GSPA: The Cure for Gray Hair?

STOP! If you have no idea why you are receiving this, then you should probably continue reading (cue late night TV commercial).

 

Are you a new newspaper, newsmagazine, yearbook, literary magazine or broadcast adviser? Are you a continuing adviser, but feel all alone? Were you thrown into this position with little or no training? Are you trying to launch or kickstart a fledging program? Are you a veteran adviser looking to earn some recognition for your publication? Do you feel like you have no help as you embark on this venture? Do you have unsightly gray hair?

Well, good news! We can help you (well, except for that last one ... but I’m sure there’s a product for that).
For more than 82 years, the Georgia Scholastic Press Association has been helping advisers like you by offering training for teachers and students, publication critiques from journalism professionals and an awards program to recognize excellence in the state. Perhaps most importantly, we offer a community of advisers in your situation, linking you to your peers through our e-mail listserv where you can post a question and instantaneously get helpful replies.

We’re not the only organization here to help you. At the national level, the Journalism Education Association (JEA) specifically supports journalism teachers and advisers across the nation. The National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) is similar to GSPA, but at the national level. Regionally, the Southern Interscholastic Press Association (SIPA) serves student journalists in the Southeast and holds an annual conference in Columbia, S.C. I encourage you to check out these organizations, but hope you will join GSPA first. Based in the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia, GSPA only caters to Georgia schools. We exist to promote and foster high school journalism in the state. And we know the only way to do this is to first reach the teachers.

But don’t join GSPA just for yourself. Do it for your students as well. Each year GSPA solicits help from Grady College students to assist with our various events. Too often a student will tell me, “I didn’t know there were opportunities like this for high school students.” They feel like they missed out in their high school years.

I encourage you to check out GSPA. A good start is our fall conference, held Sept. 21-22 at the University of Georgia. Most scholastic journalism conferences cost upwards of $75 per person to attend, but the GSPA fall conference is totally free for advisers and only $15-$20 for students. Can’t afford the price or the logistics of an overnight stay? The conference is structured so most schools can still participate with an early morning departure and early evening return. School rules make it impossible to plan a field trip in late September? Then take a professional development day and attend by yourself (it’s still free).

I’m sure you’ll find the conference, and you’re membership in GSPA worthwhile. And, on second thought, it just may help alleviate those gray hairs.

Your Perspective on HOPE

For many high school students, HOPE is running out. If proposals at press time hold true, the HOPE scholarship program is undergoing a dramatic change that will leave students with a GPA of less than 3.7 paying 10 percent of their college tuition bill, and will make students maintain a 3.5 GPA in college to maintain HOPE — a large increase from the current 3.0 standard.

For the high school journalist, this dramatic change in the scholarship — coupled with funding cuts for pre-K and other early education programs — creates an ideal opportunity to merge state politics with local coverage. Setting aside personal  opinions and concerns, this significant news story — which is closely being followed by states across the nation who have adopted similar scholarship programs — needs to be covered by the high school newspaper. The “pros” are talking to politicians, economists, and education specialists, but are rarely talking to students and are not examining the issue from the local level. As the school’s voice, it is the responsibility of the high school newspaper to cover this issue relentlessly. Numerouse stories can emerge from the HOPE fiasco:

•Are students changing their college plans?

•How many students were expecting a full scholarship but are now finding themselves scrounging for funds?

•Would students have planned their high school careers differently if they knew these changes were coming?

•Are teachers more likely to inflate grades to the minimum 3.7 GPA level required for full HOPE funding?

•Are students considering taking easier courses in high school to obtain a 3.7 GPA?

•Are students considering taking more AP or honors classes for the higher-scale grading system?

•How many students in your school will these changes effect?

•What do teachers and administrators think about the changes in HOPE?

•Are students now thinking about taking easier classes in college to maintain the 3.5 GPA?

•Are students now giving stronger consideration to out-of-state schools?

•Are students even aware of these changes?

These are just a few ideas for stories related to HOPE. This is one of those issues that can produce multiple stories, and if done right can net school newspapers significant recognition and enhance their reputation. Every person in your school has a vested interest in HOPE. I hope as a high school journalism adviser, you will too.

Adding Diversity to your Staff

 Diversity.
     It’s an issue I’ve become very familiar with in my role as director of diversity and high school outreach at the Grady College. While the “high school outreach” part of my job title is well-defined
(essentially, directing GSPA), there was little blueprint for being the director of “diversity outreach.” Sometimes I feel that the job is like assembling a multiple-piece entertainment center, with no instruction manual and the only guide being a picture of the finished project. I know my ultimate goal — a more diverse Grady College — but I’m not quite sure how to get there.
     What I have learned is that diversity is absolutely critical in the fields of journalism and mass communication. Whether in the corporate public relations office or the city desk of the newsroom, there is a demand for diversity in race, thought, age and culture. Since we work in fields that involve communicating with the public, it is beneficial that we proportionally look like and understand the myriad cultures we are serving. I learned this lesson firsthand working at newspapers in small-town, Georgia. There is no doubt in my mind that elements of my diversity — particuarly my mixed ethnicity and young age — helped me get stories my colleagues would not have gotten: for example a Hispanic victim confiding in me about a criminal case and an African American man opening up about his slumlord. Likewise, my white, older colleagues worked sources with whom I had a difficult time developing a trust, particuarly the powerful “good old boys” who disliked my Yankee roots (and weren’t afraid to mention it on every occassion).
     In an ideal world, everyone trusts everyone else the same regardless of elements of a person’s makeup. Of course, that’s not true in the “real world,” and that’s not such a bad thing. It’s part of our human nature to want to be with people like us. It’s why the typical high school lunchroom is still one of the most segregated places in America. But that desire to be with those like us extends far beyond race. Personally, I’d much rather hang out with a person who shares my passion for the TV show “24” than someone who shares my ethnic makeup. Unfortunately, it’s difficult to recognize a Jack Bauer fan, but very easy to recognize a person’s skin tone. So naturally, without knowing more about others, people flock into their comfort zones of race.
     I often hear high school media advisers talking about the struggle to recruit a diverse staff. I always tell them to be sure to include stories of interest to all students, even if it’s outside the typical world of your staff. It’s a very difficult task to accomplish,
especially in high school when many students are focused on fostering and promoting their own interests. But what reason is there for a “diverse” student to join your program when the program gives the impression that’s it’s exclusive to its own interests?
     Finding those outside interests will be challenging — and be careful not to fall victim to stereotypes. It will be a good lesson for your students, challenging them to view the world through someone else’s eyes for a change. It’s territory often unchartered in high school journalism. But be careful. Instructions are not included.


