I'm not a professional photographer, but I often shoot photos to accompany my work. This April, my photo led the New York Times Magazine slideshow, Front Yards Are the New Backyards.
I thought this was pretty cool.
In January, I participated in the Scripps Howard Journalism Entrepreneurship Institute, at the Cronkite School at Arizona State University. It was energizing to talk with pros like Mark Briggs and Dan Gillmor about building out courses in Entrepreneurial Journalism at UMass.
Here's a little bit of what I learned.
This semester, I'm changing my Magazine Writing class by encouraging students to publish content on Amherst Wire, the UMass Journalism student content website. We are redesigning the site and its departments to better meet student needs and interests, and we're working with Brian McDermott's photography students to produce content. Hopefully, in the next school year, this site will serve as a portfolio site for great work from students across the Journalism Program.
Last summer I picked up lots of new tools at the Poynter Institute with scores of other journalism educators at Teachapalooza 2012.
At UMass last fall, I had 20 students-- the biggest class ever--in my Entrepreneurial Journalism course. In this class, students develop their own information-based digital business and compete in a pitch competition at the end of the semester. It's part of our ongoing efforts in the Journalism Program to teach the next generation of critical thinkers how to report, write and self-publish with courage and clarity, using text, digital images and sound to tell their stories, and social media to build their audiences.
I also teach Introduction to Multimedia Reporting.
I developed and currently teach two successful transitional courses: the Journalism Success Seminar for first-year students and transfers; and the Journalism Launchpad Seminar, for upper level students. I'm particularly proud of this course, which has helped dozens of students successfully manage their post-college transition, by providing resources, career advising and encouragement.
I serve as internship coordinator and career counselor for journalism students, and my Journalism Launchpad Blog provides advice and information about the industry.
Over the past year I've written for the New York Daily News, The Boston Sunday Globe Travel section and a few features for Design New England, one of which you can read here.
I'm continuing the redesign my site, called Fiftyshift.com, which focuses on technology, caregiving and personal experiences for women over 40. This site keeps me learning new things and exploring the media landscape firsthand. Lesson number one: You just have to dive in.
As a columnist and journalist with nearly 30 years experience, I have written for The Boston Globe, The Boston Globe Magazine, Yankee, Commonwealth Magazine, Design New England, and other publications. Here's a piece I particularly enjoyed writing for The Boston Globe Travel Section about two artists' chapels in Southern France. Here's Me, Inc, for The Boston Globe Magazine, which tells why non-business school students are studying entrepreneurship. My Fiftyshift blog appears on boston.com.
I live in western Massachusetts with my husband Dan and a remarkably charismatic flock of chickens: Barred Rocks and Araucanas. The longer I live with chickens the more I think everyone should have a few around.
I live in western Massachusetts with my husband Dan and a remarkably charismatic flock of chickens: Barred Rocks and Araucanas. The longer I live with chickens the more I think everyone should have a few around.
