Across higher education, students are expected to master complex disciplines—but too often, our classrooms keep them in silos. The result? Graduates who struggle to collaborate across fields and apply their knowledge to real-world problems.
Imagine a classroom where students from different fields tackle challenges together, where lectures give way to hands-on projects, and where students not only deepen their expertise but also sharpen critical thinking, problem-solving, and teamwork skills. For faculty, this approach offers something equally valuable: a way to break free from traditional teaching routines and rediscover the energy and creativity in their classrooms.
Ann-Marie Sylvia, Lecturer in Public Health at UMass Amherst, is doing exactly this. She is designing courses that bring students from different disciplines together to solve real-world problems—and the results are transforming both student learning and the teaching experience. Below, she shares her journey.
Ann-Marie Sylvia
Lecturer,
School of Public Health and Health Sciences,
Department of Biostatistic and Epidemiology
UMass Amherst
- Ann-Marie completed a PhD in Kinesiology and an MPH in Epidemiology at UMASS Amherst in the Spring of 2025.
- She accepted a lecturer role in the Public Health Sciences program where she brings innovative teaching and small scale research experiences into the undergraduate classroom.
- Ann-Marie’s research centers on the intersection of physical activity, public health, and neurodiversity.
My personal passion for instructional innovation and interdisciplinary collaboration was born during my PhD dissertation work, which focused on neurodiversity. I quickly realized that all of our students are neurodiverse and around 30% of students are neurodivergent (i.e., autistic, or have ADHD). In other words, we all experience learning in very different ways, yet the average college classroom is still designed in the traditional manner of lectures, exams, and student presentations, which leaves some students struggling to connect with applied concepts in real-world settings. I knew that when I accepted a faculty position, I would make it a point to curate innovative classrooms wherever possible, and this is how a collaboration between the School of Public Health and Health Sciences and the Isenberg School of Management was born.
Designing Real-World Learning Experience
As part of my graduate work, I taught Public Health Communications, a course that teaches students strategies to inform individuals and communities about important public health issues. Over the semester, students work in groups to select a health topic relevant to college-aged students, research it, and develop a public health campaign. Each campaign includes a media plan with materials such as social media posts, pamphlets, posters, and fact sheets.
Challenge
I quickly realized that public health students are not trained in graphic design or social media marketing, which meant that I could teach them the theories of health media design, but in practice, advertising agencies are usually hired to design messaging that can amplify a campaigns' public health impact. I knew that, in addition to teaching theory, it would be beneficial for the students to gain the real-world experience of working with an advertising agency to develop a media campaign that reflects a real world experience.
Solution
I partnered with Cynthia Barstow from the Isenberg School of Management, who agreed to co-develop a collaborative project between my public health communication class and her marketing class. My class was divided into five public health teams, each matched with a marketing team acting as an “advertising agency.”
We piloted this project in the Fall of 2025, following these steps.
- Public health students identified a health topic important to college-age students. They researched it and developed a public health campaign, including a public health educational campaign proposal . The proposal was composed of scientific knowledge important to the health problem, the target audience, the campaign objectives, key messaging ideas, timeline, and media assets needed.
- The two teams met (outside of class) to discuss the scope of work for the project and what was needed for a creative brief, including the overall direction of the media campaign, and to answer any questions.
- Marketing students used the proposal and their client’s requests to develop a formal creative brief and presentation. Around mid-semester, the public health students voluntarily attended class with the Isenberg students who presented their full creative brief to the public health students for review and approval.
Displayed here is the professional creative brief developed by the marketing team, using the public health students’ research and expertise.
- The two teams met again outside of class to review the full creative brief and make any necessary clarifications.
- Upon final approval, the marketing team began to develop a comprehensive media campaign.
- During the last week of classes, the public health teams attended a session at Isenberg, where the marketing team presented the fully developed campaign and media assets. Public health students then evaluated the campaign, assessing both its quality and alignment with public health communication theories.
Below are three pieces of media created through this collaboration. These materials demonstrate how professional marketing expertise can bring public health communication theories to life in a real-world context.
Why does this matter?
Innovation in the classroom is not about novelty for its own sake, but rather, it is about preparing students to meet the demands of a complex world. By breaking down silos and fostering interdisciplinary collaboration, higher education can equip students with the skills to design campaigns that are scientifically sound, visually compelling, and socially impactful.
“This pilot demonstrates how innovation transforms the classroom into a laboratory reflecting the idea that the world already works across silos and the classroom needs to reflect that so that our students are truly prepared.”
Cynthia Barstow
Senior Lecturer, Isenberg School of Management, UMass Amherst
When students are empowered to collaborate across disciplines, they don’t just learn, they create solutions that matter.
Student Outcomes
A total of five campaigns were developed, addressing critical health issues for college-aged students: flu prevention, Narcan use for overdose prevention, improved sleep, nutritional education, and alcohol use reduction in Greek Life.
To evaluate the effectiveness of this collaboration, each public health group first created their own media pieces before seeing the final products produced by the marketing students. They then completed a semester-long “Evaluating a Public Health Media Campaign” critical reflection. Students compared their own work to the marketing team’s output and assessed how effectively the campaigns conveyed public health messages. Their reflections addressed questions such as:
- What were the key similarities and differences between media pieces?
- Was the campaign appropriate for the target audience (i.e., UMass students)?
- Did the campaign emphasize public health prevention or educational strategies?
- Did the marketing team create a reasonable budget (e.g., pamphlet printing, Instagram ads)?
- What metrics were used to assess campaign effectiveness (e.g., surveys, tracking cases at University Health Services, online engagement)?
