3
L E T TER FROM EDITOR
By Lori Keekley, MJE
D
uring the past year as
the Dow Jones News
Fund National High
School Journalism
Teacher of the Year I
have been very blessed.
I am taking away from this
experience more than I ever
imagined.
I’ve learned so much from
fellow advisers, my students
and the staff at St. Louis Park
High School and through
the opportunities from the
Wall Street subscription. I’m
honored to have been able
to share my voice by writing
for Adviser Update, talking
about the status of scholastic
journalism at AEJMC and
speaking at both the CSPA and
JEA/NSPA Conventions. I’m
grateful for these experiences
because of the professional
growth I’ve experienced.
Reflecting on this experience,
I wanted this issue of Adviser
Update to help show some
best practices in the scholastic
journalism field. Every school
year, creates a new chance —
a new start for not only the
students, but also for advisers.
One of these best practices
involves the article on Forum
Status by John Bowen and
Candace Perkins Bowen.
By knowing your forum
status and understanding
its importance, students
are empowered to question
administrators and school staff
when issues of prior review
and censorship arise.
It’s important to teach
students about their rights
at a young age, which is why
starting and supporting
a middle school program
is important — as Mike
Malcom-Bjorklund writes.
When schools create interest
and locate funding for these
programs that feed into
secondary programs, students
learn not only journalism skills,
but soft skills they can use if
they pursue journalism in the
future. As we know, journalism
is authentic learning at its
best.
It’s been an honor
representing advisers as the
2016 DJNF Teacher of the
Year. Although the primary
sponsorship changed from
Dow Jones to CSPA, I am
confident the 2017 recipient
will experience similar
professional growth. My
students also learned from
the experience when they
competed in the scholarship
contest.
While the application can
be daunting, the reward is
great. I am happy to answer
any questions concerning the
experience or application.
Remember, applications are
due Oct. 20.
If you have an idea for the
next issue of Adviser Update,
please contact Heather Taylor.
~ Lori Keekley
Guest Editor-in-Chief
Lori Keekley, MJE, teaches at St. Louis
Park (Minnesota) High School where she
has advised The Echo online and print
for 14 years. She was named the 2016
Dow Jones News Fund National High
School Journalism Teacher of the Year.
Keekley serves as JEA’s Scholastic Press
Right Committee’s director.