2012 Advisers Institute
Prepare for the exciting reincarnation of JEA’s Advisers Institute, bringing journalism teachers from across the country together for a week of adviser-specific training and networking.
DATES
The 2012 JEA Advisers Institute runs Monday, July 9 – Thursday, July 12. Monday’s events include check-in from 1 p.m. – 5 p.m., with exhibits running from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. and an opening reception at 7:30 p.m. Instruction lasts until 4 p.m. on Tuesday and Wednesday, with optional entertainment Wednesday evening. Instruction ends at noon on Thursday.
LOCATION
The Flamingo in Las Vegas is the official hotel of the Advisers Institute. Rooms in the JEA block are $49 single/double, or $69 for the Flamingo’s “Go” rooms. To reserve rooms, book online, or call 888-902-9929 and mention group code SFJEA2.
REGISTRATION
Register online for the Advisers Institute. You can pay online with credit card or PayPal, or print your registration confirmation and pay with a check or purchase order. Rates for registration are:
- Earlybird, JEA member (postmarked before May 15): $135
- Earlybird, nonmember (postmarked before May 15): $155
- Regular registration, JEA member (postmarked May 15 and after): $150
- Regular registration, nonmember (postmarked May 15 and after): $170
TRANSPORTATION
For attendees flying in, McCarran Airport serves all major airlines. A taxi is generally the best way to get to the hotel, and fare with tip generally costs about $20. ExecuCar service from SuperShuttle is also available from McCarran Airport, and attendees can save 10 percent using the JEA group discount code KVUNV.
CONTINUING EDUCATION UNITS
Kansas State University has approved the Advisers Institute for 12.5 contact hours of continuing education (1.25 CEUs). Participants who wish to receive a certificate of CE from K-State should indicate their interest at the time of registration and include an additional $20 with their registration fee. Participants will be required to sign in daily as verification of attendance. Certificates will be available at the end of the institute. A record of your K-State CE hours will remain on record at Kansas State University. You may call 785-532-5569 for a record of your K-State CE activity.
Awarding credit for continuing education activities varies from profession to profession and state to state. Attending this institute will allow you to receive Kansas State University continuing education hours. It remains your responsibility to verify with your governing agency if these CE hours will be accepted.
VENDORS
Businesses looking to showcase their products or services at the Advisers Institute should contact JEA headquarters at jea@spub.ksu.edu.
SESSIONS
Want to know what to expect at the Advisers Institute? Here are the sessions we have lined up thus far:
The greatest stories ever told
If you’re searching for ways to inspire your writers, this session offers 10 tried-and-true methods to achieve results. Bring your own ideas to share, too. — Kim Green, MJE, Columbus (Ind.) North High School
Certification Test for CJE and MJE candidates
Advisers who have applied to take the Certified Journalism Educator or Master Journalism Educator tests will do so at this time. Session includes a half-hour study session and a 2 ½-hour test session. Please bring your laptop. Those interested in taking CJE or MJE tests in Las Vegas should apply for certification by June 1.
Re-positioning the “I”
Many journalism advisers want to write about their classrooms not only to make their advising and teaching meaningful but also to stay on top of their craft. But how does a teacher write about 30-150 students? Is the classroom even a good place to tell a story to begin with? When a teacher sits down to write about his classroom, at least three personalities show up: the teacher as teacher (with little time to spare and stacks of papers to grade), the teacher as author (with perhaps a few confidence issues about his skills), and the teacher as protagonist, the main character in the story taking shape on the page. This session will explore the challenges and joys intrinsic to such an endeavor and will feature writing by Jack Kennedy, Dorothy Allison, Herbert Kohl, Esme Codell, and Mike Birbiglia. — Derek Smith, Renton (Wash.) High School
The myth of the magical teacher
“Myths tower above the world of teaching like giant, fire-breathing dragons,” William Ayers writes in the introduction to To Teach: The Journey. How do journalism advisers maintain endurance and inspiration for the long haul despite living in a culture infused with such myths? You know the story of the most prominent myth already: New Teacher gives his or her Entire Life to teaching, suffers Relationship Drama, makes Great and Lasting Changes, and quits. How do we avoid that? How do advisers who so often embody the profile – treating students to fancy restaurants on field trips around the country – avoid burnout? Awareness of the myths that keep the cult of the magical teacher thriving is the first step. This session will explore the myth of the magical teacher in books and films, 1960-present. — Derek Smith, Renton (Wash.) High School
A session about teaching sessions
Take a look at the data from JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Conventions to see what makes a successful session. Everything from session topic, title and description to format, content and technology can drive traffic to (or away) from your sessions and generate positive (or negative) evaluations. We’ll also discuss what applications from teaching a 50-minute breakout session can carry over into a classroom. — Kelly Furnas, CJE, Journalism Education Association, and Logan Aimone, MJE, National Scholastic Press Association
Ten things you’re not doing online (but should be)
If your publication’s website is getting stagnant, come get 10 suggestions to drive up traffic, increase reader engagement and, most importantly, better educate your students about Web techniques. You’ll also get exposed to some of the (free!) tools you can use to put these suggestions into practice right away. — Kelly Furnas, CJE, Journalism Education Association
min/max
Minimize visual distractions and design problems. Maximize visual impact and production time. This session will address publication design with emphasis on principles and elements as well as best practices for advising. — Sarah Nichols, MJE, Whitney High School, Rocklin, Calif.
