Nov. 13, 2007 issue
I've been involved in education and journalism
for many years and the chance to work at Eastern Michigan
University was a great opportunity to bring the two together. What was
refreshing, when I first got here, was the enthusiasm of the students
at the Eastern Echo and Cellar Roots.
They bring tremendous energy and creativity to the place. This fall marks
my sixth year here and, every year, exciting new challenges present themselves
with a new staff and edit board, and no end of great news stories to cover.
Putting out the Echo and Cellar Roots, our literary magazine, is tangible
proof of what we do. The great thing about the Echo is that students are
doing real journalism with state-of-the-art technology at a paper that
sustains itself through ad revenue. They can walk out of here into any
newsroom and jump right into the work. As a co-curricular activity, I
think we add tremendous value to students' academic experience.
The real reward for me is helping students develop as journalists, adults
and citizens. Getting the calls, the e-mails and the letters
from alumni telling me they're enjoying success in their
careers and lives is what keeps me going.
We have recently implemented a grant-funded program to start informal
meetings for faculty and staff on how the Echo works, in response to people
asking, "Why isn't my story in the Echo?"
We want to provide greater access to the paper for faculty and staff
and, at the same time, explain how the paper retains its
editorial independence. We're also currently building our capacity to
provide a richer and more interactive experience for our readers online
at www.EasternEcho.com,
with soon-to-be launched features including Webcasts and
photo slide shows. Currently, the Echo's circulation is 8,000 every Monday,
Wednesday and Friday, with more than 100 news racks and drop sites on
campus and in the surrounding community. As in past years, Cellar Roots
will sponsor a number of "outside the binding" events this year, including
the popular gallery shows.
Read all about it — in the Echo and Cellar Roots!