- Was there consistent branding throughout the campaign (e.g., slogans, fonts, colors, key images)?
This critical reflection allowed for measurable improvements in communication skills and media design. Most importantly, it helped determine whether public health students could recognize the concepts and theories embedded in their campaign proposals and see them effectively realized by the marketing teams.
This innovative model ensures that students:
- Apply their disciplinary knowledge in collaborative, real-world contexts.
- Gain experience working across fields, preparing them for the interdisciplinary nature of professional practice.
- Practice communicating and applying foundational knowledge while learning complementary skills.
- Develop campaigns that are not only academically rigorous but also visually engaging and strategically marketed.
What Students Say
“I really enjoyed collaborating with the Isenberg students. The experience highlighted educational differences that would have gone unnoticed. Seeing their way of analyzing public health issues and how it differs from what we are taught helped me understand why it may be difficult to address certain public health challenges. It also made me realize that, as an undergraduate student, I can begin taking steps now to help bridge those gaps.”
Quinn Beisel, Public Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst
“I loved working with the Isenberg marketing team because it gave us practical work experience that we have yet to receive in any other college course so far.”
Kate Moitoso, Public Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst
"I enjoyed our collaboration with Isenberg because it gave us real-world experience in integrating public health and marketing strategies to promote positive health outcomes. Working together as one team was incredibly insightful and helped me strengthen my problem-solving and communication skills."
Lakshmi Doobay, Public Health Sciences, University of Massachusetts Amherst
Lessons Learned
During this project an issue arose with one of our groups. The public health team was using the word “intervention” and the marketing team took issue with the use of that word, saying it was too closely aligned with “drug interventions” and would lose the audience. My students and I were initially taken aback, as we view interventions as central to public health. This incident highlighted to both Professor Barstow and I that words and context matter, and our students may not understand, since we teach in silos, that terminology can carry different meanings across disciplines, and both interpretations may be valid simultaneously. This further demonstrated to me the absolute importance of breaking down the silos so that our students may receive a breadth of knowledge in a different discipline that they may work closely with throughout their careers.
Tips for Replicating Cross-Disciplinary Projects
1. Identify complementary skill gaps between disciplines.
Example: Public Health students lacked training in graphic design and marketing concepts, and Marketing students lacked training in scientific interpretation and behavior‑change/public health communication theory.
Begin by asking:
- What does my discipline teach exceptionally well?
- What does it not teach—but students will need in the real world?
- Which department naturally fills that gap?
2. Co-design a shared project with parallel but distinct roles.
- Ensure no discipline feels “tacked on.”
- Give each team ownership of their work.
- Allow students to experience real-world interdependence.
3. Incorporate authentic data or real-world partners.
- Real stakes, real constraints, real audiences.
- Authenticity elevates engagement and learning.
Anticipate challenges
- Terminology conflicts: Words can carry different meanings across fields. Expect miscommunication, confusion, and occasional frustration. This is not a failure—it’s part of the learning process.
- Different disciplinary cultures and expectations: Public Health students approach projects through scientific evidence and behavior-change theory, while Marketing students focus on audience perception, branding, and messaging strategy. Misaligned assumptions can arise.
- Logistical complexity: Coordinating two syllabi, sets of deadlines, classrooms, and outside-class meetings requires intentional planning and flexibility.
- Uneven student confidence or preparedness: Students may feel intimidated, unsure how to communicate expertise, or worried about “saying the wrong thing.” Normalize this and frame it as part of the process.
Anticipate challenges
- Terminology conflicts: Words can carry different meanings across fields. Expect miscommunication, confusion, and occasional frustration. This is not a failure—it’s part of the learning process.
- Different disciplinary cultures and expectations: Public Health students approach projects through scientific evidence and behavior-change theory, while Marketing students focus on audience perception, branding, and messaging strategy. Misaligned assumptions can arise.
- Logistical complexity: Coordinating two syllabi, sets of deadlines, classrooms, and outside-class meetings requires intentional planning and flexibility.
- Uneven student confidence or preparedness: Students may feel intimidated, unsure how to communicate expertise, or worried about “saying the wrong thing.” Normalize this and frame it as part of the process.
Faculty Tips
- Start with a simple conversation with a colleague willing to collaborate. Students will follow the example you set.
- Break down silos, prepare students for interdisciplinary work, and create authentic, applied learning experiences. Faculty should articulate a clear purpose and student outcomes.
- Discuss responsibilities, expectations, and how each faculty member will support not only their students but also the students in the other classroom. Clarity reduces confusion and prevents conflict.
Looking ahead
The collaboration will run again this Spring with additional support from Amanda Waters, Director of University Mental Health Promotion and Wellbeing Strategies, who will provide real student health data from the National College Health assessment conducted at UMass. Public Health students will use this data to identify pressing health issues amongst the UMass students to complete their coursework, including the development of a comprehensive media campaign in partnership with the marketing students.
“Partnerships between Academic Affairs and Student Affairs and Campus Life give students the best of UMass — real understanding of what our students are experiencing and applied learning opportunities to demonstrate their readiness for careers in their fields. I’m thrilled to partner with these students and bring public health, marketing, and wellbeing to UMASS life.”
Amanda Waters
Director of Campus Life and Well-being, UMass Amherst
A panel of experts will be convened to assess the campaigns and one or more will be chosen to go live on Campus in the Fall of 2026.
Importantly, the student outcomes of this collaboration not only provide real-world experience but also allow both public health and marketing students to add a tangible product on their resumes. This is a door-opener—it gives students an opportunity to stand out during the job search by talking about building an actual public health marketing campaign that was implemented on the campus of Massachusetts’ flagship public university.