How to apply to Making a Difference
and examine previous stories
Advisers, as you publish your students’ work, by print, broadcast or web, consider sharing your pieces that created change, reported significant issues or fulfilled the journalistic concept of social responsibility with the JEA Scholastic Press Rights Committee’s Making a Difference project.
We want to make our posts monthly. These posts will highlight students who have made a difference through their reporting. When your students create content that has a positive impact on your school or community, and fulfills the concept of social responsibility, please fill out the submission form and we’ll tell you how to submit your content.
JEA Scholastic Press Rights Committee will post one or more packages a month on its website and promote them on social media.
We published our first copy of Making a Difference in hard copy in 1988 because of the Hazelwood malaise. In that version, now downloadable, we highlighted scholastic reporting that demonstrated student journalism did not need the heavy hand of prior review and censorship. That tradition continues today and will continue so long as students continue to take their roles seriously and professionally.
In 2012, we committed ourselves to updating the project, hoping to show student journalism had not succumbed to Hazelwood.
We have seen some great work by student journalists across the country covering some intense topics. Let’s show the country what great work student journalists are doing that rivals work done by professional journalists.
Here are some of the stories submitted earlier:
Making a Difference articles – 2015
• McKinney students get it right
• Journalists document controversy challenging community
• Don’t drink the water
• Students report on shattered dreams
• Students support peers across the country in censorship case
• Documenting biodiversity in chicagoland
• Student promotes need for sex education
Making a Difference articles – 2014
• Students speak out about cancellation of SGA elections
• And the children shall lead them. Student journalists Make a Difference
• Student journalists make a difference
• Making a Difference: Student journalists document controversy
• Broken Hearts and Broken Minds
• Students tackle coverage of rape culture
• Freshman capstone project localizes national issue of gay rights
• Guns in America: From schools to shooting ranges
• Students speak out about cancellations of SGA election
• Freshman capstone project localizes national issues of gay rights
• Exposing the killing impact of Heroin
• Students support peers across the country in censorship case
• Make history come alive by interviewing local veterans
Past student work:
• Past stories: You can Make a Difference. Show everyone how
Press Rights Minute
Press Rights Minute is a new Scholastic Press Rights Commission service that offers quick and authoritative 60-second audio support for advisers, students and administrators on key journalistic issues. [pullquote]The link to all the links is https://soundcloud.com/scholastic-press-rights[/pullquote]
Commission member Sarah Nichols created the concept and commission members, students and others completed segments in the series.
We created the service, in part, to practice what we teach our students regarding multiple digital tools — it shows both advisers and students how easy it is to use SoundCloud as another way to tell stories or report information to their audience in a mobile-friendly way.
The Press Rights Commission hopes you will find this service helpful as well as easy to use. We intend to build on the number of segments we have as the year goes on. If you have topics you feel we should address, please let us know.
Activating the Press Rights Minutes
Here are two sample clips. The link to the others is https://soundcloud.com/scholastic-press-rights
Clip2: Getting it Right
Clip5: 10 Tips for Dealing with Censorship
We hope you find the clips helpful. If you have requests for comments on certain issues, please let us know by contacting John Bowen, commission chair.
Read More
Panic button!
If you are a JEA member or students of a JEA member who need assistance concerning censorship issues, use the panic button to generate an online form to fill out explaining your situation.
Read More