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Evidence Based Intervention and Grant Proposal

Hannah Sawyer, Emily Lundy, Selina Franklin, Rhianna Solida, Anna Williams, Lauren

McCaskill

College of Social Work, University of South Carolina

SOWK 412: Social Work Practice with Organizations and Communities

Professor Jennifer Bosio-McArdle

April 5, 2024

Grant Proposal

According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in 2013, there were 2,979 inmates on death

row awaiting execution (Williams, 2016). Over half of the total population on death row were
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individuals of color. "South Carolina Against the Death Penalty" (SCADP) was founded in 1976

by Ron Kaz and was revitalized in 2021 by Reverend Hillary Taylor (Our History, n.d.). This

organization works to abolish the death penalty through education and advocacy efforts. The

death penalty is systemically and racially biased and relies on inhumane practices to carry out

death penalty sentencing.

After the first meeting with Reverend Taylor, our group chose to incorporate white,

middle-aged conservatives with Evangelical beliefs as our target population. Reverend Taylor

said this population of people demonstrated the most resistance to abolishing the death penalty.

Reverend Taylor wanted to host educational seminars in Lexington County to educate our

identified target population on the discriminatory and inhumane practices of the death penalty.

Reverend Taylor loved the idea of hosting these educational seminars in an Evangelical church.

After completing a full system and community analysis on the Lexington County ZIP

code 29072 and SCADP, our group realized this potential intervention would not be effective or

possible. Instead, we decided to switch our focus to the power of social media. Campaigns such

as "BLM" and "MeToo" have proven social media to be an invaluable tool for sharing

information with a global audience (Schneider, 2020). Our group decided the best way to educate

large audiences on the death penalty and SCADP's mission statement would be to prioritize

social media. Our new target population is college-aged individuals in the 29201 ZIP code.

Hypothesis of Etiology

The four most significant factors contributing to the change needed at SCADP are lack of

social media engagement, lack of staff, lack of funding, and lack of participation and support.

After completing a systems and community analysis, our group recognized that the lack of social

media engagement could contribute to a gap in education for all ages regarding the regulations
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and practices of the death penalty. Achieving a balanced engagement in the organization and

public relationship involves prioritizing platforms where diverse voices can contribute without

overpowering the conversation (Bruce & Shelley, 2010). Utilizing social media for engagement

involves examining how individuals connect with organizations on their own terms (Smith &

Gallicano, 2015). The lack of staff at SCADP reduces productivity levels and affects the time

needed to partner with different organizations. It also can contribute to staff experiencing

"burnout, increased emotional vulnerability, poor patient care, and disrupted services"

(Cuthbertson, 2023). SCADP's lack of funding limits the capabilities of large-scale advocacy

efforts because it does not have the finances or resources to support the movement and hire more

staff. Additionally, the organization experiences low participation and support because of South

Carolina's conservative politicians and ideals (see Appendix A).

Social media can benefit this organization because it is inexpensive to use and does not

require many staff to be effective. It can help spread the message of SCADP and empower others

to contact their state representatives to overturn the death penalty.

Revised Needs-Problem Statement

The previous condition statement was focused on the white, middle-aged Evangelical

conservative population. Shifting the target population to college students ages 18 to 27 years old

in the Columbia, 29201 ZIP Code, we can use social media to increase SCADP engagement

across a wider demographic. This addresses the current lack of social media presence in the

organization. Through reposts, hashtags, and online education, SCADP can inform the public
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about the discriminatory and inhumane practices of the death penalty in the United States at an

exponential rate.

Intervention

Hypothesis

If we increase social media engagement through platforms such as Twitter (X), TikTok,

and Instagram, we will yield space for the education of college-aged students, leading to

increased organizational support and better knowledge of resources supporting anti-death penalty

initiatives (see Appendix B).

Intervention Plan

Key participants of this intervention plan include the initiator, change agent, client, and support

resources. Reverend Taylor is the initiator of this intervention plan. She is spearheading

SCADP's initiative. Change agents are individuals or organizations actively engaged in the

preliminary stages of change. For this organization, change agents are Hillary, her staff, and the

board of SCADP. The clients, or the beneficiaries of change, of this intervention plan are inmates

on death row, inmates who are wrongly convicted, and families of individuals on death row. The

change agents of this intervention plan are the National Association for the Advancement of

Colored People (NAACP), prison reform programs such as JumpStart, Justice360, and other

anti-death penalty coalitions.

The controlling parties of the death penalty lawmaking and reform are voters, governors,

and state representatives. SCADP is hosting this intervention by creating and utilizing social

media as an advocacy tool for the abolition of capital punishment. Reverend Taylor would rely

on a Social Media Facilitator to create content that educates, informs, and advocates for

illegalizing the death penalty for inhumane and discriminatory practices. Reverend Taylor's
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ability to form relationships with lawmakers, activists, and other non-profit organizations will

create the action systems this intervention requires.

