Here’s a look at the sessions we’re planning for the 2013 MIPA Fall Conference on Oct. 21. We’ll be adding more sessions over the next week. Attendees will get a print program upon arrival listing all of these sessions and where they will be held.
- Register Now
- Get general conference information
- Download the grid to see all of our sessions on one sheet of paper
- Learn about our featured speakers, the Tinker Tour
- Learn more about the Fall Conference
Conference Schedule
Please note: We’re changing our schedule slightly from past years to create a 30-minute keynote session for all event attendees. Lunch is slightly shorter and we go slightly longer into the afternoon.
- Breakout Sessions 1: 9-9:45 a.m.
- Super Session: 9:55-10:25 a.m.
- Breakout Sessions 2: 10:35-11:20 a.m.
- Lunch: 11:20-12:30 p.m.
- Breakout Sessions 3: 12:30-1:15 p.m.
- Breakout Sessions 4: 1:25-2:10 p.m.
Session Key
N = Newspaper
Y = Yearbook
V = Video/Broadcast
P= Photo
W=Web
A = Advisers
Breakout Sessions 1
Featured Speaker: Ask the Lawyer (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Why pay an attorney $350/hour when a Student Press Law Center lawyer is available to provide help with your media law questions at this session (or anytime at http://www.splc.org) for free? Over the past two decades, he’s responded to media law questions from nearly 15,000 high school and college student journalists and their advisers. This informal session is a good chance to talk about anything media law-related that’s been on your mind (censorship, copyright, libel, privacy, freedom of information law, etc.)
Mike Hiestand, Tinker Tour
Shake Your Money Maker (N, Y, V, W, A)
Looking to make some big bucks this year? From ads to mom-2-mom sales, this is the place to learn how to make money for your student media outlet.
Sara-Beth Badalamente, Adviser, Grand Ledge HS
Yearbook Writing: Chicken or the Egg? (Y)
Are students not reading your yearbook copy? If not, it might be because it’s bad! Discover ways to make it irresistible.
Brian Wilson, Adviser, Waterford Kettering HS
Nominate Your Adviser for the Golden Pen: Here’s How (N, Y, P, V, W)
Your journalism adviser is pretty awesome. Why don’t you nominate him or her for MIPA’s Golden Pen Award? Learn from a Golden Pen winner what takes to submit a top-notch portfolio that will get your adviser the recognition he or she has earned.
Gloria Olman, Utica HS (retired), MIPA Board Member
Using Creativity Groups to Change Your School’s Culture (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Take the creative thinking and problem-solving you’re already doing in your journalism classroom and put it to use in the rest of your school.
Jason LaFay and Jeff Croley, DeWitt Creativity Group
News PKG 101 (V, W)
Learn everything that goes into a successful video news story.
Randy Scott, Instructor, Davison HS’s DTV
Bunka’s Best (Y, A)
Join MIPA’s yearbook chair as she shares some of her favorite themes, pages and concepts from other publications. Get inspired and discuss ways you can borrow, modify or re-purpose these ideas in your school’s yearbook.
Pam Bunka, Adviser, Fenton HS
Broadcast Your Sporting Events (N, V, W, A)
The MHSAA School Broadcast Program enables members to provide hands-on experience for students in producing video events, exposure for athletic and non-athletic school programs, and the opportunity to create revenue through the sale of advertising and subscriptions. The program is also enabling schools to live stream their sporting events this year on a subscription basis.
John Johnson, Communications Director, Michigan High School Athletic Association
Presentation Slides | Handout
Yearbook Now, Not Once a Year! (Y)
Yearbook tends to be a secret society that releases its surprise each year, but we live in a world of instant gratification with Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Learn how to use these tools to enhance your publication and make connections with your readers. You may even increase your sales!
Ava Butzu, Yearbook Adviser, Grand Blanc HS
It’s OK to be Funny (N)
Journalists need to speak truth to power. They need to uphold high standards and ideals. But that doesn’t mean everything they write needs to be dry, boring and dull. In this session we’ll explore ways to add some lightheartedness to your publication yet keep your integrity intact.
