SCJ will host its biennium conference in Louisville, KY, on Thursday, October 25, from 1 p.m. – 9 p.m., during the pre-conference workshop day of the Fall National College Media Convention. The biennium will be held in the Wilkinson Room on the first floor of the Suite Tower. Each chapter is invited to bring two delegates and as many students as they would like, to the day-long working conference.
About the Biennium
At the SCJ biennium, attendees will connect with students and advisers from SCJ chapters across the country, engage in brainstorming work for the national organization, and offer suggestions on things like communication from headquarters, contest categories, initiation rituals, and chapter activities. They’ll also hear from keynote speaker, Andrew Seaman, News Editor for LinkedIn, and enjoy a group dinner. This is also a great opportunity for chapter advisers to connect and get more involved with the national organization.
Note: SCJ will reimburse attending chapters for ONE ROOM, ONE NIGHT in the Galt House, the convention hotel, to help defray costs, in addition to providing a small travel stipend.
Biennium Registration
Registration is now closed.
Keynote Speaker
Andrew Seaman, News Editor at LinkedIn
Andrew M. Seaman is a journalist and media ethicist in New York City. He currently works as a news editor at LinkedIn. Before joining the profession network, Andrew spent seven years at Reuters as the news agency’s senior medical journalist and digital editor. He also served for four years as the ethics committee chairperson for the Society of Professional Journalists. His work on media ethics issues earned him the moniker of “the journalism-ethics maven” from The Washington Post. Andrew earned his bachelor’s degree from Wilkes University and his master’s degree from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism, where he sits on the alumni board. He was SCJ’s Barlow Student Journalist of the year in 2009.
Biennium Agenda
12:30 – 1 p.m. Registration | Wilkinson, First Floor Suite Tower
1 – 1:15 p.m. Welcome | Andrea Frantz, Buena Vista University
1:15 – 1:30 p.m. Convention overview | Lindsey Wotanis, Marywood University
1:30 – 2:15 p.m. Session 1: Chapter networking
Delegates discuss: What challenges are our student media organizations facing?
2:15 – 3:30 p.m. Session 2: SCJ Committee Brainstorming
Delegates to consult on: Constitution, Contest, Communication, Philanthropy/Outreach
3:30 – 3:45 p.m. Break
3:45 – 5:30 p.m. Session 3: Remaining Business
Delegates vote: 2018-2020 Executive Slate and new SCJ Logo.
Delegates discuss: How can SCJ better support student media?
5:30 – 6:30 p.m. Keynote speaker & Awards
7:00 – 8:30 p.m. Dinner and networking at Bristol Bar & Grill
SCJ Executive Sessions
Thursday, October 25 | 11 a.m. | Hotel Cafe
Friday, October 26 | 8 a.m. | Location TBA
SCJ/CMA Session Lineup
SCJ is sponsoring a number of sessions during the CMA conference.
Thursday, October 25 | Time: 1 p.m. – 9 p.m. | Room: Wilkinson, First Floor Suite Tower
Session: SCJ National Council Meeting / Biennium
By invitation only: Members of the Society for Collegiate Journalists’ National Council will gather for their annual fall meeting. Each chapter should send two chapter delegates.
Friday, October 26 | 10 – 10:50 a.m. | Beckham (3rd Floor)
Session: Champagne Taste on a Beer Budget: Producing Good TV News Without Breaking the Bank
Producing TV news can be expensive. But what’s a college station to do when it has a shoestring budget (or, in some cases, none at all) to produce a respectable newscast? In this session, learn how students and advisers at TVM News, the student-run television news broadcast at Marywood University, found ways to get creative and polish up their broadcast with absolutely no money in the bank.
Speakers:
Lindsey Wotanis, Marywood University |SCJ Vice President for Communication
Hannah Weaver, Marywood University | President, Marywood SCJ Chapter
Kirstin Wilson, Marywood University | Historian, Marywood SCJ Chapter
Friday, October 26 | 10 – 10:50 a.m. | Laffoon (1st Floor) Suite Tower – Lobby Level
Session: Press Freedom Challenges In An Era Of “Fake News”
While pros and student journalists alike quickly point to presidential Twitter trolling as the biggest challenge to an American free press, the field at large has found itself in a firestorm of challenges that incorporate, but move beyond, “fake news” accusations. This session will broadly address both the ethical and legal challenges facing a free press in a “fake news” moment in history. The big question: How do we make this a moment and not an era?
Speakers:
Andrea Frantz, Buena Vista University | SCJ President
Andrew Seaman, LinkedIn News Editor
Friday, October 26 | 2:30 – 3:20 p.m. | Laffoon (1st Floor)
Session: Protesting … in Private
From the #MarchForOurLives and #MeToo movements to volatile student protests over racism and (ironically) free speech, campuses saw a surge in activism in 2017-2018. When students took to the quad to voice dissent, student journalists took to their cameras and keyboards to report it. But private schools face different challenges both participating in and covering student protests. This session will focus on the unique private school 1A challenges when it comes to student protest.
Speakers:
Andrea Frantz, Buena Vista University | SCJ President
Lindsey Wotanis, Marywood University | SCJ Vice President for Communication
Friday, October 26 | 3:30-4:20 p.m. |Brown (2nd Floor)
Session: Assessment in the Era of Convergent Platforms and Multimedia Journalism Programs
This panel will cover how to effectively create assessment narratives and plans for media and journalism programs when dealing of lay audiences. The focus of this panel will include yearly assessments, seven-year reviews, advisory boards, and general fiscal planning initiatives by colleges and universities.
Speaker:
Shane Tilton, Ohio Northern University | SCJ Vice President for Philanthropy and Outreach
Saturday, October 27 | 1:30-2:20 p.m. |Sampson (1st Floor) Suite Tower – Lobby Level
Session name: Uncomfortable? That’s the Point.
If Roseanne Barr has learned anything, it’s that the First Amendment may guarantee free speech, but it doesn’t free you from the fallout when you exercise it. In one of the most politically and socially divided periods in recent history, the First Amendment is frequently used (and misused) as justification for loud, polarizing, and often uncomfortable public rhetoric. This session will examine how free speech and incivility have become that dysfunctional couple everyone wants to break up (but never will).
Speaker:
Andrea Frantz, Buena Vista University | SCJ President
Hotel/Travel
For more information about booking your flights and hotels, visit http://collegemediaconvention.org/.
For Chapters bringing at least 2 delegates, the SCJ National Office will reimburse your school for one night/one room in the hotel and travel stipends may be available. For more information, contact Dr. Andrea Frantz, Executive Director at frantz@bvu.edu.
scjnational.org 