Change Approach

Hillary, surviving family members of death row inmates, and the social media facilitator

are effective spokespeople to publicize and advocate for the abolition of capital punishment

through SCADP social media accounts and community outreach efforts. Victims of a crime

where the perpetrator received a death penalty sentence and survivors of death row should keep a

low profile when proposing change to lawmakers and state representatives. Sharing their stories

and listening to statistics of death row inmates might be triggering, leading to an intense

emotional response.

SCADP was founded in 1976, but the problem of lack of social media presence and usage

has occurred since the founding of social media platforms such as Facebook, X, and Instagram in

the mid-2000s. The death penalty is an issue of life or death. The most recent execution in South

Carolina occurred on May 6, 2011 (Blume & Vann, 2016). The length of time an individual

waits on death row varies from case to case, but statistically, the average time spent on death row

is ten years (Time on Death Row, 2023).

Our group has selected the Project Approach for the SCADP's intervention plan. We

want to hire a part-time media facilitator to create and post media kits about death row survivors

on platforms such as Instagram, X, and TikTok, as well as post advocacy propaganda. The hired

social media facilitator will be paid hourly.

We will incorporate a campaign strategy to support and lead key participants in this

intervention plan. The target application of social media as an advocacy and educational tool is

agreed upon and encouraged by SCADP, but resources to support this initiative are limited. The
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two primary tactics our campaign strategy plans to incorporate are education and mass media

appeal. Creating informative and eye-catching infographics and uploading them to social media

will aid in educating widespread audiences of all ages and demographics. The goal is to create

media kits and infographics that can be reposted and shared across social media accounts.

Outcome Evaluation Plan

The first objective of our proposed intervention plan is to increase engagement and participation

with social media content and educational seminars. Within six months (by October 31, 2024) of

creating social media accounts on X, Instagram, and TikTok, our group hopes to see 45% of

SCADP newsletter subscribers interact with the created accounts. There are currently no social

media accounts for SCADP. By monitoring the number of social media followers, we can track

the levels of engagement of newsletter subscribers.

To obtain this outcome, our process objective is for the media facilitator to review

account progress when the account has up to 9 posts. This ensures they monitor each account's

progress when comparing it to the outcome objective. They can track the number of followers,

likes, and views and compare it to when the content was created.

The second objective of our proposed intervention plan is to create a community of USC

student followers across social media accounts. Twelve months (April 30, 2025) after creating

social media accounts on X, Instagram, and TikTok, we hope to see a 60% increase in USC

student followers ages 18 to 27. They will collect this data from follower metrics provided by

social media platforms.

The process objective includes the social media facilitator monitoring which posts are

most engaging among USC students. The social media facilitator will follow several USC

departments related to campus club accounts. The social media facilitator will monitor the
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activity of USC club and department accounts on our social media accounts within the first six

months of the intervention. According to Professor Murphy, fundamental movements such as

Black Lives Matter and the Me-Too movement have been a growing passion for students who

are interested in activism. Therefore, there is an increase in engagement among college students

(Murphy & Keystone International). Statistically, between 2014 and 2015, there was a 50%

increase in first-year student activism (Higher Education Research Institute, 2016). This helps us

to create a higher following by keeping up with what is trendy or most engaging to the college

student community. We can monitor this by creating online polls the organizations can answer to

and using follower metrics to see which days and times of day the posts get majority

engagement.

Logic Model

The two inputs within the logic model consist of partnerships with local universities and

the staff and board members overseeing the program implementation. Partnering with

universities allows SCADP to create an internship or volunteer position for a social media

facilitator. They would create social media accounts and monitor the trends, likes/views/follows

received from USC departments and students. This would increase University engagement

through USC and expand content to other schools. According to a study by Chang and Chang,

Generation Z is more comfortable absorbing knowledge found online and researching the

information they find (Chang & Chang, 2023). They found that Generation Z is also more adept

at daily online communication and can more easily share the information they find online (Chang

& Chang, 2023).

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The oversight needed from staff and board members is crucial. It creates a safe space for

many individuals impacted by the death penalty, ensures the right messages are being addressed,

and allows for new ideas and changes as time goes on. Staff will begin by developing more

media kits, posting them to the SCADP website, and sharing them with the social media

facilitator to share on the social media accounts. This will engage current newsletter subscribers

and allow for increased engagement and participation through the content and educational

seminars (see Appendix C).

Budget Estimates

Our estimated budget for our social media grant proposal is $20,400. The average cost for a

photography-grade camera is $380. Adobe Photoshop costs $150 for a yearly subscription for

media and photography editing. The average price of a personal laptop is $400. Considering

travel expenses, 0.60 cents per mile for gas will be charged to an SCADP gas card. The

maximum amount uploaded to the card for the year is $600. Estimated budgeted office supplies

costs for a year are $150. According to Indeed, social media assistants make approximately $18

per hour. The hired part-time social media facilitator would work 20 hours per week, which

equates to $18,720 a year (see Appendix D).