Rod Satterthwaite, Adviser, Dexter HS
Don’t Be A Phony Photographer (N, Y, P, W)
You’ve got a camera, and it’s a nice one. Your photos are turning out nicely. But the only mode you know how to use your camera in is automatic. Shame on you! Learn the importance of knowing your equipment and how it will add to the creativity and quality of your images.
Julie Price, Adviser, Haslett HS
5 Social Media Tips for Engaging, Searching & Keeping Safe (N, Y, P, V, W)
How can you use social media to report and share of information at your school? This reporter shares the best practices he’s picked up covering statewide stories for MLive.
Fritz Klug, Multimedia Journalist, MLive
Best of the Best (N)
The Argus-Press publisher shares his thoughts on the best journalism and best designs chosen from more 500 student newspapers from the 2012-13 school year. Bring your notebook and steal some great ideas.
Tom Campbell, Publisher, The Argus-Press
You Can Find That on the Internet? (N, Y, V, W, A)
OK, so we know there’s a lot of information on the Internet. Do you know how to find what you need? A lot of great stuff is hidden in plain sight. Learn how to use everyday search engines and social media to sift through the clutter to find stories, investigate people, research data, debunk rumors — and keep yourself from falling for a hoax gone viral.
Lindsay VanHulle, Reporter, Lansing State Journal
Presentation Slides
Photoshop Whiz, Bang Wow — Tips & Tricks (N, Y, P, W)
Photoshop Rocks!! Come and learn some great Photoshop tips and tricks that will help you to create better images and graphics while speeding up your skills and shortcut knowledge along the way.
Ike Lea, Professor, Lansing Community College
Telling Multimedia Stories (N, P, W, V)
There are so many digital tools available to tell stories. How do you decide what’s best for the story you want to tell? Learn from this multimedia journalist and check out some cool stories he’s covered.
Steve Friess, Adjunct Professor, MSU School of Journalism
Cover It in Print and Online (N, W)
Make your print and online publications work together. The Web gives journalists new ways to tell stories that can’t be told with paper and ink, and you can use these tools to build on the coverage you’re already doing in the newspaper. Come see examples of audio, slideshows and more.
Tracy Anderson, Adviser, and Fernando Rojo, Student, Community HS
Tricaster Basics: Your Studio in a Box (V)
Turn your empty studio in to a professional-looking news broadcast. Make your productions come to life with video inserts, graphics and banners.
Shawn Watts, Advanced Lighting & Sound
Align Your Curriculum (A)
Learn about what the Journalism Education Association (JEA) and MIPA are doing to help advisers align their programs with Common Core and 21st Century Skills.
Shari Adwers, Newspaper and Yearbook Adviser, Grosse Pointe North HS, and Gayle Martin, Newspaper Adviser, Stoney Creek HS
Measuring Your Audience (A)
Learn about and use industry principles to determine whether your student media is really having an impact at your school.
Ed Simpson, Assistant Professor, Central Michigan University
Super Sessions
Featured Speaker: Mary Beth Tinker
The Tinker Tour is bringing real-life civics lessons to schools and communities across the country. Led by Mary Beth Tinker and Mike Hiestand, a Student Press Law Center lawyer, the nationwide tour is sharing real-life stories about how students are keeping the First Amendment alive today.
Breakout Sessions 2
Featured Speaker: Mary Beth Tinker Continued (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
It’s not often you get to talk to someone straight out of your history book. Join Mary Beth Tinker after the Super Session for a more intimate discussion where you can ask more about her experience as a “young voice” — and also be ready to share yours. Subsequent court rulings since Tinker, as well as current students’ rights issues, will be addressed.
Mary Beth Tinker, Tinker Tour
The Attitude of Sales for Your Publication (N, Y, A)
Use a positive attitude to raise money for your publication and make sales.
Nora Guiney, Sales Representative, Walsworth Publishing Co.
There’s No ‘I’ in Journalism (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
OK, fine. Maybe there is, but we can show you how to build your staff and department by creating a team that works together and wants to stay together for the long haul. We’ll provide specific take-home ideas that your staff can implement right away.
