JIM WOJCIK MJHOF NOMINATION

Nomination Form DEADLINE: Monday, January 22, 2018 NAME OF NOMINEE: JAMES WOJCIK ADDRESS: 409 Moore Hall, Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI 48859 PHONE & EMAIL: (989) 774-4339 wojci1jj@cmich.edu​

NOMINATION STATEMENT: Please describe the nominee’s contribution to Michigan journalism and using the criteria cited on the website or packet, explain why the nominee should be elected to the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame. Attach supporting materials, such as testimonial letters, resume’, examples of journalistic work and other evidence of merit. All materials remain the property of the Hall of Fame Committee. Complete guidelines can be found online at http://jschool.jrn.msu.edu/halloffame/nominations/.

ENDORSEMENT: I nominate the above individual to the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame: Your Name: DAVID CLARK

Date: Jan. 20, 2017

Address: 436 Moore Hall, Central Michigan University, Mount Pleasant, MI 48859 Home Phone: (231) 250-0897 Cell Phone: (

Email: clark6da@cmich.edu

) _______________________ Work Phone: (989) 774-1678

Signature: David Clark, CMU Director of Student Media Nomination forms and all supporting materials must be received by Monday, January 22, 2018.

Nominators should submit two electronic copies of all materials except for books, tapes, DVD’s, etc. Send completed nomination materials all together in one packet to: Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame Committee School of Journalism/Chair Communication Arts and Sciences Building 404 Wilson Road, Room 305 East Lansing, MI 48824-1212

Jan. 20, 2018 To: Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame Committee From: David Clark Re: Nomination of Jim Wojcik for induction into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame Committee members: It is my pleasure to represent a large group who support and collaborated in the nomination of Jim Wojcik to the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame.

Attached are nomination materials, including: -

Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame Nomination Form;

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Our nomination statement;

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Letters of nomination from: David Clark, CMU Director of Student Media and Michigan Press Association board of directors; Rick Fitzgerald, Assistant Vice President of Communications/Public Affairs, University of Michigan; Letitia V. Fowler, PhD, Assistant Professor of Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures, Michigan State University College of Arts and Letters; Wayne Kamidoi, Art director, The New York Times; Chad Livengood, Senior Reporter, Crain’s Detroit Business; Randy Lovely, Vice President/Community News, USA TODAY NETWORK; Lorrie Lynch, Director, Features Content, AARP Media; Tom Marquardt Editor and Publisher (retired) CapitalGazette Communications; Betsy Pollard Rau, CMU faculty and Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame inductee; Sarah Rowley Opperman, Dow Chemical (retired) and former CMU board of trustees; and Dr. David Weinstock, journalism professor and 2002 MSU graduate;

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A story on Jim Wojcik from Centralight alumni magazine (Page 13);

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A copy of his vita;

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A short biography with mug shot.

Thank you for your consideration!

Jan. 20, 2018 Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame Committee School of Journalism Michigan State University East Lansing, MI 48824-1212 Selection Committee Chair: It is with much admiration, respect and love that we present to you this nomination to induct our friend and esteemed colleague, James Wojcik, into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame.

The induction of the man affectionately known to thousands of Chippewa faithful simply as “Woj” would be a fitting tribute to his unselfish service to generations of young journalists and public relations professionals.

In fact, we are going to use one of Jim’s lessons to influence you. To quote the man himself: “Tell them what you’re going to tell them, then tell them and then tell them what you’ve told them.”

The criteria for induction into the hall of fame includes integrity, courage, innovation, achievement, leadership, contribution to the industry and influence on individuals in the profession.

Here is what you need to know first: Wojcik is the former director of student publications at Central Michigan University. As if that 28-year informal professorial role were not enough, when he “retired” in 2000 he immediately began serving as associate professor in the Department of Journalism. He also worked to establish the university's Student Media Board to safeguard the editorial independence of the student newspaper, Central Michigan Life. Today he continues to teach and supervise the internships of more than 100 students each year in addition to advising the university’s PRSSA chapter and student organization PR Central. He is also the on-site coordinator for the Michigan Community College Press Association’s spring conference.

In his nearly 60 years in media – as a reporter, editor, sports information director, student media advisor and student organization adviser – Woj has done it all. His work, and his impact on the journalism department has made CMU a destination for students throughout the Midwest who want to learn about careers in media.

Here is what you need to understand most: Wojcik’s legacy isn’t measured in deeds and awards. His impact – his real legacy – lives on in the lives he has touched.

They are people like Rick Fitzgerald, Assistant Vice President of Communications/Public Affairs of University of Michigan, who fondly recalls Wojcik’s personal and professional lessons.

“He taught us how to be tougher reporters, better editors and effective managers by letting us practice our classroom-learned skills in the newsroom,” Fitzgerald writes. “He never told us what to do or what not to do. He asked a lot of questions and made us think about the consequences of what we were writing.”

People like Randy Lovely, Vice President of Community News for the USA TODAY Network, draw upon Wojcik’s advice today now that they have become mentors.

“I guide almost 4,000 journalists working in 110 newsrooms across 35 states,” writes Lovely. “I honestly don't think I would have made it this far without the solid footing I received at Central Michigan University, and the incredible words of support that have come my way from Jim Wojcik through the years.”

Dr. Letitia V. Fowler, Assistant Professor of Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures at Michigan State University, offers a different perspective on Wojcik. As student media adviser he has played many roles: Teacher, friend, mentor, confidante and sometimes a surrogate parent.

“From the moment my mother shook Jim’s hand, he made my parents feel at ease about my coming to college so far away from home. As an only-child with a mother facing a terminal disease … Jim became a part of my village away from home,” Fowler writes. “Jim also took the extra initiative to enroll me in a program, The Hatchlings, that was a support and tutoring program for first-generation students, like myself.”

