But for all the competition on the field, a new TV ad released today by the Big Ten Conference reminds the viewing public that some things are bigger than sports — including the collective and collaborative impact of these schools within their communities and throughout the country.
The ad, “We Are Here,” celebrates the considerable contributions of the conference’s 18 members, which combined educate more than 817,000 students and conduct $19.6 billion in medical and other research each year. The conference boasts many academic and research partnerships between the universities, supported by the Big Ten Academic Alliance consortium that oversaw the development of the ad.
“Every day, we are here — in the medicine that keeps your family healthy, in the food on your table, in the discoveries that drive the nation and economy forward,” the voiceover says. The scenes take viewers into the medical rooms, technology labs, farm fields and college classrooms (including UW–Madison’s Agricultural Hall) where life-changing work routinely happens.
The new ad will air during sporting events featuring Big Ten universities, utilizing airtime allocated to the conference as part of its media agreements, including with the Big Ten Network. This new initiative builds on other conference efforts, including research vignettes highlighting the impact of university research that air during select Big Ten Network sporting event broadcasts.
“We are proud to stand with our Big Ten colleagues and share how we’re delivering on the promise of higher education and our research mission to improve people’s lives, here in Wisconsin and across the nation,” says Diana Harvey, UW–Madison’s vice chancellor for strategic communication.
The ad is the first of a series, which will feature footage from all 18 Big Ten campuses. It was developed by a creative team representing the member schools.
“The Big Ten Conference is an association of 18 world-class universities sharing a common mission of research, teaching and public service, alongside shared practices and policies that reinforce the priority of academics in the lives of its student-athletes,” says Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti. “We look forward to highlighting the impact our member institutions make every day in their communities and across the nation.”
Research at the University of Wisconsin–Madison drives innovation, saves lives, creates jobs, supports small businesses, and fuels the industries that keep America competitive and secure. It makes the U.S. — and Wisconsin — stronger. Federal funding for research is a high-return investment that’s worth fighting for. Learn more about the impact of UW–Madison’s federally funded research and how you can help protect it.
