stet
Michigan Interscholastic Press Association presents
FEBRUARY 2014 VOL. 40, NO. 2 WWW.MIPAMSU.ORG
in this issue Adviser Watch 4 Remembering Jeff Nardone 10 Marking Scholastic Journalism Week 12 Be part of MIPA Judging Day 14 Photo by James Coller L’Anse Creuse HS North Division 1, First Place Sports Action Photo 2013 Individual Newspaper Contest
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.
WHAT’S HAPPENING
Waterford Kettering adviser named Teacher of the Year Former MIPA president and current JEA liaison Brian Wilson was recognized as Waterford Foundation’s Teacher of the Year for his work at Kettering High School. W i l s o n teaches English, creative writing and journalism, advising the Kismet yearbook and Murmur newspaper. Wilson also serves as the liaison between JEA and the National Coun- Wilson cil of Teachers of English and teaches at the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop.
MIPA launches new summer workshop fundraising tool
MIPA has launched a new crowdfunding website to help students raise money to attend the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop in August. SponsorMe, available at sponsorme. mipamsu.org, allows students to create a
campaign to raise money from family and friends toward their workshop registration. The system works similar to crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo, allowing students to raise money from anyone in any location via the Web. Donations can be made in any amount and will be applied directly to the student’s registration cost. The site tallies how much money students raise as donations come in. If students are unable to attend the workshop, donations will benefit MIPA’s workshop scholarship fund. SponsorMe is free for students to use.
Learn more about the video scholarship and other summer workshop scholarships at mipamsu.org/events/mipa2014. Scholarship applications are due May 31.
New scholarship helps video students attend #MIPA2014
MIPA has launched a new scholarship to help a student take a video class at the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop. The scholarship is supported by donations, and may be given as a full or partial scholarship depending on how much MIPA is able to raise. Donations can be made via MIPA’s website or by using the donation form on the last page of this edition of Stet. Donations to MIPA, a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, are tax deductible to the full extent provided by law. Please consult your tax adviser. Scholarship recipients will be selected, in part, based on financial need.
MIPA OFFICERS 2013-2014 EXECUTIVE BOARD
Julia Satterthwaite, President Jeremy Whiting, 1st Vice President/New Media Chair Tracy Anderson, 2nd Vice President Sara-Beth Badalamente, Secretary Jesse Sutherland, Treasurer Shari Adwers, Trustee Sarah Ashman, Trustee Kate McCallum, Trustee Pam Bunka, Yearbook Chair C.E. Sikkenga, Newspaper Chair Diane Herder, Video/Broadcast Chair COMMITTEES
Alexis Bunka, Membership Chair Rod Satterthwaite, Legislative Chair Gloria Olman, Hall of Fame Chair Gayle Martin, Curriculum/Special Projects Chair Jody Mackey, Middle School Chair Brian Wilson, JEA Liaison
Photo Courtesy of Bradley Wilson
Pell honored with JEA’s Lifetime Achievement Award Former MIPA executive director Cheryl Pell was honored with the Journalism Education Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the National High School Journalism Convention in Boston in November. MIPA Executive Director Jeremy Steele (pictured above) accepted the award on Pell’s behalf from JEA President Mark Newton. Pell is a senior specialist teaching in the MSU School of Journalism.
ABOUT STET
Stet is the newsletter of the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association and is published online by the MIPA executive director and MSU students. Send letters to the editor and advertising inquiries to mipa@msu.edu
MIPA STAFF
Jeremy W. Steele, Executive Director Chad Sanders, Workshop Director Kelsey Parkinson, Conferences and Workshops Assistant Haley Kluge, Contest and Membership Assistant Alex Everard, Social Media Manager www.mipamsu.org Twitter: @MIPAMSU Michigan State University School of Journalism 404 Wilson Road, Room 305 East Lansing, MI 48824 Phone: 517-353-6761 Fax: 517-355-7710
UPCOMING DATES March
1 14 22 3-7
Judging Day One-Day Workshop
April
Spring Awards & On-Site Contests
August
Summer Workshop
PRESIDENT’S COLUMN
Getting staff to gel is a top priority
Jeff Nardone 1994-1996 President Grosse Pointe South HS
On top of reworking the nameplate or cover, assigning, writing and editing stories, taking Homecoming pictures and the hundreds of other activities that your staff is involved in outside of the publication, they still need to accomplish one goal that will set the tone for the rest of the year: They need to start to gel. Of all of the things an adviser can do for a staff, if they can get them to become cohesive enough to stick together yet flexible enough to accept and work through obstacles, then that gel will hold them together through anything. Here are some adhesives that have been tried in the past. Get the staff together outside of school Go to a staff member’s house for potluck and a video or two. Go to a local pizza place (video games are a plus). Go on a hayride. Go to a movie. It must be outside of school to be effective, and remember you will not get 100 percent participation. That’s OK. If you get a majority, you’ve made progress.
