Grant allows students, advisers to participate in Megaworkshop

A grant from the Billie P. Hatcher Charitable Trust provided the opportunity for 12 students and their advisers to attend the Associated Collegiate Press College Media Megaworkshop this summer.

The workshop, at the University of Minnesota, was the first major event devoted to deep, in-person training since the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020. About 175 students from across the country gathered in Minneapolis for the first Megaworkshop since 2019.

WKU Student Publications staffers attending the workshop were:

  • Camden Bush, sports reporter for the College Heights Herald, who attended the Sports track.
  • Michael J. Collins, reporter for the College Heights Herald, who attended the Reporting track.
  • Michael Crimmins, reporter for the College Heights Herald, who attended the Reporting track.
  • Amelia Curry, design editor  for Talisman, who attended the Design track.
  • Jolie Finley, web writing editor for Talisman, who attended the Multimedia Reporting track.
  • Leah Hunter, executive editor of Talisman, who attended the Editorial Leadership track.
  • Rhiannon Johnston, photographer for Talisman, who attended Photojournalism track.
  • Genesis Malone, reporter for the College Heights Herald, who attended the Reporting track.
  • Jake Moore, co-editor-in-chief of the College Heights Herald, who attended the Editorial Leadership track.
  • Debra Murray, co-editor-in-chief of the College Heights Herald, who attended the Editorial Leadership track.
  • Brett Phelps, web visuals co-editor for Talisman, who attended the Photojournalism tracks
  • J.T. Steele, advertising consultant for Student Publications Advertising, who attended the Business/Advertising track.

Advisers attending the workshops were:

  • Sam Oldenburg, Talisman and Cherry Creative adviser, who taught the Magazine track.
  • Wes Orange, Student Publications Advertising adviser, who attended the Business/Advertising track.
  • Carrie Pratt, Herald adviser, who attended the Adviser track.
  • Chuck Clark, director, who taught the Editorial Leadership track with Elizabeth Smith of Pepperdine University.

To attend the workshop, Oldenburg, Orange and Pratt drove vanloads of students from Bowling Green to Minneapolis and then back home, making the event accessible to more students.

WKU Student Publications was awarded a $5,500 grant from the Hatcher Charitable Trust through WKU’s College Heights Foundation to enhance training across the staffs of the Herald, the Talisman, Cherry Creative and Student Pubs Advertising. In addition to funding attendance at the Megaworkshop, the grant also allowed specialized leadership training for students during the Fall 2021 semester and registration for the Kentucky Intercollegiate Press Association training day in January 2022.