Newsletter - December 2014

Type-Hi Texas Intercollegiate Press Association

Newsletter December 2014

Make hotel reservations asap

Convention materials will be sent to the membership in January. In the meantime, reservations for hotel rooms at the El Tropicano Riverwalk are being accepted. Spaces are filling quickly for the April 9-11, 2015 convention.

To make reservations, call 210-277-4043 or 210-2774105.

Midwestern State student newspaper, staff members, adviser receive national recognition at CMA/ACP At the annual college media national convention this fall, the Midwestern State University student newspaper, The Wichitan, several members of the staff and the adviser received national recognition.

The newspaper’s website — http://thewichitan.com/ — placed 10th in the on-site Best of Show for small school websites, the

first time the website placed in the competition.

A special section on the drought edited by Brittany D’Alesandro and Megan Fernandez and distributed in December of 2013 received an honorable mention in advertising / editorial supplements, competing against college newspapers of all sizes.

TIPA members attended the CMA/ACP convention in Philadelphia.

Cartoonist Johnny Blevins received an honorable mention for his cartoon on use of student fee dollars for homecoming, also competing against cartoonists from schools of all sizes. Entries are judged based on reader impact, community importance, artistic quality, and the originality and clarity of the message. (cont. Page 2)

(continued from Page 1) The Wichitan’s website was a finalist for a national Pacemaker Award from the Associated Collegiate Press in 2013 and a finalist for the print edition in 2004.

In addition to the awards for the newspaper, its website and individual students, the student media adviser for The Wichitan and Campus Watch, Bradley Wilson, received Distinguished Adviser recognition as a four-year newspaper adviser. The recognition

is one of the highest awards presented by the College Media Association to advisers with more than five years of experience and distinguished service. The rigorous nomination process for the award included nominations from coworkers, others in the profession and students.

Susannah Brinkley, a freelance designer in North Carolina, said, “Bradley makes learning about journalism an enjoyable realworld experience. He genuinely cares about his students. He poses questions that spark thoughtful discussions and he pushes students to always do better. His enthusiasm for the business, his wealth of knowledge and his desire for excellence have really paid off in my own and other students’ work and educations.”

Alex Sanchez, a photographer and also a former student of Wilson’s in North Carolina, said, “I’m incredibly happy to see him receive this honor– though I can’t say I’m surprised.

From his work advising publications and teaching at workshops across the country, it’s always been clear that he cares deeply about the mission of student media: to prepare and inspire the next generation of young journalists. Bradley’s guidance and support during my college years helped me to develop skills I use every day in my work.

For that, I’m incredibly grateful.”

Lori Brooks, associate executive director of the College Media Association, wrote in her nomination letter, “Bradley Wilson’s enthusiasm for educating college journalists is unmatched. I work with dozens and dozens of collegiate advisers, faculty, supporters and friends, and none have the particular joie de vivre that Bradley does.”

She also said, “I feel lucky to have seen Bradley work with college photographers in a much more intimate setting, as well. At the Meet Me at Miami workshops, we, as instructors, immersed ourselves with teams of photographers, writers and designers before sending them to South Beach to create stories, photos and spreads in about 24 hours. He was involved every step of the way, with every team, as he is each time he works with young journalists. He does workshops like these year-round, building one-on-one friendships with students he will mentor, coach and assist long after the workshop ends. It’s inspiring to watch these relationships from the very beginning. I wish I could see them develop in his college newsroom!”

Two current students,

Lauren Roberts, a graduating senior in mass communication and photography editor of The Wichitan, and Ethan Metcalf, a senior in mass communication and editor of The Wichtian, submitted material in support of Wilson’s nomination for the award.

Roberts said, “The quality of my photos has increased 10-fold from the advice that I received from him. When I first started going out on assignments he would join me if I had never been in that specific situation before and give me advice on how to approach the shot.

What I liked most about how he taught was that he never took the camera away to show me how to do something. I took the shot and if I asked a question, he answered it, and that teaching method is consistent across different media.

Without his guidance, I would not have progressed as much as I have in taking photos and reporting. As an adviser I like how he explains what is incorrect in a story, and more importantly, why. I can ask questions without holding back and it helps me and other students gain an understanding of reporting.”

Metcalf, also a Dow Jones News Fund editing intern, said, “Dr. Wilson has opened my eyes to the near limitless possibilities offered by working in media, whether it be learning to take photographs as part of my spot news coverage, or how to better engage our audience through social media. Surely I never expected to learn about social media or technology from someone my parents’ age.”