Here is what really makes his induction a no-brainer: Wojcik has an outstanding professional track record. He hasn’t won a Pulitzer Prize, but there is no doubt he is a Michigan journalism legend. Over the years, the student journalists he has mentored won seven Associated Collegiate Press Pacemaker awards for outstanding student newspapers.

“During his tenure as its adviser from 1972-2001, Central Michigan Life had a tradition of being one of the best student newspapers in the nation. The reason: Jim Wojcik,” writes Wayne Kamidoi, art director of The New York Times. “I still look back at my career at CM Life, as the toughest job that I have had. … Jim expected top-notch journalism— without pep talks or badgering — and we hoped to deliver through hard work and respect for the craft. Trickle-down advice from senior editors to know-it-all underclassmen: Do things The Woj’s Way, which meant no cutting corners.”

Once you learned “Woj’s Way” and earned your degree you became a part of – and often the beneficiary of – his massive alumni network. Those of us who have benefitted from it on both sides — as young professionals starting out in the business and as editors seeking terrific practitioners — knew it as a well-maintained, reliable talent pipeline. Jim’s connection with people is real. Anyone he sends you is worth your time.

“Before we ever used the word ‘influencer’ or ‘thought leader,’ Jim was influencing the journalism culture of the state by maintaining a vast network of people upon whom he would call when he knew another young and eager writer, photographer, designer or videographer was ready to launch,” writes Lorrie Lynch, features content director of AARP Media. “Jim’s network goes beyond keeping up with contacts through a social media account or email, though I sometimes say that Jim was Linked In for CMU grads well before Linked In existed.”

Here is the part where we impress you with all of his accomplishments at CMU: Woj gets things done. He helped launch the Professionals in Residence and was a key player in establishing CMU’s Journalism Hall of Fame. He was honored as part of the second class of inductees into the CMU Journalism Hall of Fame in 2003.

He was also instrumental in helping to create the Lem Tucker Journalism Scholarship to honor the 1960 CMU graduate who won two Emmy Awards. Tucker was one of the first African-American broadcasters to work as a television network reporter, eventually working for NBC, ABC and CBS. He died in 1991. Each year the program funds two full-ride, fouryear scholarships to students who promote the participation and success of minorities in journalism.

“He is influential in the community, largely because of his willingness to serve and the talented students he has sent its way,” writes Betsy Pollard Rau, a CMU faculty member and a Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame inductee. “He worked closely with Lem Tucker, who established an annual full-ride journalism scholarship to minority students. And when a gay student was chosen several years ago, he had the courage to stand up to critics and defend the true meaning of the word minority. … He’s a leader, an innovator, an influencer, a life-changer. Most of all, he’s a teacher.”

Here is the part where we make you really appreciate him if you don’t already: Wojcik would hate us fawning over him. As you read the supporting letters for this nomination, you will see that Wojcik continues to be a steadying force for all who come to CMU to harness the power of the press.

“The long and short of it is there is no single journalism educator in Michigan, and perhaps in the history of Michigan, who has mentored and advised more top-notch media professionals than Jim Wojcik,” writes Dr. David Weinstock, of Curl Harler Inc. and a former CMU faculty member. “As a colleague, Jim was nothing short of phenomenal ... And even more interesting, whenever he needed to talk to the university president, Jim had a direct line to the three who held that office while I was there.”

In addition to his continuing work at the university, Wojcik remains active in the broader Mount Pleasant community. He has twice served as chairman of the board for Central Michigan Community Hospital where he has been a board member for a decade.

He has been a United Way board member and has served as co-chairman of a citizen task force on technology needs for Mount Pleasant schools.

Here is where we reinforce the message and “tell you what we told you” – All of this adds up to a lifetime of commitment to his profession, his students and his community.

Wojcik’s is a life well-lived professionally and personally – one shared with his CMU family and with his wife, Carol, his two sons Mark and Scott and many grandchildren.

Simply put, he’s one of the great ones.

Because of Wojcik’s long-standing commitment to his adopted hometown, he was named Citizen of the Year for 2002 by the Mount Pleasant Chamber of Commerce. Not long after earning that honor he was named one of three faculty members to receive a distinguished service award.

We’d like to see one more honor bestowed upon Woj: Induction into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame.

Please give his nomination careful, thoughtful consideration.

Student Publications Moore Hall 436 (989)774-LIFE (5433) (989)774-7805 Fax

Jan. 20, 2017

Dear Selection Committee, Woj. Just three letters and one syllable, it hardly seems enough to dignify this giant of a man who has been the most effective preacher of the power of the press in our Central Michigan University history.

Not many people can pull off the “one name” thing with any credibility. To do it successfully you have to be an icon. Or a legend.

Jim “Woj” Wojcik has certainly earned that kind of status in the Michigan journalism community. Woj has invested 60 astoundingly successful years in the journalism business as a writer, editor, teacher, adviser and always a mentor. He’s a one-of-a-kind personality who helped birth the careers of some of the best media professionals in the country while toiling in the basement of a Central Michigan University academic building surrounded by cornfields. He then helped those graduates form one of the most extensive professional media networks in the Midwest.

In 2016, Wojcik celebrated his 50th year at CMU. This month, as he has since 2000 when he “retired,” Woj welcomed into the two classes he is teaching another generation of prospective public relations and journalism professionals – students who will try their damnedest to impress him while taking in the wisdom of this Polish Shakespeare. Here are some of the recent bon mots he has dropped on our millennial PR hopefuls: • “When you find yourself in a hole … quit digging.”

• About social media “Don’t let the negative idiots take you with them.”

• “Do not corner something that is meaner than you.”

• “Answer the question, do it honestly and then shut up.”

Just rereading his comments makes me want to enroll in one of his classes. I can’t remember walking away from a conversation with him when I didn’t feel like I learned something. In fact, looking at all the top administrative communicators on this campus – myself, Assistant Director of Student Media Kathy Simon, Associate Athletic Director for Sport Administration and Communications Rob Wyman, Assistant AD for Communications & Marketing Jim Knight and Associate Vice President of University Communications Sherry Knight – shows the impact Jim’s former students continue to have at CMU.

