Update from May Grad

Ashley Bloom graduated in May. She landed her dream job at National Geographic Television and Film this summer. Ash did an internship there last summer. That was after internships at other places including the BBC. She has talent, drive and determination. That's what it takes to succeed.

Here's what she has to say: "I'm working for National Geographic Television and Film, just 4 blocks from the White House. I am a Production Coordinator and I handle (well, more like help with) the production and post-production matters for my series from the NGS headquarters. I'm really happy with what I'm doing. On a normal day I'm picking out and ordering stock footage for the films, working for both in-house and out-of-house producers, annotating scripts and working with our graphic department. I love my job!

-Ash"

Your J-School Needs YOU!!

We need your help! No one is more expert on the student view of journalism classes than...you!

I've scheduled the first meeting of the year for the JSAC (Journalism Student Advisory Council). All formally admitted majors are invited to attend this very important meeting set for 5-6 p.m., Wednesday, September 6 in 147 CAS. Pizza will be served!!

Please let me know if you are coming so we can order enough pizza. To tell me, email Linda at hartwigl@msu.edu.

The JSAC plays an important role in the school. A rep attends our monthly faculty meetings and provides student input on issues. Members are selected to sit on the Hearing Board. And this year, as part of the ongoing self study for reaccreditation, students will help us prepare for the visit next fall by the accrediting team members.

Why do it? It's an impressive line on the resume, you will learn a lot about how an academic unit in a Big Ten place like MSU operates, but, most importantly, you will help make the J-School an even better place to study. Please join us next Wednesday, September 6 from 5-6 p.m. in 147 CAS!

The fun has begun

The first day of classes kept everyone including faculty and staff hopping today. Karl Gude, formerly graphics editor of Newsweek, met his first class. He came back excited and enthused. Karl is a terrific addition to our staff. Students are going to learn an unbelievable amount about design and info graphics from him. He's part of our new design initiative.

Be careful out there. Bikes and pedestrians are everywhere as the freshmen learn to navigate through campus.

JBB

The Freshmen have arrived!

Friday was a busy day for me and the rest of the faculty I met the first year students in the doctoral, masters and undergraduate programs. Looks like a terrific group of newbies! Welcome to the J-School!!

Keep checking this blog site for info on speakers, guests, intern recruiters on campus, scholarship deadlines and a really cool essay contest with a big $$$$ prize attached.

Classes start on Monday! It's going to be a great year! See you then!

JBB

Faculty retreat

We had a terrific day-long retreat on Wednesday, August 23 at the Benegl Wildlife Center. Several of our Professional Advisory Council members attended. We are getting ready for reaccreditation by the Accrediting Council of Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (ACEJMC), but I'll tell you more about that process later. Just know, it's important to the J-School and a focus of much of our work for the coming year.

At the retreat, we really came up with some exciting ideas about the future of journalism and how we need to address those changes to keep our students on the cutting edge.

I hope you'll join me in a similar discussion at the Journalism Student Advisory Council (JSAC) that will be having it's first meeting 5-6 p.m., Wednesday, September 6, 2006, in 147 CAS.

Melissa Sanchez

This is a story written by one of our seniors. I think she did aterrific job. It's a story about two undocumented immigrantsfrom Honduras who were murdered in Fort Lauderdale.

J-School at Michigan State University

Welcome to the blog site of the School of Journalism at Michigan State University. My name is Jane Briggs-Bunting, and I'm the Director and blogger for this site.

I will talk about J-School news, special opportunities and events. This is the place to come for info on deadlines for scholarships, special ticket giveaways, and great opportunities to meet professionals visiting campus. I also want to provide a more direct link to you sharing information concerning resources you may not know of that are available to you.

For now, let's start the conversation with my Top Ten Reasons Big TEN MSU is the place to study journalism:

Because in the J-School:

1. We’ve been teaching journalism at MSU since 1910.

2. We were among the first schools in the nation to earn accreditation back in 1949 and have been continuously accredited ever since.

3. We have an award winning faculty with extensive professional credentials in print, broadcast, magazine, information graphics and design.

4. We have award-winning students who win and place in national and regional journalism competitions.

5. We have a who’s who of alumni throughout the U.S. and the world.

6. We invented the Capital News Service, a much imitated subscription service where students cover the state capital for member newspapers across Michigan.

7. We began the nationally and internationally acclaimed Victims and the Media Program to train professional journalists and students how to cover tragedies, crime and disasters without further traumatizing the victims and how to deal with this stress themselves.

8. We are the home of the Knight Center for Environmental Journalism.

9. We offer more than $80,000 in journalism scholarships to our majors.

10. We place students in internships across the nation from small market newspapers and broadcast outlets to national major market publications and outlets.

And what the heck, the Big Ten has 11 universities, so…

11. We have some of the best student run media outlets in the nation: the award- winning independent State News, Focal Point TV news magazine, The Big Green online magazine, IMPACT Radio and the online boundary pushing www.spartanedge.com.