Get staff shirts Design something the staff can be proud of and get them soon. The staff will get use out of them and if you get nice sweatshirts, they are nice for casual days for you. Celebrate birthdays When it is a staff member’s birthday, have the person with the previous birthday bring in a treat. We celebrate summer birthdays as half birthdays, and it helps break up the January-February blahs. Awards/Rewards We give out paper plate awards on some Fridays to celebrate the weekend and the issue that just passed. They are mock awards that try to recognize as many staff members as possible. Also, I like to put candy in staff boxes on Mondays. Getting to them through their stomach is an easy way to please. There are hundreds of other ways to do this, but here are some ideas to kick around. If you want to send me other ideas, we could print them in STET. Remember, these are not all the adviser’s job. You advise and initiate, but pick someone responsible on staff to be in charge. If you are successful, and your staff gels, you have created loyalty, which is probably the most underestimated emotion used when an adviser deals with a staff. Originally published in the October/November 1995 issue of Stet. Jeff Nardone was the adviser of The Tower at Grosse Pointe South HS.
EDITOR’S NOTE: This space usually is reserved for MIPA’s president. But MIPA President Julia Satterthwaite and I thought it would be more appropriate to yield this month to a former president. Jeff Nardone was a huge fan of MIPA, and we were huge fans of him. How could you not be? Jeff was among the nicest guys you could ever meet. He was generous with his time and devoted to his students. He had a gift to make everyone around him feel special. He was everything you want in a teacher. We were heartbroken when he died Nov. 3 after a battle with T-cell lymphoma. He was only 48. There were a lot more deadlines left in Jeff. There was so much more we wanted to learn from him. Jeff did a couple tours of duty on MIPA’s board, serving as president from 1994 to 1996 and writing a column for each issue of Stet during his term. Even a decade later, his advice seems timeless. We’ve collected Jeff’s Stet columns in a collection at issuu.com/mipamsu. Jeff impacted the lives of thousands of students — in his own classroom and at MIPA events. He was a regular speaker at the Fall Conference and a long-time instructor at the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop at Michigan State University. You can learn more about Jeff on page 8. We miss Jeff so much, but we also are so thankful for the time we spent with him. — Jeremy Steele, MIPA Executive Director
The Tower
A note found in Jeff Nardone’s desk and included in a 16-page tribute edition published by the The Tower after Nardone died in November.
ADVISER WATCH
Bunka brings it to Ford By Alex Everard
Alexis Bunka has only been advising since 2011 but she has a long history with MIPA. Her mother, Pam Bunka, is the long-time newspaper and yearbook adviser at Fenton HS. This school year, Alexis Bunka took over two new roles, as MIPA’s membership chair and as the yearbook adviser at Henry Ford II HS in Sterling Heights.
Courtesy Photo
Alexis Bunka working with a student at Henry Ford II HS in Sterling Heights. Bunka is a secondgeneration adviser and MIPA volunteer.
MIPA: When and where did you first become passionate about journalism? Alexis Bunka: On my high school year-
book staff at Fenton High School. During my senior year our goal was to get a Gold Crown. When we went to New York and won a Gold Crown, that’s when I decided journalism was what I wanted to do. I wanted people to experience that and see their work published. How did you go about getting your first teaching position at Utica?
