Chapman professor gains national recognition over challenge proposed to social media marketing course
Adjunct professor Matthew Prince proposed a challenge to his influencer marketing course: surpass a million TikTok views and he’ll cancel the final. Five million views later, it’s safe to say that challenge was accepted. Photos by EMILY PARIS, photo editor
Believe it or not, professors are on TikTok too.
The corner of the app that they reside in is #professortok, where educators showcase any tips on building a better classroom environment, creating unique assignments or humoring one another on stories about their students.
Chapman adjunct professor Matthew Prince is among those active on this side of TikTok. He posts advice for college students, teachers and pieces of information he has learned the past 14 years working in the public relations industry.
"Professor TikTok is a real side of TikTok," Prince told The Panther. "There are so many amazing things that people are doing across the country (at) all sorts of schools. What makes a great professor is the willingness to change and adapt and grow."
The video that has the most views on #professortok, you might ask? Well, it's Prince's duet to a video of his student, sophomore business administration major Sylvie Bastardo, in his influencer marketing class that has amassed nearly 5 million views.
The video was inspired by an Influencer Challenge that Prince posed to the students on the first day of class this spring semester — if someone surpassed over a million views on a TikTok filmed in the class or about the class, then he would cancel their final exam, which is flexible for the university due to his course being an experiential class.
"I thought it would be more of a semester-long opportunity to work with the class and ask, 'Hey, what's working well? What's not? Where are you seeing some of the trends and helping you in getting more views?'" Prince said. "I certainly didn't think that it would happen in over 48 hours. I hoped it would happen, but I thought it would be over the course of the semester and could be a working challenge."
Prince, who also serves as the director of marketing communications and public relations for Taco Bell, told The Panther how his class strives to educate students on the importance of influencers in this day and age of marketing.
Matthew Prince, who also serves as the director of marketing communications and public relations for Taco Bell, told The Panther how his class strives to educate students on the importance of influencers in this day and age of marketing.
In order to affirm the power of social media, Prince created the TikTok challenge, which Bastardo achieved through her viral video of her and her friend sitting in Prince's classroom. The story has gathered the attention of people across the country, with Bastardo and Prince featured in The New York Times, CBS Los Angeles, KNX News Radio and more.
"The point I was trying to make through the challenge was that anyone has the potential of going viral and having influence," Prince said. "Everyone is a driving influence and either your community is large or your community is small, but you are still a driving influence."
Before commencing each semester, Prince surveys the class on what their knowledge is of influencer marketing. He said one of his favorite moments is when he asks those same questions to them at the end of the semester, to which they have completely different answers.
"It's very different to see where they start their understanding of what they think influencers are and the role that they play in marketing, compared to when they actually know more about all the strategy and the work that goes behind it," Prince said. "It's much more thoughtful than I think people give it credit for. This course is really diving deeper into what influencers are and how they're beneficial tools for marketing and for brands."
The class, which meets once a week on Tuesday evenings, allows students to learn more about how beneficial influencers are for marketing. Prince brings in guest speakers to discuss their career as an influencer or marketing strategist in hopes that students will gain inspiration to pursue a similar career after graduation.
"What gets me pumped up and out of bed every day for class is the opportunity to help inspire," Prince said. "To be able to hear from people who are in real-life jobs that they've seen or know, to have that exposure (so students can) be like, 'Actually I never thought about that job' or 'I never thought about a career in this area and I love this person's story.' I love seeing that ah-ha moment in students."
Bastardo originally decided to take the class to see if she should switch her major to communication studies. She told The Panther she appreciates each guest Prince has brought in — anyone from influencer Jen Curley (also known as @snackqween on TikTok), to Chapman alumni who work at brands like Casetify.
"It's just been great having real people come in and not just reading from a textbook," Bastardo said.
Being a professor is a full-circle idea for Prince. He started his undergraduate at California State University, Fullerton as an English major, hopeful to teach one day, but quickly realized public relations was a better opportunity to be creative with his writing while also developing new relationships.
So, when he began at Chapman back in 2022, he wanted to establish an environment where he can share his real-world experiences, with some humor spliced in, that allows for an enjoyable space for all 80 students.
"I love relationships, people, teaching and mentorship, and I wanted to make sure that comes through my teaching style," Prince said. "I wanted to bring in real-life situations and real-life people that would give students the best chance at understanding a real world beyond this class. What it comes down to is just giving a real dose of life and reality."
Even with a larger class size, Prince said he continuously makes the effort to get to know his students, even if that is just a short conversation with several of them after class. The dedication to build a relationship with his students does not go unnoticed, with students comfortable enough to pull a practical joke on Prince last semester.
It took place when Prince left the classroom to grab that night's guest speaker. Upon their return, it appeared that all the students that were in attendance five minutes ago had all gone home. While Prince repeatedly apologized to the guest, the students jumped out from their hiding spots under their desks to surprise Prince — a memory he said he will never forget.
"I felt (in that moment) connected to the class and the students," Prince said. "I never had any relationships with professors when I was in school. It was such a validating moment that I was where I needed to be and that I was doing fun things and making an impact."
While Bastardo was applauded by every student in the class after her video attained a million views and they would not have to study for an exam, she told The Panther she still received hate comments online. Some left comments like, "hoping they are not doctors" or said that it is wrong they should get out of a test.
After becoming scrutinized online just after a mere 48 hours after posting, Bastardo hopes that people begin to take in as much context and information they can before spreading rude remarks.
"People don't realize that it is a communication class," Bastardo said. "The whole point was influencer marketing and to see the power of social media. I hope people will take that away when they read the articles."
Despite the fact that he may not offer this exact same Influencer Challenge again to his class, Prince said that he will continue to offer similar tasks (and the possibility of removing a final exam) by having students learn about the power of social media. A TikTok video with millions of views and press coverage is not what Prince had expected, but he hopes it exemplifies the influential force the internet has on the world today.
"It's nice that (students) can see the potential of social (media) and the powers and what can happen with a 15 second video — everything from the good, the bad, the ugly, the potential and the power," Prince said. "I think a better understanding of that is a great success."