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References

Blume, J. H., & Vann, L. S. (2016). Forty years of death: The past, present, and future of the

death penalty in South Carolina (still arbitrary after all these years). Duke Journal of

Constitutional Law & Public Policy, 11(1/2), 183–254.

Bruce, P., & Shelley, R. (2010). (PDF) Assessing Stakeholder Engagement. Communication

Journal of New Zealand.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285151789_Assessing_stakeholder_engagement

Chang, C.-W., & Chang, S.-H. (2023). The impact of Digital Disruption: Influences of digital

media and social networks on forming digital natives’ attitude. SAGE Open, 13(3).

https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440231191741

Cuthbertson, Sheuness. (2023). The Impact of Staffing Level on Patient Care in Behavorial

Health Care Settings [Doctoral Dissertations, Walden University]. Walden Dissertations

and Doctoral Studies Collections, ScholarWorks.

Higher Education Research Institute. (2016, February 11). College students’ commitment to

activism, political and civic engagement reach all-time highs. UCLA.

https://newsroom.ucla.edu/releases/college-students-commitment-to-activism-political-

and-civic-engagement-reach-all-time-highs#:~:text=The%20survey%20of

%20141%2C189%20full,student%20protests%20while%20in%20college.

Murphy, A. & Keystone International. (2021, December 16). How can students get involved in

advocacy, outreach, and community service? | Carsey School of Public Policy | UNH.
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Carsey School of Public Policy | UNH. https://carsey.unh.edu/blog/2021/12/how-can-

students-get-involved-advocacy-outreach-community-service

Our history: South Carolinians for alternatives to the death penalty. SCADP. (n.d.).

https://www.scadp.org/our-history

Schneider, N. (2020). Will the Revolution Be Tweeted? Peace Review, 32(4), 544–553.

https://doi.org/10.1080/10402659.2020.1921418

Smith, B. G., & Gallicano, T. D. (2015, July 7). Terms of engagement: Analyzing public

engagement with organizations through Social Media. ScienceDirect.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0747563215004756?

casa_token=Z5QaBro_3WYAAAAA

%3Ajf3uk_pnc_rnULEvsHWDV3gWP3jwK3t67hDGnIQthea4uNg5xNLNh0ScpObQUPP

Q8oYtkKwvag

Time on Death Row. Death Penalty Information Center. (2023b, November 22).

https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-row/death-row-time-on-death-row

Williams, J. J., & Murry, C. L. (2016). Dying on death row (Other than by execution).

Corrections Today, 78(4), 40–44. Academic Search Complete. EBSCOhost.

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Appendix

Appendix A: Hypothesis of Etiology

Selected Factors Following Result

A lack of social media engagement Gaps in education on the social problem

across all ages, and limited ability to share

SCADP’s mission

A lack of staff at SCADP Reduced productivity levels, less time to

complete tasks, high risk of burnout

A lack of funding for SCADP Limits on large-scale advocacy efforts and

ability to hire staff

A lack of participation and support in the Inability to gain traction with preferred target

community population within churches and middle-aged

arenas

Appendix B: Hypothesis of Intervention

If the following interventions are Then the following results should be

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implemented; expected;

Hiring of a social media facilitator; Hillary will be able to better manage her tasks

without taking time and energy for social

media.

Increasing social media presence; Will allow for more engagement and

widespread knowledge of the SCADP

organization and mission.

Engaging with a college-aged population Will allow knowledge to spread easily

through social media; through a population that is more likely to

participate with SCADP and share similar

viewpoints.

Appendix C: Logic Model

Outputs / Outcomes -- Impact

Inputs
Activities Short Medium Long

Staff/board Oversee Changes in: Changes in: Changes in:

members program Engagement Behaviors such as Increase

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oversee changes, through the engagement from engagement and

program implementatio developing of newsletter participation with

implementati n, and trends media kits and subscribers. social media

on are negotiated. posting content and

approved kits educational

on websites and seminars

social media

Volunteer and Development

Partnerships internship of social media Practices such as Increase in USC

with local roles accounts likes/follows, community

universities developed views. Traction engagement and

from ‘friending’ expansion of

USC departments content to

and clubs. multiple

audiences.

Appendix D: Line-Item Budget Plan

Expenses Cost

Photography grade camera $380

Adobe Photoshop subscription $150/year

Laptop for use by Social Media Facilitator $400

Miscellaneous Office Supplies $150

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Gas for traveling to/from social media tasks $600/year

Salary for part time Social Media Facilitator $18,720/year

Total $20,400