I loved being a student in the Utica community, so naturally when I was being placed for my student teaching, that’s where I wanted to go. Stacy Smale was the journalism adviser I wanted to work for, and she wasn’t set on having an intern. In fact, I had to sort of convince her that she did. I was calling people, sending emails and having mutual colleagues put in a good word for me. What was your experience like student teaching at Utica?
I loved being a student teacher at Utica. It was the first time I ever worked closely with a newspaper staff. I loved seeing the kids get their awards when I judged with MIPA after watching them create the pages. What was it like going to Carman-Ainsworth as a full-time teacher?
They didn’t have a yearbook. My first year I had four students, so it was a growing process. They didn’t have any standards set, so we worked together and set some. The first year our students won nine individual awards. After leaving Carman-Ainsworth, you returned to your roots in the Utica district teaching at Henry Ford II. Can you describe what that was like?
I’m extremely happy to be back in the Utica community. I was excited to be in a district that supports journalism so much, and it’s amazing to work with Stacy Smale again. Every high school within Utica competes through MIPA. Being a part of such an amazing journalism department is a dream come true. What are some important lessons that you try to instill in your students?
I think accuracy is crucial. Making sure you’re giving the right facts, but also that in the end you’re letting everyone who is a part of the story have their voice heard. Representing all angles of a story accurately is crucial. What does MIPA mean to you?
To me, MIPA is the standard for high school journalism. I think it’s one of those great organizations where advisers can get assistance and advice from other advisers. It’s a tightknit support group. My students have learned through the fall and spring conferences how big of a deal MIPA is, and they get excited. I’ve pulled out judging packets for my Henry Ford II students so they get to soak it in and see what work is ahead of them if they want to achieve excellence. What is your relationship like with your mom, Pam Bunka?
When I was in eighth grade, she said, “You’re going to be a photographer, so which staff would you like to be on?” It was kind of like when your parents put you in a sport be-
QUICK LOOK:
ALEXIS BUNKA 2005
Graduated from Fenton HS
2009
Graduated from MSU with bachelor’s degree in journalism
2010
Student teacher at Utica HS
2011
Began advising yearbook at Carman-Ainsworth HS
2012
Graduated from MSU with English degree
2013
Moved to Henry Ford II HS, teaching English, advising yearbook
fore they know which one you’ll like. I got my first camera in third grade, so that was automatically instilled as a part of my life. Photography was really important to both of us and it still is. She never really pushed me towards journalism or teaching, she just kind of opened the door. Now, as an adviser, I look at her as a mentor. I call her daily for support and questions. She’s always there. Whenever we have dinner, we talk about how to make our jobs better, how our students are doing, how to cover things, and how to handle specific situations. I really enjoy the roles she has played in my life and professional development.
2013
MIDDLE SCHOOL
CONFERENCE NOV. 7 @ MSU UNION
SUMMER ONLINE JOURNALISM EDUCATION VISUAL TOPICS:
PHOTOJOURNALISM FOR ADVISERS MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY
ADVISER COURSES
SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE
MICHIGAN INTERSCHOLASTIC PRESS ASSOCIATION
JRN 808, July 1 to Aug. 18, 2014 • Online! Take your photography to the next level with training from the Michigan State University School of Journalism. We offer options to meet your needs: Take this class for graduate-level credit to meet state or district professional development requirements, to work toward a journalism endorsement, as part of MSU’s journalism master’s degree or not for credit for a reduced rate.
Contact the MIPA office at 517-353-6761 or mipa@msu.edu to learn more.