Texas Intercollegiate Press Association c/o Department of Mass Media, Communication & Theater Texas A&M University-Commerce 2600 S. Neal Box 4104 Commerce, TX 75429 Ph: (903) 886-5231 Fax: (903) 468-3128 E-mail: Fred.Stewart@tamuc.edu TIPA Federal ID No. 20-2121596 Please check appropriate blank: __ 2-year school

__ 4-year school

Membership deadline: Dec. 23, 2014 (Purchase orders accepted)

TIPA Membership (per school)………………………….$90 Membership Period: (Jan.1 – Dec. 31, 2015)

Make Checks Payable to TIPA Send to above address

School ________________________________________________________________________________________

Enrollment ___________________________________________________________________________________ Primary Contact Person ____________________________________________________________________

Contact e-mail _______________________________________________________________________________

Time to update directory information

If you have not updated your school’s TIPA directory information, please send it to the Central Office before the end of the year.

If you are an adviser new to TIPA or know of an adviser new to TIPA, please pass contact information on to the Central Office.

TIPA Directory Update Information

Name of School Mailing Address Web site Name, email, telephone of Director of Student Media Media Name, email address, web (adviser(s) name, email, phone) (Please provide this information for each student media outlet) Please forward information to the Central Office by the end of the year.

Colleges handle sexual assaults inadequately, senators told

By Sara Gregory, Student Press Law Center (http://www.splc.org/article/2014/12/colleges-handle-sexual-assaults-inadequately-senators-told) Reprinted from SPLC website (splc.org), published 12/10/14

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Colleges are not equipped to handle allegations of sexual assault on their own and should routinely work with local police to investigate criminal complaints, one expert told a Senate committee Tuesday.

Too often, colleges operate in a vacuum and “act as judge and jury” in cases involving serious crimes, said Peg Langhammer, the head of Day One, a Rhode Islandbased sexual-assault-resource center.

More frequent collaboration with law enforcement would help to define what campuses should handle, Langhammer said.

“They tend to replace any effective reporting or investigation or prosecution on the criminal side,” she said. “The most that might happen is an individual might be suspended or even expelled, but then (they are) free to go to another institution.”

Langhammer and other experts testified at a Senate judiciary subcommittee hearing on the role of police in addressing campus sexual assaults. They also emphasized the importance of collaboration between colleges and police.

The hearing came amid a national discussion about the need for change in the way universities handle sexual assaults and other crimes, a topic explored in the ongoing series “Campus Insecurity,” a joint investigation by The Dispatch and the Student Press Law Center.

The series, which takes a national look at how colleges handle crimes, illuminates many of the points discussed Tuesday.

Some of the conversation focused on a recent Rolling Stone magazine story that detailed a gang rape of a freshman woman at the

University of Virginia. Late last week, the magazine said there appeared to be inaccuracies in its report and that it had lost faith in the reliability of its primary source.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., who has sponsored legislation concerning campus sexual assault and who testified briefly Tuesday, said that despite the ambiguity surrounding the Rolling Stone story, she is still concerned that UVA did not expel students who were found responsible for sexual assault in other cases.

“That is, and remains, shocking,” Gillibrand said.

It also is routine on many college campuses.

The investigation by The Dispatch and the Student Press Law Center showed that colleges often issue light punishment for serious crimes such as sexual assault and physical violence. Nearly threequarters of the punishments at schools examined during the investigation were probation or a warning.

Some offenders were required to write essays, and the schools often did not require those students to miss class. Students were expelled 7 percent of the time.

The investigation also showed that campus discipline often happens in secret, without the involvement of police. A review of disciplinary records provided by 25 colleges showed that of 158 cases in which students were found responsible for sexual assault, seven resulted in criminal charges.

Increasing reports and criminal prosecutions is Southern Oregon University’s goal, said Angela Fleischer, the college’s assistant director of student support and intervention for confidential

advising, during Tuesday’s hearing.

In partnership with local police in Ashland, Ore., the college created a reporting program that allows students to report anonymously or pause investigations.

“Again, we’re always going with what they prefer,” Fleischer said, something that builds trust among victims.

Her office always defers to a victim’s wishes, she said. When a student wants to report to police, Fleischer explains the legal process and will go with the student for support. If a student doesn’t want to report to police, Fleischer said she explains the available on-campus options.

About 76 percent of students who report through the college’s confidential reporting program end up reporting to police, Fleischer said.

Gillibrand and Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., are expected to reintroduce legislation next year that would require colleges and local police to detail each group’s responsibilities in responding to campus crime.

Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, a co-sponsor of McCaskill’s bill, said Tuesday that it’s time for on- and offcampus sexual assaults to be treated the same.

“The sooner it’s treated the same way, the sooner that the message is going to get out that you can’t get away with something on a campus that you couldn’t get away with somewhere else,” Grassley said.

SPLC staff writer Sara Gregory can be reached by email or at (703) 807-1904 ext. 125.

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Plan Now for On-Site Critiques We are planning to have on-site newspaper critiques at the 2015 TIPA convention in San Antonio Watch your email for more details and guidelines