Jesse Sutherland and Brian Wilson, Advisers, Waterford Kettering HS
Tough Calls (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Ethical decisions can spring up without warning. What can you do? What SHOULD you do? We will work through some of the tough decisions high school journalists face and everyone will get to play. There are no wallflowers in this session. The question is: Are there any right answers?
Joe Grimm, Visiting Editor in Residence, MSU School of Journalism
MIPA Summer Workshop Reunion & Preview (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Catch up with your #mipa2013 friends and get a preview of #mipa2014. Every summer, hundreds of student journalists spend five days at MSU to hone their skills and take their media outlets to the next level.
Chad Sanders, Director, MIPA Summer Journalism Workshop
Everyone’s a Critic: The Craft of Reviewing (N, W)
A hands-on discussion about reviewing the arts — the thought process, preparation and actual construction and writing of a potent, authoritative review. Attendees will have the opportunity to write a review about some new music that will be played during the session.
Gary Graff, Music Journalist, Journal Register Newspapers, Billboard, New York Times Features Syndicate, etc.
Captions That Rock! (N, Y, P, W)
Everybody reads captions. So take care to write them well. What’s the secret? This session will show you. By the time you leave, you’ll be writing strong, story-telling captions.
Pam Bunka, Adviser, Fenton HS
Create Infographics for Your Website (W)
You don’t have to know Illustrator to create great infographics for the Web. There are tons of great online tools that can help you do the job and make your website an interactive, exciting place students at your school want to visit.
Jeremy Whiting, Adviser, Ovid-Elsie HS
Covering All Your Bases (Y)
Make sure you’re doing your best to get your facts straight, from concept to distribution and everything in between.
Alexis Bunka, Adviser, Henry Ford II HS, and Stacy Smale, Utica HS
Trolling for Info Using Michigan’s FOIA and OMA (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Did you know that state law requires the public to have access to government documents and board meetings (and that includes your school)? Learn about these public access laws and generate story ideas based on public information relevant to your school.
Jane Briggs-Bunting, President, Michigan Coalition for Open Government
Handout
Get the Inner View When You Interview (N, Y, P, V, W)
Amelia Earhart. Jacques Cousteau. Captain Kirk. They were the greatest explorers of their time, going where no one had gone before. You, too, should be an explorer of the world every time you walk in the shoes of a journalist. Great stories can be told in a caption or a feature-length article, but you can’t tell a great story without a great interview.
Ava Butzu, Yearbook Adviser, Grand Blanc HS
What Newspapers Can Learn From Magazines (N)
Make your newspaper an exciting, vibrant publication by thinking more like a magazine. We’ll talk about short reads, creative illustrations, designed headlines and more.
Cheryl Pell, Senior Specialist, MSU School of Journalism
Get the Fluff Out of Your Writing (N, W, Y)
The best stories are about subjects that matter. Get some tips on how you can write about the hard-hitting subjects responsibly.
Tracy Anderson, Adviser, Madeline Halpert, Student, Community HS
Presentation Slides
Get the Picture Without a Photo (N, Y, P, W)
If you’ve ever struggled with filling that space above a story when you didn’t have a photo, not been sure how to draw the image you have in your mind’s eye or wondered what could illustrate the main point of an opinion piece, join us as we explore artistic options for the non-artist.
Lydia Cadena, Adviser, Novi HS
Write Stuff They’ll Actually Read (N, Y, W)
You can change lives (or at least make smarter, happier readers) with your words. But to do so, we have to write stuff they’ll actually read. This session gives you some time-tested tips for ways to spruce up your writing, no matter what your experiences.
C.E. Sikkenga, Newspaper Adviser, Grand Haven HS
Get the Most Out of Your Digital Camera (N, Y, P, W, A)
New to digital photography? Don’t know a mega-pixel from a meta-data? This session is perfect for students and advisers who want to learn how they can maximize the quality of your digital images from capture to final output. Let us clear up your questions about resolution, color modes, file types and more.