FALL CONFERENCE
RE-CAP
OCT. 21, 2013 @
LANSING CENTER 94 SCHOOLS 98 ADVISERS 1,722 STUDENTS
STUDENT FEEDBACK ABOUT FALL CONFERENCE “I learned a lot about new techniques to use in our designs. I’m excited to try them this year.” Krystin Verran, Grand Ledge HS
“This is our newspaper’s first year (coming to fall conference), so it’s a blessing that we will all get to share our ideas and what we’ve learned.” Fahim Kamaly, Hamtramck HS
“I was excited to be taught by professionals that I don’t normally get to learn from in class.” Taylor Stevens, Eisenhower HS
Tinker Tour visits with Michigan students at conference By Alex Everard
As the last buses pulled away from the Lansing Center, Mary Beth Tinker and Mike Hiestand stood and chatted about the 2013 MIPA Fall Conference, satisfied after speaking to one of their largest crowds. Armbands scattered the tables alongside stacks of assorted MIPA-member publications in the wake of the 1,847 Fall Conference attendees. “That was a good one,” Tinker said. “There were so many kids—I really like speaking to the larger crowds. It’s exciting.” Tinker’s right-hand man and partner in crime on her nationwide journey agreed. “Yes, that was certainly one of our larger crowds,” Hiestand said. “It’s so great to see all those kids get excited about their First Amendment rights.” Tinker received the celebrity treatment from some students, while others inquired about exactly why she was famous and what she was doing in Lansing. Brione Clay, a junior at Southfield Lathrup HS, explained how she was unaware of Tinker’s first amendment fight. “I learned a lot about the Tinker Tour today,” she said. “I didn’t know about the armbands until today. I didn’t know that it all started from protesting the Vietnam War.” According to Tinker, interacting with young people is one of the main reasons she decided to embark on the Tinker Tour and one of the main reasons she wanted to speak to MIPA students. “I never get tired of telling my story. A lot of the time when I’m explaining everything that happened and how I stood up for what I believed in, the kids I’m talking to will look a little surprised,” Tinker said. “When I tell them that all of that happened to me when I was their age, sometimes even younger, their eyes light up. It’s like they suddenly realize how important their voice is. “Age doesn’t mean anything when it comes to your freedom of speech,” Tinker said. “That’s what makes the First Amendment so great.”
REMEMBERING
JEFF
When Grosse Pointe South HS teacher Jeff Nardone died on Nov. 3, his students at The Tower sprung into production mode. They published a 16-page special edition about their adviser. This is an excerpt of their work.
Remembering a legacy: A job for others, a lifestyle for Nardone Jeff Nardone taught his journalism students to never begin their stories with a name, unless that name was truly important
D
BY THE TOWER STAFF 2013-14
uring his 23 years of educating in classrooms around the country, Nardone taught his students many lessons. He taught students how to recognize their strengths. He taught students to take risks and accept challenges. He taught students that the paper was never about them, or him – it was about every single person that picked up The Tower. On Sunday, Nov. 3, Nardone passed away at the age of 48 from T-cell lymphoma. He is survived by his wife, DeEtte, two sons, Kal and Cy, and stepdaughter, Shannon. Although he is no longer here, Nardone will always be remembered by the hundreds of colleagues and thousands of students he affected throughout his life. Following his death, there was an outpouring of love and memories from people across the country. Students, friends and colleagues took to Twitter and Facebook to share their memories of Nardone. A Facebook page, “Jeff Nardone Fan Club,” was created for the man that never had a Facebook account. As of Feb. 17, 2014, there were 1,167 likes. A day after his death, the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association created a scholarship fund in honor of Nardone. These are a few of the ways he impacted others: As a teacher: Prior to teaching at South, Nardone taught for three years at East Detroit High School. He previously said that although he enjoyed his time teaching there, he knew as soon as he looked at South that it was where
he was meant to be. In his words, it simply had the “wow factor.” “He walked right into that Tower staff room and made it his own,” English teacher Meaghan Dunham said. “And kept the reputation, if not even building the reputation, of this internationally recognized program.” Despite being only the third adviser of The Tower since it began in 1929, Nardone showed eagerness when beginning this new challenge, English teacher John Monaghan said. “When Jeff became the new Tower adviser, I asked him if he was intimidated, and he said he wasn’t at all,” said Monaghan. “He didn’t rebuild the program, he kept it strong. He incorporated technology, cared so much for the staff, and treated his students like adult journalists. That’s best shown with students calling him Jeff; he really saw students on a professional level.” Nardone always held his students to the highest expectations, English teacher Harry Campion said. Although they were not always able to meet these expectations, they would constantly try to reach this bar. [see NARDONE on page 10]