It’s not an interview; it’s a conversation
Good interviews don’t ask questions with the expectation of receiving an answer. Good interviews are truly a conversation. Learn about some fabulous interview tips, tricks and secrets that the pros implement. — Don Goble, Ladue Horton Watkins High School, St. Louis, Mo.
The First Amendment and freedom of information
Knowing the basics of First Amendment rights and freedom of information law is a MUST for all journalists. Learn how you protect your publication and use FOI laws (often as easy as sending a letter, making a phone call or clicking a mouse) to obtain facts about your school and community that can make for great stories. — Frank LoMonte, executive director, Student Press Law Center.
cakeball advising
Hear how a simple shared treat sparked creativity, innovation and friendly competition on a high school yearbook staff and discover ways to strengthen your staff culture. When students dare to outdo themselves and push to build upon the success of their peers, everyone wins. — Sarah Nichols, MJE, Whitney High School, Rocklin, Calif.
Now I’m teaching video, too?!
Yay! You’ve finally convinced your kids (or maybe they convinced you) that it’s time for your publication to have a web presence. So you set up a handy-dandy website and… watched as the kids uploaded their print stories once a month. This session is for those of you who know you need to train your journalists to rethink the way they report. When it comes to the web, that means (among other things) shooting video. In part one, we’ll go over the basics, looking at lots of examples. In part two, we’ll test out five different lessons you can use to teach your kids how to produce short documentary-style video to enhance their website. You’ll also leave with a great list of resources, a list of mistakes to avoid and issues you will inevitably run into, and a list of ways to vary those five lessons and turn them into 20 lessons. Bring the equipment your kids are already using if you can. — Michelle L. Balmeo, CJE, Monta Vista High School, Cupertino, Calif.
Put that critique advice into action
Once your critique is back, the real work begins. Learn to analyze the suggestions, prioritize areas for improvement and make an action plan. Gain tips to improve your instruction and to help students reflect, set goals and improve. You’ll leave with strategies to implement immediately. Join us even if you haven’t received a critique yet. — Logan Aimone, MJE, executive director, National Scholastic Press Association
The power of one
Harness the power, creativity and passion of your publication, one staff member at a time. Learn how to empower students to use their individual voice and power to affect systematic positive change for a publication. — Sandra Coyer, MJE, Puyallup (Wash.) High School
Teaching writing as craft
After “settling in” as an adviser, once we had a system that worked pretty regularly, I realized that something was missing. In a newsroom that was always working, my staff focused so much on meeting deadlines and getting the job done that their stories weren’t really stories. They were what Poynter Institute fixture and author Roy Peter Clark calls reports. This happened. So-and-so does that. Blah blah blah. That’s when I developed a course called Writing for Publication which uses Clark’s writing guide Writing Tools: 50 Essential Strategies for Every Writer to teach kids how to write stories, how to develop their craft. I’ll start this session by sharing ways to use Writing Tools to develop better writers, then we’ll move into a discussion of the question: How do we encourage student journalists to embrace the process part of writing and develop their craft? — Michelle L. Balmeo, CJE, Monta Vista High School, Cupertino, Calif.
