Adviser Update Spring 2012 | Page 5

SPRING 2012 Adviser Update Page 5A Training is never out of season By LINDA SHOCKLEY efore the center court tip-off, B players polish their skills at basketball clinics. Like athletes, journalism students use summer workshops to get in shape for publishing, broadcasting and blogging in the coming school year. This issue of Adviser Update lists some triedand-true camps as well as newcomers. Thanks to the scholastic press organizations and gifted educators who make these workshops go. We continue to update our website with listings, so keep forwarding them to [email protected]. Since 1968, DJNF has underwritten summer high school workshops in urban and rural communities to promote diversity on school media and in the news business. We salute program directors and funders who offer this intensive free training to students who might not otherwise get the chance.Directors tell us it is becoming increasingly difficult to finance these programs as the media industry grapples with its own viability. That’s a challenge DJNF DIRECTOR’S CHAIR the Fund plans to address as long as necessary. I want to turn the spotlight on a set of workshops DJNF is funding this summer because they focus on middle schoolers. The sponsoring organization is called WriteOnSports, (writeonsports. org) based in urban New Jersey, directed by Byron Yake, a former sports editor and executive for the Associated Press. The concept is to teach middle school students to write using sports because it is a subject that can corral their passion. Curriculum is developed by a literacy specialist/sports enthusiast and the day-to-day staff is comprised of teachers from these urban school districts including Newark and Montclair. Professional athletes and sports executives are among guest speakers, and students go on field trips. As with other programs, the students’ work is published. We’re hopeful the model can succeed nationally. Summer is also a good time for advisers to get away for vacation, yes, but also training, brainstorming and rejuvenation. Turn to the Summer Workshops Directory for programs that may be just what you and your staff members need. Teacher awards program invites nominees It’s time to extend an invitation to you to compete in DJNF’s Teacher Awards Program for the title National High School Journalism Teacher of the Year. Aaron Manfull of Francis Howell North HS, St. Charles, Mo., holds the 2011 title and is bringing all of his considerable teaching and web skills to bear. His platform emphasizes support, collaboration and encouragement. He created thenext26.com website as a vehicle to do that. So far the “conversations” have covered recruiting staffers, great advice and his signature acceptance speech about the importance of mooching. Here’s an exciting detail that may give you another reason to submit your nomination for the 2012 competition. The Teacher of the Year has been welcome to attend seminars at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies of St. Petersburg, Fla., since 2005 and recently webinars in the e-learning division, News University. In the coming year, each of the four Distinguished Advisers can log onto a free webinar and the Teacher of the Year wins access to 10 webinars. Thanks to Poynter’s Wendy Wallace, high school program director, and Howard Finberg, director of interactive learning, both members of the Fund family, for making this real. Our other sponsor, the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, provides free registration to its March conference in Manhattan, a platform to speak at its Adviser Luncheons and teach seminars at the conference. CSPA was the first to stream the Teacher of the Year’s address there live. So don’t delay. The process is a little shorter and simpler to make it easier to meet the July 1 deadline. The details and the form are on pages 8A and 9A in this issue and on our Forms page at https:// www.newsfund.org. One more nudge for the humble soul who doesn’t want Linda Shockley is deputy director of the Dow Jones News Fund where she has worked since 1988. She administers the Teacher of the Year program, the business reporting internship program and the summer high school journalism workshops. Shockley handles the Fund’s media relations including its website, news releases and Adviser Update. Before coming to Dow Jones & Co., she was an education reporter, news editor, suburban bureau chief and city editor for the Gannettowned newspapers in Westchester County, N.Y. Linda holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut. Contact her at linda. [email protected] or 609520-5929. the limelight­— do it for the kids. They will stand to gain a newsroom laptop, access to the Poynter webinars, college scholarships and a teacher who had his/ her best year ever. Think Col. Charles Savedge, Randy Stano, Mary Benedict, Gloria Grove Olman, Jack Kennedy, Steve O’Donoghue, Bob Button, John Bowen, Beth Fitts, Paul Kandell and Valerie Penton Kibler, to name a few. Lead. Learn. Inspire. By NORMA SUMARNAP KNEESE P01.V52.I4 See RESPECT on page 11A Norma Sumarnap Kneese is Multicultural Chair for JEA and has taught English, speech, readi