MIPA establishes Jeff Nardone Scholarship for the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop Jeff Nardone’s legacy to MIPA and scholastic journalism will continue through a new scholarship created by the organization in his honor. MIPA’s board on Nov. 4 established the Jeff Nardone Scholarship for the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop to honor Nardone’s dedication to the organization and scholastic journalism. Nardone died Nov. 3 after a battle with T-cell lymphoma. He was 48. Nardone was a long-time member of MIPA’s board, serving as MIPA’s president from 1994-1996. For years, he led the organization’s selection of the Student Journalist Staff, an annual honor MIPA bestows on the top graduating student journalists in Michigan. He also was a frequent speaker at MIPA conferences, a frequent judge in the organization’s annual statewide contests and was an instructor at the MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop at Michigan State University, where he most recently taught the sports writing class. Nardone taught English and journalism at Grosse Pointe South High School, where he advised the award-winning weekly newspaper, The Tower. Nardone’s students won more than 800 individual awards from state and national organizations. The Tower was inducted into MIPA’s Hall of Fame in 2002, as a charter member. To be inducted into the MIPA Hall of Fame, a student media outlet must accumulate nine Spartan Awards in a 10-year span. During his career, he was recognized numerous times by state and national organizations for his contributions to scholastic journalism. Nardone received the Golden Pen Award, MIPA’s highest honor for an adviser, in 1998 and he was named a Distinguished Adviser by the Dow Jones News Fund in 1999. He received the Gold Key from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association in 2008. In 2011, the National Scholastic Press Association honored Nardone with its highest award for journalism educators, the Pioneer Award. Those wishing to support this new scholarship may make a donation by credit card at mipamsu.org or use the gift form on page 16 to send a donation by mail.
[NARDONE, from page 9] Due to his belief that all of his students could succeed, he helped them grow as both writers and individuals, Leah Noecker ’11 said. “The way he taught it made it easy to learn, but you didn’t even realize you were learning,” said Noecker. “It was just how he handled others and his actions that really influenced me. His ability to go so far above and beyond and to remember the little things about everyone and just to be our friend. That’s his legacy, and I want to be able to do that as well.” Nardone taught his students to be real journalists and cover real issues, not just typical high school material, current New York Times reporter Pat Healy ’99 said. As a teacher: “He worried about things really relevant to high school kids,” said Healy. “He wanted to show us that high school journalism isn’t just about Homecoming games, it’s really about human lives.” Through his approachability and sense of humor, Nardone was able to develop close relationships with his students, Healy said. “There were so many nights when Jeff was sitting on a ratty dirty couch reading over issues when he could have been home or he could have been playing basketball,” said Healy. “He was just there. He would stay there until everything was done.” Just as Nardone’s sarcasm and humor were a major part of his personality, his students often reciprocated with their own humor. Alex Lang ’03 said one of his favorite memories of Nardone is when they played an April Fool’s Day joke with the help of the administration. “One night we took everything out of his class room. I mean we took chairs, tables, chords, phone, everything,” said Lang. “We hid it behind the stage in the old auditorium. He ended up coming in the next morning on April Fool’s day and none of his equipment was there.” Although Nardone was livid for the rest of the day, The Tower staff could not stop laughing about it, Lang said. He eventually learned to laugh at the joke, as well. His colleagues said that they have always admired Nardone for his passion in the classroom. “I hope that I can remember to bring the enthusiasm for education to my work the way he did,” said Campion. “I hope I never forget what’s important about education, because he never did.”
As a colleague: Nardone also developed strong relationships with South staff members over the span of his career. Many of these colleagues said that they are unsure as to how they will adjust to his absence. “I think I’m going to have to readjust my entire world view,” said Campion. “Even though he’s been sick for a while and been gone all school year, I still walk down the hall and expect to see him walking out of the office. I expect to look into his room and see him there.” As a sort of “ringleader” of the staff, Dunham said that Nardone always made sure that everyone could pull together in difficult times. This ability to step forward and do what was necessary was a unique attribute of his, and is one of the many reasons that he will be missed. “He was the heart and soul of our staff,” said Campion. “I don’t know what we’re going to do without him.” His kindness was also one of his greatest attributes, Dunham said. When her house burned down five years ago, the Nardones took her and her family in for the first week afterwards. Despite the awful circumstances, she said she has vivid memories of Nardone trying his best to cheer her up during the ordeal. “His ability to make you see the best and get you to laugh when there really isn’t something funny was really a gift of his,” said Dunham. Beyond the South staff, Nardone also made close friends with other high school journalism teachers and other leaders in the field. After working at countless workshops with Nardone, Betsy Pollard Rau, Central Michigan University journalism professor, said she was amazed by the sincerity of his love for others. “Everyone who worked with him was special to him,” said Rau. “How a man can have that much love for so many thousands of people totally mystifies me. There wasn’t an e-mail or a text I had that didn’t say ‘Love you’ at the end, and he meant it to me and he meant it to everybody else he told that to.” Ultimately, both fellow staff members and other colleagues say that Nardone’s legacy is one that will not be easily replaced. “You see the richness and feel blessed to have known him and be a part of his life,” said Dunham. “But then you see what big of a hole that other people are going to have to fill.”
