Year-End Banquets Inspirational

Planning a publications banquet at the end of the year when life is crazy enough without another event is a real leap of faith. However, many advisers and their staffs continue to promote a final celebration of the year.

I have enjoyed attending several publications banquets in the last few weeks. It’s fun to see the different approaches and traditions the schools establish. Some provide a formal banquet, and others create a party theme. Some name one Journalist of the Year while others name an All-Star Publications Staff or Top Seniors.

Advisers and/or editors provide reviews of the year that speak volumes about the worth of the publications experience. Jeff Dick, editor in chief of the Muncie Central Munsonian, mentioned two specific events that had built the character of his staff. The first was very positive. The staff covered the Clinton and Obama rallies next to professional journalists and reported the events extensively with news, features and opinion pieces.

The other event was a computer catastrophe that forced the staff to recreate all of their established templates and documents. The two experiences provided a great comparison of the agony and ecstasy of high school publications and the overall feeling of accomplishment that all kinds of circumstances can provide.

At each banquet there were healthy amounts of teasing and praise, and I couldn’t help but marvel at the worth of an 8 ½ by 11 inch sheet of paper. It may only cost a few cents, but when that sheet becomes a certificate that honors excellence or dedication, it makes the transition to a priceless document. Parents nonchalantly whisk away tears, and most recipients modestly try to hide the joy they feel despite a pride that is difficult to conceal and wonderful to observe.

At each school the students thank the advisers who have made the publications experience possible, yet I doubt that they can fully imagine the effort involved.

Thanks to each of you for the commitment you make to scholastic journalism in general and the many students who benefit from your dedication.

Note: In the photo above, editors Elizabeth Munroe and Elizabeth Robins each thank Ryan Gunterman for his expertise and patience as adviser for all the Bloomington High School North publications. Robins presented him with a publication of “The Last Lecture.”

An End-of-Year Checklist

Most advisers have an “end of the year list” they depend on to check off things to be done before summer really begins. I hope your list includes these IHSPA items:

4Newspaper Harvey entries due June 6 (almost a week later than usual)

4Plans to attend the 2008 IHSPA “Convergention” at Franklin College, October 16-17.

4A Newspaper Harvey cover letter description and registration forms can be downloaded from the IHSPA Web site by clicking HERE or you can find the same forms by clicking the “Membership/Forms” button on the left side of the IHSPA Home Page.

Remember: Submissions should be limited to one entry per school per category.

For the first time, we are requesting that a CD of all the entries be submitted in addition to tear sheets so that winning entries can be posted and shared through other media with the best quality possible. This is a transition year for this request, so if you can’t send entries in both forms that is okay; but we appreciate the effort to make this improvement for sharing the best work of our students.

4We’re playing with the word “Convergention” for the IHSPA fall conference after reading the feedback from last year’s event. We think advisers and students will appreciate the tweaking to keep traditional favorites such as on-site contests and publication critiques as we add “coffee with a pro” and longer workshop opportunities in an effort to help staffs converge new ideas and technology.

Specific convention materials will be mailed at the end of the summer, but we hope you will reserve the Oct. 16-17 as an opportunity for your staff to elevate the enthusiasm of a new year.

Please report changes in contact information as we start posting the membership directory on the IHSPA Web site to help IHSPA “go green,” use financial resources most efficiently, and provide updated information.

I look forward to attending several schools’ publications banquets over the next couple of weeks. I hope you can all find time to enjoy some of the moments of celebration as the year concludes.

The Rock Star State

It’s fun to be part of a rock star state.

Indiana’s high school newspaper staffs have had the opportunity to cover a major national election story up close and personal for the first time since 1968, providing them with an incredible educational opportunity to participate in the democratic process.

In addition to news coverage, student journalists have written features and opinion articles with a variety of angles relevant to teenagers. They have taken their own photographs and created pages with striking graphics and designs. Bloomington High School North devoted an entire publication to the primary.

Thanks to both the Clinton and Obama campaign staffs, students have been welcome to attend the rallies and town hall meetings as journalists. Advisers say their students have enjoyed the process of obtaining press credentials, working beside professionals and even putting in the extra hours required to report breaking news.

While some staffs have endorsed a candidate on their editorial pages, others have simply urged students to study the issues and if they are old enough, vote. All who have participated will remember the experience long after their student newspaper days have passed.

Anyone interested in viewing some of their work is invited to view sample pages on the bottom of the IHSPA Web site. Click Here to go to IHSPA's Home Page.