Staff members participate in breakout sessions with Valley students
The first Amendment in the American Constitution establishes four rights protecting individual speech and press. Scholastic Journalism programs aim to help student journalists utilize the right to be an informant on their school’s campus.
Dr. Kathleen Schock, a journalism instructor at Fresno City College (FCC), welcomes students to the fifth annual FCC HS journalism conference, Feb. 24. About 250 students from 8 schools across the Central Valley attended.
“My goal is to get you excited about journalism,” Schock said. “There is a perception out there that journalism is dead, and that is simply not true. I hope that what you see today is that journalism is alive and well. That studying journalism unlocks incredible opportunities in not only journalism, but also mass media and public relations.”
Schock along with her co-coordinators divided the program into 7 groups that placed students in sessions focusing on their respective skills and positions at their school newspaper.
The programs composed of 14 different sessions ranging from topics on reporting with Multicultural sensitivity to sports reporting to audio journalism. These sessions were presented by local journalists who volunteered their time to advance the skills of the next generation of reporters.
Sophomore Nathan Bridges, Feather journalist and sports writer, enjoyed his class on sports reporting.
“I really liked the session with Andrew Martin, a sports broadcaster for KC24 and CBS SportsNetwork.” Bridges said. “He covered the Olympics and Super Bowl 57 between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles. He talked about how to make local connections to big sports events, like the NBA Allstar game. It was cool to see how his passion for sports turned into a career.”
Fresno High Owlet journalist Chia Na Vang also speaks on a new skill they learned and hopes to bring back to Fresno High.
“I think audio recording is something that we should try because it’s fun,” Na Vang said. “This is something that should be incorporated into next year’s class. There is authenticity in it, you can actually hear what people say. When you’re taking notes for a direct quote, you have to paraphrase it, because you miss it. So I think that’s another pro of it.”
Scholastic Journalism Week provides student journalists and social media teams with new resources and ideas to integrate at their own campuses to further the student voice.
Omar Shaikh Rashad, reporter at Fresnoland, a nonprofit organization and program presenter, recommends advice to high school journalists.
“Trust in your perspective because your perspective as a student is incredibly important,” Rashad said. “And at the end of the day, I feel like administrators maybe benefit from not having enough of the student voice out there. It’s important to get that voice out.”
To continue to support and encourage student journalists to voice their concerns and perspectives, go to Fresno Blossom Trail 2023 or Sense of Style: How to build your own.