THIS SUMMER, MIPA ROCKS (And raps. And twangs. And maybe even yodels a bit.)
N J Q B Q B MP P { B #MIPA2014
MIPA SUMMER JOURNALISM WORKSHOP Aug. 3–7, 2014 » Michigan State University
Five days on a BIG TEN campus!
This year, let’s rock it out. The MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop has everything you need to produce your best work ever. We’ll help you amp up
w Writing
w Newspaper
your newspaper, yearbook, video production or news website.
w Design w Photo w Business w Leadership w Social Media
w Yearbook w Online w Digital w Broadcast w Video
Spend five days on Michigan State’s campus working with some of the most respected instructors in the nation. You’ll make new friends for life, and we guarantee you’ll leave more energized than ever.
LEARN MORE AT MIPAMSU.ORG
BE A PART OF THE UPSTART!
The Upstart is the official student media outlet of MIPA’s Summer Journalism Workshop. Upstart staff members cover the workshop and learn advanced journalism techniques. It’s great experience for advanced students and graduating seniors looking to hone their skills, pick up some great clips and see what it’s like to live on a Big Ten college campus for five days. SEE LAST YEAR’S UPSTART COVERAGE AT HTTP://UPSTART.MIPAMSU.ORG
How you can celebrate Scholastic Journalism Week The Journalism Education Association invites you to celebrate scholastic journalism week from Feb. 16–22, 2014. How you help promote this week is entirely up to you. It is hoped that your involvement and that of your students will serve to raise community consciousness regarding the benefits of scholastic journalism. Your students will learn from both the promotion and their celebration of an event holding major significance for them. Here are some ideas: MORE TIME CONSUMING/MAY TAKE MORE THAN A LITTLE EFFORT ◗◗ Take some video of your upcoming deadline. Post it online, via Facebook or Twitter to show your community what a scholastic publication goes through to share all the news that’s fit to print, or record the memories that make the year. ◗◗ Portrait project: Draw attention to the week and your staff. Assign students a portrait project. There is a great lesson in the Spring 2011 issue of Communication: Journalism Education Today that gives 20 ways to take stunning portraits. Depending on access to photography equipment, students could check out cameras for a day with a partner or group and head out on campus to get their portrait taken (you could even specify that their portrait be taken with a cellphone camera for additional challenge). They then come back to the lab, upload their photos and chose one portrait of themselves that they feel encompasses their personality and who they are. Share them as a staff and then share them with your community. Mount them and put each staffer’s name on his or her portrait. Then use a wall outside your publication office or an empty trophy case to display the photos. ◗◗ Have an “Amazing Race”-style First Amendment scavenger hunt. Students are given clues related to each of the Five Freedoms scattered around the school (eg. “speech” clue hidden on the speaker). Kids have to find each item, then go on to the next clue. Prizes are given to the first three to complete the list. ◗◗ Promote yourself. Use this week as a special way to recruit. Send out a celebration packet to your feeder
MORE IDEAS http://jea.org/home/news-events/ scholastic-journalism-week/
schools, send it with some of your staffers. Create a brochure to advertise your program and suggest easy ways those in your community could get involved. ◗◗ Send thank-you notes to advertisers and/or other people in your community who consistently help you out. MEDIUM EFFORT ◗◗ Take a few minutes of your day during the week to share an issue of Superman #706 which focuses almost entirely on Daily Planet editor Perry White and the problems he faces with eerily modern day problems like decreased readership. The effort in this is to find the actual issue. ◗◗ Have your students tweet about the First Amendment and moments during the week they think about those freedoms. Use the hashtag #sjw2013 so we can all follow your tweets! ◗◗ Celebrate the week by conducting short lessons on each of the Five Freedoms, one each day. ◗◗ Have your students take each day to conduct polls of the student body about those freedoms, what they know, but more importantly educating them on what they don’t know. Culminate the week with a penny drive for the Student Press Law Center.