Before he became everyone’s favorite PR professor, Woj served as the director of student publications for 28 years. Today I stand in the shadow of his legacy unable to grasp how he did the job while also volunteering at Sacred Heart, serving on the McLaren-Central Michigan Hospital board, being an active member of the Mount Pleasant Chamber of Commerce and raising two boys with his wife, Carol.

Woj is a name that has been synonymous with Central Michigan University journalism since before Woodward and Bernstein began investigating that break-in at the Watergate Hotel.

But if you were to ask him, his legacy is in the work and the service that is created by the students he has mentored and molded into some of the industry’s most lauded media professionals. All of the testimonials collected here paint a portrait of an inspirational figure – guru, mentor, influencer, game changer, innovator, teacher. He is also a good, kind man.

Woj’s greatest gift to CMU has been guiding students with his unyielding standards and the patience of a saint as they produced newspapers, yearbooks, literary journals and radio programs. He encouraged his students to take risks and pursue difficult stories and had the foresight to form a student publications advisory board to help him maintain CM Life’s independence – in other words, professionals were put in place to occasionally tell administrators to butt out.

As a student, I appreciated his feedback and listened to his advice – but we weren’t close.

When I assumed the role of CM Life adviser – a coveted position – he took me aside and we had a long, honest discussion about what was going right and what wasn’t. As I serve in that role today, there is not a week that goes by when I haven’t wondered at least once WWJD? – What Would Jim Do? I have a newfound respect for the person I first met in 1994. I still want to be Woj when I grow up. Woj has become a valued advisor and a confidant. He is truly the only person who knows what I go through, and I can’t emphasize to you strongly enough how special it is to have him in my life today.

I’m not sure what a guy has to do to be worthy of consideration for your hall of fame. But I’m pretty sure Jim has done, refined it, taught others to do it and come back around to reinvent it again.

With much respect, love and admiration I urge you to induct Jim into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame.

Dave Clark Director of Student Publications Adviser, Central Michigan Life and The Central Review Michigan Press Association, board of directors Clark6da@cmich.edu • (989) 774-1678

CM LIFE s CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY s 436 MOORE HALL s MOUNT PLEASANT, MI 48859

January 20, 2018 To The Committee to Nominate Jim Wojcik to the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame, It is my greatest joy to write this letter of support on behalf of Jim Wojcik for the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame.

Writing this letter gave me a chance to reflect on my days at Central Michigan University and just how special and instrumental Jim was in getting me to CMU. I remember coming to visit the school to meet with Jim to talk about working at CMLife, continuing my work as a reporter-intraining from the Jackson Citizen Patriot. At that time, the editor of the Cit Pat and CMU alum Sandy Petykiewicz arranged our meeting.

From the moment my mother shook Jim’s hand, he made my parents feel at ease about my coming to college so far away from home. As an only-child with a mother facing a terminal disease, my parents were supportive of my going away to college, but wanted that extra assurance that an adult away from home, as they termed it, could be responsible or help me. Jim became a part of my village away from home.

Jim assured and delivered the promise to my parents that I could work at CMLife and keep writing. Jim also took the extra initiative to enroll me in a program, The Hatchlings, at the time, that was a support and tutoring program for first-generation students, like myself. He’d covered the bases with my parents and with their blessings – and Jim’s watchful eye – I came to CMU. Throughout my college years, and I’m certain throughout many of yours on this committee, Jim has worked tirelessly to provide opportunities to budding journalists. He provided a number of educational scholarships and support to ensure students were never distracted or displaced for resources to pursue and finish their studies.

Jim also worked to build and maintain an impressive cadre of editors/publishers throughout the US. I remember during that first visit with my parents, Jim with his pipe, showed us a map of all the places CMU students were doing or had completed internships. The pins on the map were too many to count.

Jim kept meticulous track of and made every effort to place students throughout the US in newspapers, from rural weeklies to major daily news outlets. He had every connection you ever needed, and he always leant his support to make opportunities happen. Jim, at the helm of CMLife, provided countless opportunities for myself and others to start in the news room, giving CMU students competitive by-lines, and making us hirable for desirable internships and eventually jobs.

Lastly, I’d like to share in support of Jim’s nomination, a more personal note. When my mother passed away while I was studying at CMU, I was working at the Memphis Commercial Appeal newspaper, an internship I’d gotten with Jim’s help through the Spirit of Diversity Conference.

When I returned to Michigan to finish up and graduate, Jim would make calls to check in and make sure I was still on track to have my degree. I’m thankful for his compassion and show of support during one of the most difficult times of my life and I’ve never forgotten Jim for that.

All being said, Jim is deserving of this honor to be inducted in to the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame and I fully support his nomination.

Sincerely, Letitia V. Fowler, PhD Assistant Professor of Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures Michigan State University College of Arts and Letters

620 8TH AVE., NEW YORK, N.Y, 10018

To: Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame Committee January 11, 2018

Dear Committee Members: I am honored to write a letter of recommendation in support of Jim Wojcik for induction to the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame.

As the student-media adviser and a professor at Central Michigan University for more than 50 years, Jim Wojcik’s positive and lasting influence on a generation of fledgling journalists is unmatched. Hundreds of CMU students can definitively say Jim was instrumental in their career’s success in the media industry. Count me as one of those students.

During his tenure as its adviser from 1972-2001, Central Michigan Life had a tradition of being one of the best student newspapers in the nation. The reason: JIm Wojcik.

The Woj, as he is affectionately called, had a way to challenge students with a mix of professorial tutoring and parental tough love. It was sink or swim at Life. If you were willing to listen to Jim’s advice, you were on the right path. I listened to The Woj. I still look back at my career at CM Life, the independent student newspaper, as the toughest job that I have had. The staff worked long shifts, often stretching 12 hours or more, to produce a quality product. Jim expected top-notch journalism— without pep talks or badgering — and we hoped to deliver through hard work and respect for the craft. Trickle-down advice from senior editors to know-it-all underclassmen: Do things The Woj’s Way, which meant no cutting corners.

