Akers

FORMER NSPA/ACP ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR IS AN EXPERT ON ALL THINGS SCHOLASTIC JOURNALISM.

SHE WAS 17 when she attended her first convention.

It was 1975, and Ann (Gramlich) Akers was newspaper editor at West Des Moines Valley (Iowa) High School. The convention, at the Palmer House, in Chicago, began her lifetime relationship with NSPA/ACP.

As it turned out, her high school adviser, Greg Franck, was a friend of Tom Rolnicki, then the Ames High School (Iowa) adviser who became the NSPA/ ACP executive director from 19802006. Rolnicki and Akers were on the convention bus that Thanksgiving Day.

“Several Iowa schools shared a bus to the convention,” Akers said. “We stopped in the Amana Colonies for a ‘family’ Thanksgiving dinner, but we had to hurry because we needed to be in Chicago in time for Write-Offs.”

The rushed meal was worth it. Akers took first place in Newsmagazine Layout, the highest award given at the time, and the staff took second in Sweepstakes.

That convention cemented Akers’ love for scholastic journalism, she said. The working relationship with Rolnicki continued at Iowa State University. Rolnicki had accepted a position there. Akers had enrolled there.

“It was cool when we reconnected,” Akers said. “T.R. was the adviser to our yearbook staff and taught the journalism-education classes. He was supposed to be my observer when I student taught, but the NSPA opportunity began weeks before school opened that fall, and he moved to Minneapolis.”

In 1981, Akers returned to the fall high school convention, but this time as the Ames High School adviser, and Rolnicki was the NSPA executive director. Since then, she’s only missed one fall convention — Cleveland in 1985 — and she has attended every spring convention since 1984.

Her count is at 160. Akers says she has attended more than her fair share of scholastic and collegiate journalism conventions.

In 2000, Akers became NSPA/ ACP associate director. She helped plan two high school and two college conventions a year, as well as attend conventions for partner organizations Columbia Scholastic Press Association and College Media Advisers.

What keeps her coming back?

“The best thing about conventions is the sense of community they build,” Akers said. “Everyone there realizes they are part of something bigger than just doing journalism at their school.

“Even if your program is respected at your school, it is rarely the No. 1 activity. Staff members don’t realize what a big deal it is,” she said. “But, at a convention, rather than 30 of you, there are thousands who want to tell stories, take amazing photos — it’s empowering for the students.”

Akers said the feeling of camaraderie isn’t limited to the students.

“For the advisers and for me, it’s being with the people you only get to see once or twice a year,” Akers said. “There’s a feeling of tribe and a mission of shared truths.”

She has attended conventions as a student, teacher, yearbook publishing representative and NSPA/ACP staff member. Now she attends as the Herff Jones manager of customer engagement. She has watched how they evolved.

“They’re bigger. In 1975 only about 1,000 people attended the Chicago convention, and large delegations were 15-18 from a school,” Akers said. “Then there were years when schools brought 65 plus to conventions. Now, the pendulum is swinging back. Fewer people get to travel big because of travel policies, expenses and other demands on students’ time.”

There may be fewer delegates per school, but the number of convention attendees keeps growing. Akers said the increase indicates more schools are attending because the convention experience has expanded.

“The trade show is big and crazy now” Akers said.

The focus in the exhibit hall from individual companies and colleges is on interaction with students. “Students can visit with college representatives about programs geared to journalism and media, and that’s a real draw,” she said Akers credits convention recognition programs with helping enhance the convention experience, too.

“Best of Show is really important,” Akers said. “So many administrators are influenced by that kind of recognition. It’s also a fast way to make the students and advisers smile and cement their intentions to follow through with strong publications”

The 2019 pandemic forced the convention experience to evolve even further.

“Using the internet to offer online sessions made it possible for more schools to attend conventions virtually, and the organizations made the sessions available online for a time after the convention so the learning could be shared more broadly to staff members,” Akers said.

Access to information might be more readily available, but Akers said there are some experiences that are missed.

“Students learn about traveling, being part of a group, eating in restaurants, navigating an airport — all of those life experiences,” she said. “There’s so much team bonding that happens when you move as a group, share as a group and learn as a group.

As associate director of NSPA/ACP from 2000-06, Akers cites three highlights.

“We continued to evolve conventions by working with local committees in each convention site. The exhibit and promotional materials were better, and working with JEA allowed us to capitalize on a shared vision for how we could best serve our members,” she said.

With offices in Minneapolis, NSPA/ACP accepted the charge to provide a headquarters and programming for the Minnesota High School Press Association.

“We worked with area teachers to develop a summer workshop and a state convention,” Akers said. “We were a national organization, but we felt we needed to take care of the state organization, too.”

But the focus wasn’t limited to high school programs, she said. Under Rolnicki’s direction, ACP evolved, too.

ACP built relationships with other professional groups, created a book recording collegiate media coverage of 9/11 and developed international programs in Eastern Europe and Canada so those students could see what collegiate journalism was like on a bigger scale, she said.

“We started ACP Best of the Midwest and it focused on schools with less support and from the Midwest area that often couldn’t attend a national convention.”

Akers said the associations also developed publications to support staffs.

Trends magazine recognized journalism programs, and shared the newest techniques.

Best of the High School Press was developed in 1993 to show off what was good and what was being done right, Akers said.

“Tom was especially proud of the Guidebooks that supported the critical services we offered,” Akers said. “The Guidebooks were kept fresh and updated frequently. The world was changing, and so were the Guidebooks. They served as a best-practices manual for what made a great publication and what the judges would look for.”

For the last 100 years, NSPA/ ACP has provided learning opportunities, Akers said.

“It’s been a source of information on how to improve publications. It’s been a continuous source of external feedback through critiques and recognition.

“The needs and the issues are more complex than ever, and the staff has to be ready to answer that,” Akers said.

“The organizations need to stay aware and flexible.” n

MARC WOOD served as communications technology director for 15 years, 1997-2012.