Week 2014 page in order to get more ideas from other advisers around the nation. ◗◗ Write a status update during the week about why you consider scholastic journalism essential to your school, or why you continue to be a part of scholastic journalism. Share your passion, share your inspiration. What keeps you going? ◗◗ Encourage your students to do the same as #7. ◗◗ Celebrate yourself, at the end of the week, treat yourself to something special (whether it’s a cup of your favorite coffee, a pedi/mani, maybe a massage). You, as an adviser, do so much to support what your students do, you deserve to take some time to yourself. ◗◗ Take the TAO of Journalism Pledge. www.taoofjournalism.org. Then, when your staff takes the pledge, take a photo of each person taking the pledge and a group photo to commemorate the event. Send it to coyers@gmail.com, or post it to the SJW 2014 Facebook site yourself. ◗◗ Print posters from this page for the week and put them up all over your school the Friday evening before so students see them at the beginning of the week. SMALL EFFORT ◗◗ Have your staffers wear their staff shirts, J-shirts, or anything and everything related to journalism at least once during the week at the same time. JEA Bookstore
◗◗ Change your profile pic on Facebook to the SJW poster.
◗◗ Have your students take a day to write a letter to your local paper about the importance of journalism to them, the school, etc.
◗◗ Invite your friends on Facebook to “like” the Scholastic Journalism
◗◗ Do Something! Don’t let the week slip by!
TIPS & TRICKS
Be a MIPA judge C.E. Sikkenga Grand Haven HS
COME TO JUDGING DAY WHEN: 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, March 1. (Time may vary) WHERE: Michigan State University’s Communication Arts & Sciences Building SIGN UP: mipamsu.org/ resources/mipajudging-day QUESTIONS? Contact the MIPA office at 517-353-6761 or mipa@msu.edu
SHARE YOUR TIPS & TRICKS Do you have ideas to share to help student journalists and advisers do their jobs better? Submit your column of no more than 800 words and a highresolution photo to mipa@msu.edu.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR C.E. Sikkenga is MIPA’s newspaper chair and advises The Bucs’ Blade at Grand Haven HS.
I don’t remember many specifics about the first time I attended a MIPA Judging Day. I can’t tell you what categories I judged or what schools had the most winning entries or what was the best piece of work I saw. What I can’t forget is how that day became one of the most valuable of my advising career. There are plenty of things I do remember about that day. I remember why I decided to come: I’d taken Betsy Rau’s Newspaper Advising course at MSU the summer before and, as I’m sure is the case for just about everybody who came into Betsy’s web over the years, she instantly became my “MIPA mom” and most trusted mentor. When she told me I should do this, I did — no questions asked. I remember how I felt when the alarm went off at a little before 6 on a Saturday morning. (Annoyed). I remember how I felt on the drive (harried, because I was running behind; nervous because I didn’t feel like I knew what I was doing). I remember how I felt when I walked into the cavernous room in MSU’s Communication Arts & Sciences Building. I went from nervous to flat-out scared because I was walking into a room with dozens of faces, few familiar and nearly all of them belonging to what I was quite certain were great journalistic minds that would soon expose me for the know-nothing rookie I believed myself to be. It was a lot like the first day of school, and had my mom been with me at that moment, I’m reasonably confident I’d have grabbed her pant leg and wailed about wanting to go home. Instead, while I was calculating the odds that I could slip out unnoticed — maybe cruise over to Grand River Avenue and see if any record stores were
Photo by Jeremy Steele
Jayna Salk of Troy HS looks at yearbook entries with Ashley Allison and Eric Ratkowski at MIPA’s 2013 Judging Day.