One encounter I had with Jim still resonates with me. When I was sports editor, I wrote a weekly column. I opined that a coach showed bad decorum at the state basketball final at Crisler Arena in Ann Arbor. I thought it was a well-written commentary, typed on a bleary-eyed Sunday afternoon.

Jim thought otherwise. He knew what I already knew.

“You were in Ann Arbor to cover the game, eh?” Jim asked, raising an eyebrow with a puff of his signature pipe, as he scanned the page proofs on a late Sunday night minutes before being sent to the presses.

“Uh, no. I watched it at my apartment.”

“Is that the best way to report a column? Run it this time. Add to the column that you weren’t there. And don’t do it again.”

That was enough said. The easy, lazy way out was unacceptable and unprofessional. Thanks,

Page 2 January 11, 2018

Woj, for one of the many lessons I learned and remembered during my newspaper career, the last 22 years at The New York Times.

One look at the recipients of the CMU Journalism Hall of Fame reveals one thing is in common.

Many of their paths included heart-to-heart chats in the corner office of Anspach Hall, where Jim resided during most of his tenure. Jim’s goal was to prepare his students to be ready for any challenge they may face after graduation. He did that by positive reinforcement but not sugar-coating the often-difficult profession we were entering.

Whether it is a member of the faculty, Board of Trustees or athletic department, dropping Jim’s name earned you instant credibility. He is known as a man who can be trusted. Jim’s network stretched beyond the Mount Pleasant campus, as a wide range of media organizations have similar respect. To have a person of Jim’s qualities of integrity on your side as an adviser cannot be quantified.

Jim’s influence has touched the lives of countless journalists. And his influence was most important in their collegiate years, a very tenuous period of one’s life. I am grateful that when I was 20 years old, I had him to lean on. Now 52 years old, I still would not hesitate to call The Woj for sage advice. Central Michigan journalism school graduates, many of whom had the privilege of Jim’s guidance, have a strong presence and reputation at media companies in Michigan and nationwide.

Jim’s real achievement, ultimately, is his talent to nurture others achieve their goal to be an outstanding journalist. For that alone, Jim is deserving of induction to the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame. Thank you for considering Jim Wojcik for this prestigious honor.

Sincerely, Wayne Kamidoi Art director, The New York Times Central Michigan University Journalism Hall of Fame member Central Michigan University, B.A.A., 1987 Editor-in-chief, Central Michigan Life, Fall 1986

Jan. 19, 2018 Re: Nomination of Jim Wojcik for the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame Dear members of the committee, In the fall of 2005, I was editor-in-chief of Central Michigan University’s student newspaper, Central Michigan Life. It was one of the more tumultuous periods in recent history for CMU. The university had just jacked up tuition by double digits in response to a budget crisis and continued reductions in state aid.

And five players on the CMU football team had just been indicted for their roles in the beating death of a man outside of a Mount Pleasant bar. It was a national news story and a grand jury investigation had produced evidence of a deep cover-up within the football team.

One day, during this chaotic period of new developments in the criminal case, I walked into the editor’s office at CM Life and Jim Wojcik was sitting there, waiting for me. Wojcik was a professor in the journalism department and, by then, was five years removed from his long and storied tenure as adviser of CM Life.

Usually Woj would just flag me down in the hallway if he wanted to bend my ear about something newsworthy on campus.

But here he was, waiting for me in the editor’s office — with a story tip.

“Did you know they have bottled water in the dean’s office?” Wojcik asked me.

“Umm, no,” I replied.

He started to explain that the College of Communication and Fine Arts (CCFA) had recently acquired a Culligan watercooler.

“There’s a drinking fountain outside of their office. Why on earth do they need bottled water?” Wojcik asked. “You should look into that, find out what they’re paying for this bottled water.”

At first, I thought this was some sort of joke. My response was probably irritable as I tried to explain to Wojck that we were knee-deep in the CMU football players’ criminal charges and writing about the aftershocks of the tuition hike.

“If there’s really a budget crisis, why is CCFA buying bottled water?”

Wojcik replied. “There’s your hook.”

I told Wojcik I’d get somebody to look into it. And he left the office.

Unfortunately, I never did get a reporter or one of my editor’s to look into the bottled water service three floors below the student newspaper’s office in Moore Hall.

And Wojcik never me live it down.

I graduated that December of 2005. And as I was on my way out the door, looking for a job and seeking career path advice from Wojcik, he would toss in a comment about how the public still hadn’t been fully informed on the communications college’s bottled water contract. He’s been doing it for years of correspondence and conversation since.

“I still haven't forgiven you for not finding out why Moore Hall people were getting bottle water delivered,” Wojcik wrote in an email last year.

I tell this story for purposes of nominating Jim Wojcik for the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame because his pestering inquiry has always stuck with me in my own pestering inquiries to government officials about their decision-making. It also taught me that no story is too small, especially when it comes to the use of public resources.

As a student and professional, Woj has always pushed me to dig deeper, think broader and ask questions others haven’t. His mentorship and ribbing about

the bottled water service helped shape the kind of journalism I practice today. For that, I urge the committee to make room for Jim Wojcik to be in the company of many great communicators in the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame.

Sincerely,

Chad Livengood Senior Reporter Crain’s Detroit Business clivengood@gmail.com

USA

TODAY NETWORK," Jan. 17, 2018 To whom it may concern: Many outstanding journalists hail from Michigan. And many have received the distinction of being inducted into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame. But I can think of few people who have shaped the careers of Michigan journalists more than Jim "Woj" Wojcik.

As a professor at Central Michigan University for nearly two decades, and as the long-time adviser to the student newspaper team at CM Life for 30 years prior to that, Jim has patiently guided the skills of emerging journalists over multiple generations.