Getting your online newspaper rolling
Trying to figure out how to get your publication online? Join us for a discussion of the (free!) website-enhancing resources available to your students. We’ll talk about utilizing social media like Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr. We’ll show you how to incorporate slideshows, create awesomely interactive Coveritlive chats, and make use of Google Analytics to track your traffic. — Brian Wilson, CJE, Waterford (Mich.) Kettering High School
Beginner’s guide to teaching journalism
From creating daily lesson plans to quiz and test creation, this session will look at successful ways to help you teach a journalism class. Calendar planning will also be discussed and examples will be offered. — Tom Gayda, MJE, North Central High School, Indianapolis
I wish I had known …
You’ll get in two hours all of the special details that advisers wished they had at the beginning of their careers. Get an insider’s look at tips and tricks to help you help your students get better, faster. We’ll cover writing, editing, design, photography, public relations, the business side of advising, the teaching side of advising, awards and evaluations. – Lizabeth Walsh, MJE, Reno (Nev.) High School
The power of video
Communication through the use of video is as powerful and exciting as it has ever been in our history. In this TED-style Talk, teacher Don Goble will share an incredible personal story from one of his former students, who started out to simply produce a video, but instead, made a global impact and ultimately changed the course of his life. — Don Goble, Ladue Horton Watkins High School, St. Louis, Mo.
A primer in liability
This is a good introduction (or refresher) on libel law, privacy law and copyright law, specifically geared to high school student media. This session includes a number of examples and important practical tips for staying out of legal trouble. — Frank LoMonte, executive director, Student Press Law Center
Systematic grading
Learn ideas for how to implement feedback methods for staffs that allow for ease in grading, reporting grades, and also instantaneously allowing for the coaching of writers one staffer at a time. The ideas may not work for everyone, but it is a way to implement formative and summative means of assessment that is authentic and true to the individual nature of publications. — Sandra Coyer, MJE, Puyallup (Wash.) High School
Improve the process
Noted NYU professor and quality design guru W. Edwards Deming wrote, “If you can’t describe what you are doing as a process, you don’t know what you’re doing.” This session will explore three processes that are critical for a high-functioning publication: staff selection, editorial board development, and production scheduling. With careful design, these processes can maximize efficiency, build staff ownership of the group’s dynamic and publication’s quality, and preserve the adviser’s role as adviser. We’ll look critically at the why – not just the what – of each process. Leave with specific ideas (and examples) to overhaul or simply to recalibrate your current staff processes. — Jon Reese, Decatur (Ga.) High School
Ice Cream to Eskimos
Everything you ever wanted to know about how to sell something (an ad!) to someone who doesn’t really need it (a business!). Selling advertising for your publication hasn’t ever been easy, but you can make it easier by properly training and preparing your students. We’ll discuss tips and tricks on selling the value of your publication, including getting a jump on the competition, setting up a pricing system, and teaching professionalism. The session will apply to both newspaper and yearbook staffs, and we’ll touch on digital ad sales as well. — Brian Wilson, CJE, Waterford (Mich.) Kettering High School
The Blessing of St. Margaret Documentary
See the power of students’ work in this screening of The Blessing of St. Margaret, a 28-minute documentary chronicling the opening of a school in Leogane, Haiti, which is the least developed country in the western hemisphere. The school was built from funds raised by Holy Innocents Episcopal School, which is the third largest Episcopal school in the United States. The film retells this incredible story and takes us 5 miles atop of a mountain and through the ceremonial church service blessing the new school. The end of the film is updated to include scenes for the devastating earthquake that struck Haiti on January 12, 2010. — Don Goble, Ladue Horton Watkins High School, St. Louis, Mo.
Our work’s big questions
Advisers are usually drawn to sessions that offer solutions to common staff problems or that provide organizational or instructional strategies. Rarely, though, do advisers spend much time discussing the big questions that mark our work. This facilitated conversation will explore some of these questions: How can we cultivate students’ curiosity and resourcefulness as reporters? How do we help students become more invested in telling “narrower and deeper” stories rather than writing superficial, forgettable pieces? How do we as advisers identify and compensate for our own weaknesses? How do we remove ourselves from the daily workings of our publications and serve as trusted advisers rather than de facto editors? How do we keep the demands of the production schedule from eclipsing teachable moments and opportunties for reflection? This session promises a healthy buffet of food for thought. — Jon Reese, Decatur (Ga.) High School, and Kelly Furnas, CJE, Journalism Education Association
Media literacy: A necessary 21st century skill
Media literacy is a necessary 21st century skill for all students. Critical thinking and analysis of multimedia messages permeate our world. In this session, teachers will understand the concept of media literacy, and will be offered an open invitation to allow for student-generated videos in their classrooms, in order to illustrate comprehension of their subject matter. — Don Goble, Ladue Horton Watkins High School, St. Louis, Mo.