A New Breed of Journalists

In attempting to convey the changing state of journalism, last month I wrote, “the death of the newspaper has been greatly reported.” I was asked by my colleagues and mentors, if this is the case, what is the point of having a scholastic journalism organization? Why should we promote and teach journalism to high school students? I stand corrected. That statement — without context — is wrong.
    Although the traditional print medium is struggling in these economic times — like all other industries — more people are consuming journalism than ever before. Whether providing news through the Internet or setting up smart phone applications, newspapers have its largest audience in history. And poll after poll shows that newspaper Web sites and applications are the most visited and trusted by the public. The problem in the newspaper industry is its economic model. To put it simply, “customers” are getting the product for free, and new media platforms cannot sustain the advertising revenue contained in the traditional print newspaper.
    Newspaper companies are scrambling to solve this problem, but in the meantime are finding ways to close the revenue gap. It is these budget cuts that often dominate the talk of the industry: layoffs, buyouts, shrinking news space, cutting circulation. What isn’t often reported is the opportunity this unfortunate circumstance presents to aspiring journalists.
    The new journalist is a multitasker. They write with immediacy, constantly updating stories for the Web site while preparing a more in-depth piece for the print product. They blog. They take pictures. They shoot video. They text. They G-chat. They Facebook. They Tweet. And they can do all this, at any time of the day, from their phone. Most high school students — especially high school journalists — already do all this. At 17, most students already possess the skills that an average 40-year-old journalist struggles to learn. In part for this reason, it is the veteran journalists that are often being let go to make room for this new breed of journalists.
    The keynote speaker at this year’s GSPA Awards Ceremony is part of this new breed. I had the pleasure of working with Eliott at “The Walton Tribune” where we produced award-winning journalism the “old-fashion” way — in a traditional print newspaper. However, as Eliott’s career progressed his skills evolved. For the Associated Press he produced radio spots to accompany his wire copy. And for CNN he writes solely for online, while occassionally producing video and being interviewed on the national cable network. I hope you and your students are able to take advantage of the opportunity to hear from Eliott at the April 29 event. His words should be inspiring for those who want to pursue a career in journalism, but fear the future of the field. His career is an example that — despite what anyone may tell you (yours truly included) — the newspaper is not dead ... it’s just evolving.


How High School Students Consume the News

The death of the newspaper industry has been well documented. But can a high school journalism class save the professional newspaper?
    A study conducted by GSPA last summer indicates this may be the case. Last summer we surveyed all 86 participants of the Georgia Journalism Academy and conducted four, eight-person focus groups to try to determine how high school students consume and view media.
    The results were not surprising — and admittedly the study was limited in scope — however, the findings imply that exposure to a newspaper in high school promotes daily reading of news. More than 65 percent of students said they have a class where the newspaper is regularly used or discussed, and of those students, 60 percent said they read a newspaper at least three days out of the week. This number drops to 45 percent if students are not exposed to a newspaper in class.
    Perhaps more importantly, students who are exposed to a newspaper in school are more interested in following news in general, with 64 percent saying they are either “extremely interested” or “very interested” in following news. In contrast, 48 percent of students not exposed to a newspaper in school indicated the same level of interest.
    Another question asked if students regularly read their school newspaper. Of those who said “yes,” 65 percent were either “extremely” or “very” interested in following the news and 69 percent read a newspaper three or more days a week. In contrast, 52 percent of those who did not read a school newspaper (either because one is not offered or because they have no interest) indicated the same interest in following the news, and only 34 percent read a newspaper three or more days a week.
    Simply stated, this study shows that consistent exposure to a newspaper in high school and the production of a high school newspaper results in students more likely to consume news and more likely to regularly read a newspaper. Unfotunately, not all high schools have student newspapers. In our study, 25 percent of students said they did not have a high school newspaper, a startling number considering this was a selective group of students with a strong interest in journalism (by the mere fact that they are attending a weeklong journalism camp). Across Georgia, 56 percent of public high schools have a high school newspaper.
    These numbers should resonate with the powers-that-be in the newspaper industry. Whatever the future holds for the distribution of news (Internet, e-Readers, smartphones), the consumption habits can be formed in high school by supporting high school journalism programs, or at the minimum, promoting the use of professional newspapers in classes. Unfortunately, this comes at a time when newspapers are slashing budgets to stay afloat, and programs such as Newspapers In Education (NIE) are often the first victims. However, to develop an informed and committed future readership, newspapers should make supporting high school journalism a priority.