During my senior year, I was assigned to cover the search for a new president at CMU. The Board of Regents chose to conduct the search with great secrecy. Under Woj's guidance, I worked to build sources, trust and insights so that I was ultimately able to secure the names of the final candidates without cooperation from the board. They were furious. They threatened to sue to learn my sources. As a young reporter the idea of going to court to defend my work was parts thrilling and terrifying. Woj coached me through the situation, detailing what was at stake.

Ultimately, the threats passed, the board's search failed to deliver a new president, and the interim president was named to the post. The story was over and time moved on.

But those conversations with Woj resonate with me. Every time I have talked with a reporter about the sourcing on a sensitive story. Every time I have talked with an angry source. Every time I have counseled a journalist on the incredible responsibilities that come with being part of this honored profession.

My own 30-year career has taken me to roles at news organizations across the country. As Vice President/Community News for the USA TODAY Network, I guide almost 4,000 journalists working in 110 newsrooms across 35 states. I honestly don't think I would have made it this far without the solid footing I received at Central Michigan University, and the incredible words of support that have come my way from Jim Wojcik through the years.

I hope you will seriously consider Jim for induction into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame. His role in shaping so many journalists is worthy of recognition.

�� Randy Lovely Vice President/Community News USA TODAY NETWORK USA TODAY Network

7950 Jones Branch Drive, McLean, VA 22102

www usatoday com

January 18, 2018

Dear Hall of Fame Selection Committee, Jim Wojcik’s influence and impact on Michigan journalism has come through the thousands of reporters and editors he has sent out to work in the state’s community, city and metropolitan newspapers for nearly 50 years.

Before we ever used the word “influencer” or “thought leader”, Jim was influencing the journalism culture of the state by maintaining a vast network of people upon whom he would call when he knew another young and eager writer, photographer, designer or videographer was ready to launch.

Creating such a network is an achievement, though in his modesty I suspect that Jim would not tout it as the accomplishment it is. Those of us who have benefitted from it on both sides — as young professionals starting out in the business and as editors seeking terrific practitioners — know it for the well maintained resource it is.

Jim’s network goes beyond keeping up with contacts through a social media account or email, though I sometimes say that Jim was Linked In for CMU grads well before Linked In existed. Jim’s connection with people is real. It begins in an environment of learning, where he has helped to shape the values and integrity of young men and women still deciding on careers. He maintains connections with authentic continued interest in our lives, with phone calls, visits and invitations back to campus. When anyone of us gets a call from another CMU graduate who says,“Wojcik said to call”, we respond. Sure, it’s out of respect for Jim. But it is in self-interest too. Anyone Jim sends will be worth our time.

Case in point: Early in January I got an email from a freelance writer I did not know. He started his pitch letter with this line: “First, a story about Woj.” The writer entertained me for two paragraphs with a tale of Jim’s involvement in getting him his first job (in Adrian, Michigan, where another CMU grad was editor of the paper.) The story evoked my own memory of working at CM Life when Jim was advisor – complete with the detail of Jim’s Tab-drinking habit – which instantly ‘connected’ me to the writer.

I was taken with that story, then with the pitch, about a 64-year-old woman who will do her last Iditarod race. Matt Crossman, who graduated 20 or more years behind me, will go to Alaska in March to do the story for AARP.org. That’s one small moment happening between two Jim Wojcik people that will result in bringing a story of survival, perseverance and finishing what you start to the millions who read AARP.org.

We all have stories about how Jim helped us get this job or that, for me it was the first three reporting positions in Traverse City, Ypsilanti, and Battle Creek.

Yet his advice is as important to his influence as his Rolodex.

Jim Wojcik is a man of integrity and principle. To this day I make decisions about journalistic practice based on the ethics I learned with Jim. He is a man who started his career on an Underwood typewriter but whose currency with best practices helped him bring the journalism department into the digital age.

He is a teacher at his core and whether in an advisor role at CM Life, or in a classroom, or over drinks at the local bar, he has imparted countless wise words.

He helped me make career as well as personal decisions because he listens with laser focus, a trait that makes every one of us who get to know him feel as if we have a special relationship with him.

I know Jim would be honored to be included in The Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame. But more important, it is the right honor for him. Michigan Journalism, from Escanaba to Detroit, is the strong profession it is today in large part because of this unassuming, behind-the-scenes caretaker of it.

Sincerely,

Lorrie Lynch Director, Features Content AARP Media Bachelor of Arts in Journalism, CMU 1975

Capital Gazette Communications The Capital, Maryland Gazette, Bowie Blade-News, Crofton Crier

Annapolis, Maryland

January 10, 2018

Michigan Journalism Hallof Fame Committee School of Journalism, Communication Arts and Sciences 404 Wilson Road East Lansing,Ml 48824

To Hall of Fame judges: I

am privileged to recommend Jim Wojick to the Michigan Journalism Hallof Fame.

was among the many Central Michigan University students (Class of 1970) who prospered under the tutelage of Jim as both an instructor and adviser to the campus newspaper, Central Michigan Life. To appreciate Jim's role as an adviser, you have to understand the campus turmoil during the late 1960s when the Vietnam War was raging and student unrest was a daily theme. The newspaper played a I

pivotal role in bridging the student body and a changing administration. As a reporter and later as an editor, I was among a horde of eager students to challenge an administration that still had control of the newspaper.

However difficult and bracing many of the stories and editorials, Jim was resolute in standing behind the staff and protecting the independent voice of the newspaper. He offered sage advice, asked challenging questions of us and kept the staff on a responsible course with a nudge here and a nudge there. He embodied the definition of "adviser." He never betrayed his sense of ethics or the university for the sake of popularity, but instead gave us straight, candid advise.

Jim's understanding of the profession also guided us through innovations, broadbning our coverage area and pursuing investigative journalism. As an instructor, he was seen as the most interesting and

challenging. He gave us the foundation on which to build our careers.