open then head home — Betsy, my MIPA mom, saw me and waved me in. The rest is history. Much like the first day of school, my fears disappeared quickly, helped no doubt by the almost infinite supply of coffee and doughnuts at the back of the room. Before long, I was too into what was going on to worry much about how scared I was. Six or so hours later, I was back in my car, driving west and thinking: “Wow. That was kind of fun. And I learned a lot.” I learned about what was going on in scholastic journalism around the state — there’s nothing like reading through hundreds of contest entries in five or six hours to give you an idea about the scope of work that’s happening in programs around Michigan. I learned about myself — that maybe I knew more than I thought. Most importantly, I learned that at least once a year there was a big room that would be filled with a wide variety of wonderful people who were as passionate about this journalism stuff as I am. The next Monday when I walked into my newsroom, I was a better, more confident and more knowledgeable teacher with boatloads of new ideas to share. I
haven’t looked back since. Since I first got involved with Judging Day, I’ve taken grad classes in journalism advising, gone to local, state and national conventions and read dozens of books on my craft. They’ve been great but haven’t been cheap. Participating in Judging Day is equally educational and all it costs me is half a Saturday and a few gallons of gas. Now I’m looking ahead to my 13th Judging Day. It’s now one of those days on my calendar that gets blocked out months in advance. I’ve canceled weekend trips, passed up event tickets and completely cleared my schedule to be there. When I walk back into that big room, I look forward to the faces I’ll see. Some are now lifelong friends who have become part of my daily support network. Others are valued colleagues and fellow travelers who I see once a year. Some are people I’ll meet only once — college students or professional journalists who come in for the day. All are folks I’ll enjoy being around and who most certainly have a thing or two to teach me that I can bring back to my classroom. And the doughnuts and coffee? Rest assured, they’re as good and plentiful as ever. Hope to see you there.
ONE
2014 MIPA ONE-DAY YOU ONLY NEED WORKSHOP FRIDAY, MARCH 14, 2013 MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY Registration
$35 per person from a MIPA member school $45 per person from a non-MIPA member school
Lunch
$5 per person Includes pizza, pop, chips and a cookie If you want to bring your own lunch, that’s OK too.
Location
Michigan State University Communication Arts & Sciences Building 404 Wilson Road East Lansing, MI 48824
Parking
$7 per car; free bus parking available
REGISTER BY MARCH 10 Advisers attend
FREE
if they bring five students!
9 AM TO 1:30 PM
SCHOOL OF JOURNALISM
THECLASSES InDesign for Publications
Building Next Year’s Staff*
• • • • • • • •
•
Using tools Placing text and graphics Formatting text Importing photos Designing a basic page Using grids effectively Selecting type Using libraries and styles
Take Your Website to the Next Level • • • •
Managing content on a Wordpress site Finding new themes and plug-ins to keep up with current trends Embedding data from outside sources Organizing your staff to create content
Jumpstart Your Yearbook • • • • •
Developing your theme Learning current yearbook trends Using effective typography Understanding mods Creating voice
Newspaper Design Clinic • • • • • •
Analyzing current newspaper Using effective typography Designing new standing heads Creating alternative story forms Finding suitable art & photos Updating your design and coverage concepts to help your print publication compliment your online presence Bring copies of your paper and a sketch pad for ideas.
Photoshop • • • •
Toning photos for publication Sizing photos for resolution Organizing files Creating cutouts
Recruiting good students for your publication staff • Generating/updating a staff manual • Using portfolios for semester exams or for generating writing, design and photography ideas over the summer • Selling advertising and canvasing the city over the summer • Planning a first day publication • Using Storify and other tech. tools to generate interest in social media accounts for your publication • Justifying to administrators and curriculum directors how journalism meets Common Core state standards • Lesson planning for the last few weeks of school after seniors leave Advisers and future editors should consider taking this course in pairs or small groups and should bring laptops, if possible.
Video Best Practices • • •
•
•
Learn the ins and outs of MIPA’s Video Best Practices Refresh experienced students’ knowledge of journalistic content Introduce newbie broadcast journalists to all that goes into content for a show Run through technical considerations for conducting interviews, creating good video, and producing a news show Look at the process of producing a studio show or live news broadcast
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