That Jim has so many admirers and appreciative journalists today speaks volumes for his skill in nurturing budding writers. I stand among them. Had it not been for Jim's encouragement and support, could easily have chosen a different career path. But with his wise counsel and push, I pursued a newspaper career that lasted for 43 years. I retired as editor - true to my CMU degree - in 24L2.

Please do not underestimate the value of a campus newspaper adviser to the field of journalism. How

like me, pursued a career because of an instructor? How many didn't because they were not so fortunate to have someone to learn from like Jim? How many can look back many reporters and

editort

I

after 45 years and say they wouldn't be here today if it weren't for their college journalism adviser and instructor?

of my long and satisfying career in journalism were established at CMU under the friendship and guidance of Jim Wojick.

I say that. The roots

Sincerely,

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Tom Marquardt Editor and Publisher, Ret, Ca pita l-Gazette Communications, Annapolis,

MD

January 11, 2018

To the members of the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame selection committee,

This is one of the most difficult letters I have ever had to write.

Not because I have nothing to say.

Not because the subject matter is boring.

Not because it’s a delicate topic.

Rather, it is a difficult letter to compose because I am writing it about a journalism god, a legend, the grandfather of CM Life: Jim Wojcik.

…And I don’t want to screw it up.

How this man isn’t already a member of the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame confuses me. That is, until I remember his humility, his unwillingness to cooperate with anything that involves the spotlight being turned on him and his refusal to believe he is anything special.

I’m here to tell you he IS.

In fact, he is special not only to me but to every student and colleague he has worked with in his over 50 years of teaching, advising and editing. Go into any PR office in the state and I guarantee you someone there knows him. Go into any newspaper office, the same. Try the Public Affairs Office at the University of Michigan or Celebrity Journalist, Lorrie Lynch or Dow Chemical Company’s Sarah Opperman or Valenti and Foster’s Terry Foster. All the same. Jim Wojcik was a critical part of their beginning.

He is on a first name basis with any CMU president who served during his time there. He is influential in the community, largely because of his willingness to serve and the talented students he has sent its way. He was one of the first inductees into the CMU Journalism Hall of Fame, setting the standard for others who followed. He worked closely with Lem Tucker, who established an annual full ride journalism scholarship to minority students. And when a gay student was chosen several years ago, he had the courage to stand up to critics and defend the true meaning of the word minority.

I’ve seen him so angry at something he feels is unfair that he makes every person in the seats surrounding him shiver in fear, just before boarding the Jim Wojcik believer train. He’s a leader, an innovator, an influencer, a life-changer. Most of all, he’s a teacher.

Whether he was guiding CM Life reporters to be the watchdog of the university or championing their causes with his unconditional support, he was always a teacher. I remember Charlie Cain’s (HOF 2015) daughter Katie telling me about a computer

crash hours before she was scheduled to present her final project in his capstone class. She went to him in tears, begging for an extension. He looked at her and said, “Class begins in three hours. Figure out what you’re going to do.” She left his office, angry, and came back with one of the best presentations he had seen. “You nailed it, Katie,” he said. And I’d be willing to bet she has remembered that lesson many times under the stress of deadline. He forced her to problem-solve.

Jim Wojcik was a force in 1971 when I enrolled at CMU as a freshman, determined to change the world as a journalist. He was a force from 1998-2007 when I sent dozens of Midland Dow journalists to CMU, where they flourished under his tutelage. He was a force in 2009 when I came back to CMU as a journalism faculty member, determined to follow in his footsteps as an instructor.

To me Jim Wojcik is a mentor, a best friend, the kielbasa kid. My life has been richer and certainly more interesting because of him. It would make my career to have Jim Wojcik join me in the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame. He should have been there long before me.

Respectfully,

Betsy Pollard Rau

To: Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame Selection Committee From: Dr. David Weinstock Re: Jim Wojcik Date: January 19, 2018 So, I’d like to stick my oar into the conversation of why Jim Wojcik should be inducted into the Michigan Journalism Hall of Fame. The long and short of it is there is no single journalism educator in Michigan, and perhaps in the history of Michigan, who has mentored and advised more top-notch media professionals than Jim Wojcik.

And I say that while simultaneously acknowledging Bill Cote and Eric Freedman at Michigan State University would probably finish tied for second for the honor. Jim’s advantage is that he was at it longer and stayed put at CMU throughout his career.

I arrived at CMU at the tail-end of Jim’s tenure as student media adviser. However, I did have the pleasure of being his colleague when he made the transition from media adviser to adjunct instructor.

He was the only adjunct in our department, at the time, to enjoy a rolling three-year contract.

Some of the CM Life alums who were Wojcik-era grads include Steve Fect & Kyle Keener, who, at the time I worked at CMU, were the photo editors for the Detroit News and the Detroit Free Press. Also, back then, Terry Foster was the Detroit News’ sports editor and John Gonzalez, was then and continues to be the GR Press’ entertainment editor, both products of the Wojcik era.

Still other top media talents he mentored include Steve Jessmore (a photojournalist who won a Kennedy Award), Sherry Knight (CMU University Relations VP) and Tim Penning, GVSU PR prof. Ken Stevens, once the photo editor of the Muskegon Chronicle, was a quietly brilliant photojournalist who lived and worked in southwest Michigan before his untimely death. There’s also a USA Today VP, Randy Lovely, who came out of the Wojcik era.

There was a time when the majority of editorial employees in the Newhouse chain of Michigan newspapers were CMU grads; in fact, in the late 1990s and early 2000s, all of its editors, with the exception of the Traverse City Record-Eagle editor, were CMU alums and Wojcik acolytes. CMU strongholds were The Grand Rapids Press, The Muskegon Chronicle, The Jackson Citizen-Patriot, The Saginaw News, the Midland Daily News and the Ann Arbor News.

As a colleague, Jim was nothing short of phenomenal. He is singly responsible for resurrecting the journalism portion of CMU’s Integrative Public Relations program. Jim handpicked his successor at CM Life, Neil Hopp, a CM Life alum, who lead his student journalists to six Pacemaker Awards…another potential Michigan Journalism Hall of Famer. Woj was pretty good at corralling alums when he needed them.

And even more interesting, whenever he needed to talk to the university president, Jim had a direct line to the three who held that office while I was there.

He’s a good one, who belongs in MSU’s Hall of Fame for all the great journalists he fostered over the years.

CM Life

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BY TERRI FINCH HAMILTON, ’83 FORMER CM LIFE REPORTER AND NEWS EDITOR

Student newspaper alums took what they learned on campus and turned it into newsworthy careers IT ALL BEGAN BY WALKING THROUGH THE CM LIFE OFFICE DOOR FOR THE FIRST TIME, KNEES PROBABLY A BIT SHAKY. From there, “Lifers” learn hands on what it takes to produce one of the top college newspapers in the country.

CM Life is a big deal: It’s earned the Associated Collegiate Press Pacemaker award – the highest national honor in college journalism – more than a dozen times since 1975. Most recently, the Michigan Press Association and Michigan Collegiate Press Association recognized CM Life as the 2015 College Newspaper of the Year for its division.

It’s the perfect training ground for eager, driven journalism students.

CM Life alumni are leading national news coverage, working at global communications firms, designing pages seen by millions and putting their stamp on the world in lots of other ways.

But so much more than great college journalism happens in that newsroom, whether in the iconic basement of Anspach Hall years ago or in the sleeker Moore Hall office today.

“We created a sense of community,” says Jim Wojcik, who was the campus newspaper’s adviser for nearly 30 years and a father figure to many Lifers.

Going back decades, working at CM Life has meant late nights laying out the paper three times a week, spirited debates over controversial and hard-hitting stories, and so much takeout food.

Bonding happens there. And the start of something big. >

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PHOTO BY JAKE MAY, CHIEF PHOTOJOURNALIST, THE FLINT JOURNAL

Jim Wojcik: ‘He’s everybody’s HUNDREDS OF CM LIFE ALUMNI HEAR JIM WOJCIK IN THEIR HEADS.

when I was an editor, he came to me, suggesting I hire his students.”

No use trying to tune him out.

“He’s everybody’s dad.”

“‘Never burn a bridge.’ ‘Don’t sweat the small stuff.’ When I face a professional or personal decision about how I should behave, I hear his voice,” says Sheila Gruber McLean, ‘82, a former editor of CM Life and now senior vice president at MSLGROUP, a global communications firm.

That is, if your dad is funny, sarcastic, honest, doesn’t miss a thing and won’t put up with any crap.

“And it’s not just me,” she says. “Hundreds of people will tell you the same thing.”

Michigan Associated Press, Wayne State University’s journalism department and the Metro Detroit Society of Professional Journalists.

He also played a key role in covering the Flint water crisis – one of the most devastating public health crises in state history.

Livengood was named one of the nation’s best state political reporters of 2015 by The Fix, a daily political blog for The Washington Post.

He honed those skills at CM Life.

“I learned how to dive into stories that are sometimes uncomfortable for public officials, how to hold public officials accountable,” he says. “I learned not just how to write the story, but how to get the story. Critical thinking.

Analysis of documents. Looking under all the right rocks. All things I’ve used in my career.”

He takes it all very seriously.

“I consider journalism a form of public service,” Livengood says. “I like getting up in the morning and knowing what I do is important to people.

It’s important that they have information and that they use it to vote.

“I really do love this job. It gets me out of bed every day.” >

As adviser for the student newspaper from 1972 until 2001, Wojcik was responsible for two significant upgrades.

He transformed it from a tabloid into a broadsheet newspaper, and he made it financially self-supporting.

“Money gives you power and freedom,” says Wojcik, who teaches in the CMU journalism department and advises two student public relations groups. “So we built up the advertising program to get a good stream of revenue coming in. We didn’t have to ask the administration or the student government for money. We could cover anything we wanted.”

They did and still do.

CM Life has a stellar national reputation and a host of national and state awards.

Editors know a CM Life alum is a great hire – you’ll find them in successful careers all over the country.

Where? Ask Woj. “Somehow, he always knew what you were up to,” says Wayne Kamidoi, ‘87, art director at The New York Times, “without you even telling him.”

“He was a father figure to a lot of students, myself included,” says Sandy Petykiewicz, ’75, who retired in 2011 as editor and publisher of The Jackson Citizen Patriot.

“He helped a lot of us get jobs. Then,

She often did.

“My philosophy, as corny as it sounds, was to push every student as hard as I could, so they could work to the best of their ability,” Wojcik says. “Some, I could push right to the wall. I could challenge them and frustrate them, and they’d get better, just to prove the old Polack wrong.

“I’m proud of them,” Wojcik says. “They accomplished things because they wanted to. I might have pushed a hot button, prodded at the right time.”

He pauses.

“Or maybe I just listened,” he says. “I did a lot of listening.

“We were family down there,” Wojcik says of the students who worked in the Life offices in the basement of Anspach Hall.

“We worked on the whole person. The common goal was they wanted to be good journalists. My end goal was to make them feel they could do it.” •

VITA â&#x20AC;&#x201C; JAMES (JIM) WOJCIK

Work Address: Journalism Department Central Michigan University 409 Moore Hall Mt. Pleasant, MI 48859 Phone Fax E-mail

(989) 774-4339 (989) 774-7114 Wojci1jj@Cmich.Edu

1. ACADEMIC/PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE PRESENT TITLE: Associate Professor of Journalism, Fixed-Term, Central Michigan University

EDUCATION: 1968, Master of Arts in Journalism, Central Michigan University 1965, Bachelor of Science in Education, Central Michigan University

EXPERIENCE (ACADEMIC): 2000-Present, Central Michigan University----Associate Professor, Department of Journalism 1972-2001, Central Michigan University----Director of Student Media, Central Michigan LIFE 1972-2001, Central Michigan University----Director, Central Michigan University Sports Network 1971-1972, Central Michigan University----Assistant Director of Development 1968-1969, Central Michigan University----Instructor, Department of Journalism 1966-1968, Central Michigan University----Sports Information Director, Public Relations Department

II. PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND EXPERIENCE (NON-ACADEMIC): 1969-1971, Mt. Pleasant Daily Times-News (Now the Mt. Pleasant Morning Sun), Editor 1966-1968, Central Michigan University, Sports Information Director, Information Services (Now University Communications) 1971-1972, Central Michigan University, Assistant Director of Development 1965-1966, Mt. Pleasant Daily Times-News, Sports Editor

III. SCHOLARLY/OTHER ACTIVITIES Numerous presentations made to business groups, educational leaders, associations and graduate classes/seminars in educational administration and sports administration. Topics include managing a media crisis, media training, public relations and marketing.

Listed below are professional activities.

2011-Present, Coordinator, Michigan Community College Press Association Annual Conference.

2012-Present, Adviser, PRSSA Chapter 2012-Present, Adviser, PR Central, a student-run public relations agency.

2000-Present, Internship Coordinator, Department of Journalism.

2000-Present, Internship Coordinator, Integrative Public Relations Program.

Listed below are recent presentations.

February 23, 2006: Presentation, 90 minutes, “Working with the Media”, The Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce sponsored program, The Publicity Boot Camp.

March 15, 2006: Presentation, one hour, “The Significance of Local Editorials”, to The Community Editorial Board of the Mt. Pleasant Morning Sun.

April 16, 2006: Presentation, three hours, “Promotional Strategies, Marketing Plans and Market Research, Central Michigan University Entrepreneurial Center and Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce sponsored program, The Entrepreneurial Institute.

November 9, 2006: Presentation, three hours, “Working with the Media”, Eastern Michigan University Center for Regional and National Security sponsored program, to the School of Police and Command Officers.

February 15, 2007: Presentation, 90 minutes, “Media Relations”, The Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce sponsored program, The Publicity Boot Camp.

May 25, 2007: Presentation, 90 minutes, “Understanding Positive Media Relations”, Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce and Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation Leadership Institute.

February 2, 2008: Moderator, workshop panel on “Reporting Techniques”, Michigan Press Association annual convention.

February, 2006,2007, 2008: Judge for Wade H. McCree Journalism Awards for the Advancement of Justice, sponsored by The State Bar Association of Michigan.

November 13, 2007 to present: Collaborating Editor of Vision MidMichigan, a regional business e-news publication serving seven counties in Central Michigan, published twice monthly.

February 9, 2009: Coordinated panel discussion, “Media Stereotypes of Native Americans”, sponsored by the CMU Department of Journalism and CMU Diversity Office.

February 13, 2009: Presentation, “Working with the Media”, Rollie Dennison Leadership Institute, co-sponsored by Mt. Pleasant Area Community Foundation and Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce.

November 18, 2010: Presentation, “Back to Basics: Becoming A Better Writer”, White Pine Chapter, Public Relations Society of America.

IV. AWARDS/HONORS 1993, Recipient of Central Michigan University Centennial Award.

1998, Recipient of Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce Eagle Award for Volunteer work.

February, 2002, Recipient of The Outstanding Citizen of the Year Award in Isabella County.

April, 2003, Recipient of CMU Faculty Distinguished Service Award.

November, 2003, Elected to CMU Journalism Hall of Fame.

April 2005, Recipient of Distinguished Leader Award from The Office of Student Life.

2010-2011, Nominated for CMU Outstanding Teaching Award.

April, 2010, Faculty Appreciation Award from CMU Athletic Department “For being a positive influence in the lives of students.”

2012-2013, Nominated for CMU Outstanding Teaching Award.

V. PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS 2011-Present, Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) 2011-Present, PRSA Educator’s Academy 2011-Present, Member, White Pine Chapter, PRSSA

VI. COMMUNITY SERVICE Current member, past chair (five years) Board of Directors, McLaren-Central Michigan Hospital, Mt. Pleasant.

Member, Strategic Planning, Governance Committees, McLaren-Central Michigan Hospital, Mt. Pleasant.

Chair, Administration Commission, Sacred Heart Parish, Mt. Pleasant.

Member, Development Committee, Sacred Heart Parish, Mt. Pleasant.

Member, Mt. Pleasant Area Chamber of Commerce.

Member, Art Reach of Central Michigan.

Member, Board of Directors, Mt. Pleasant Country Club.

Member, Chippewa Watershed Conservancy.

JAMES WOJCIK BIOGRAPHY Central Michigan University associate professor of journalism Jim Wojcik joined the Department of Journalism in the spring of 2000 after serving almost 30 years as director of student media. In his current role as the department's internship coordinator, he is the link between the professional world and about 100 students each year in journalism and public relations.

After graduating from CMU in 1965, Wojcik worked as a sports editor at the Mt. Pleasant Daily TimesNews before returning to his alma mater as sports information director and working in the university’s public relations department.

Following two years as sports information director, he taught journalism for a year in the department before leaving CMU to become editor of the Mt. Pleasant Daily Times-News. He returned to CMU as director of student media in 1971. He worked to establish the Student Media Board to safeguard the editorial independence of student publications, including Central Michigan Life, the campus newspaper, and he was instrumental in creating the Lem Tucker Scholarship, a four-year full-ride scholarship for students who promote the involvement and success of minorities in journalism. Several dozen students have earned the award since its inception in 1997.

Born in Detroit, Wojcik graduated from Clio Area High School. He has a bachelor’s degree in history and a master’s degree in journalism from CMU. His wife Carol retired from CMU after serving for 15 years as the director of the student disability program.

They have two sons, Mark and Scott.