Ike Lea, Professor, Lansing Community College
‘Imported from China’ – a Documentary (P, V, W, A)
This half-hour film, created by a team of MSU journalism students and faculty, follows several Chinese international students as they navigate college life at MSU. It’s a phenomenon also be experienced at some Michigan high schools.
Geri Zeldes, Associate Professor, MSU School of Journalism
Beyond Print (N, W)
Take your student media outlet beyond paper. Explore various platforms to deliver content, including YouTube channels, tablet magazines and simple mobile apps.
Ed Simpson, Assistant Professor, Central Michigan University
Shooting and Lighting for the Interview (V)
Standard florescent lights create bad-looking video. Learn what it takes to light your subjects with demonstrations of basic lighting setup, staging the interview and controlling shadows.
Jeff Hamlin, Professor, Lansing Community College
It’s an Experience, Not Just Adviser ‘Training’ (A)
Learn from a 2013 participant about the value of Reynolds High School Journalism Institute, a two-week, hands-on program for high school journalism teachers run by the American Society of News Editors. The institute pays for travel, housing and instructional expenses for participants, as well as one year of membership in JEA and MIPA.
Marilyn Hess, Newspaper Adviser, Plainwell HS
How Do I Grade That? (A)
Share strategies about grading for your student media production class.
Kate McCallum, Adviser, South Lyon HS
Breakout Sessions 3
Featured Speaker:
Tinker Tour Roundtable (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
You’ve heard from Mary Beth Tinker. Now, we want to hear from you. There is a lot going on the world. What issues are most important to you and your classmates? What can be done? What are you doing? Do you feel free to talk about and address these issues? How are you using the First Amendment? As we travel the country, the Tinker Tour will use this session to turn the cameras and microphones around to share your stories via our blog, social media and as part of a planned documentary.
Mary Beth Tinker and Mike Hiestand, Tinker Tour
Principles for Designing Powerful Ads (N, Y)
We’ll take a look at iconic print ads and discuss the elements that made them effective and memorable even today. We’ll discuss design principles for print ads and then students will have an opportunity to apply what we discussed by critiquing recent print campaigns that didn’t perform well.
Colleen Curran, Advertising Adviser and SNWorks Sales Rep., The State News
Using Creativity Groups to Change Your School’s Culture (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Take the creative thinking and problem-solving you’re already doing in your journalism classroom and put it to use in the rest of your school.
Jason LaFay and Jeff Croley, DeWitt Creativity Group
Double Down on Headlines (N, Y, W)
You’ve sweated and struggled to write good feature headlines. The problem is, there are few secrets to writing them. But … we think we have one here. Come learn the Double-Down method of writing feature headlines. You’ll think, you’ll laugh, you’ll go home with something new in your toolbox.
Joe Grimm, Visiting Editor in Residence, MSU School of Journalism
Words Have Power: Writing Effective Reviews (N, Y, P, V, W)
Don’t just tell us what you think. Punch up your reviews (of restaurants, movies, books, games, etc.) to the next level. The session will feature lots of examples.
Marilyn Hess, Newspaper Adviser, Plainwell HS
Writing a Broadcast News Show (V)
In the broadcast world, reporters get only one shot at grabbing their viewers in and communicating the news effectively. Come to this session to learn about picking stories, structuring them together, writing teasers and intros, and marking scripts, in order to do just that.
Jesse Sutherland, Adviser, Waterford Kettering HS
You’re Already Doing It Anyway, Make It Chronological (Y)
Forget the negative comments you may have heard about chronological coverage — it can be a great way to organize your book. Attend this session so you can begin planning in March (or whenever you submit your final deadline) to give this organizational approach a try. You will become a believer.
Pam Bunka, Adviser, Fenton HS, and Alexis Bunka, Adviser, Henry Ford II HS
What’s Your Opinion? (N, W)
The First Amendment protects your right to free speech, but that doesn’t mean anyone has to listen to you. Get tips from this professional columnist on how to write opinion columns and editorials that matter — and will get read.
Susan Demas, Columnist, MLive, and Incoming Publisher, Inside Michigan Politics
Say What? Could You Repeat That? I Didn’t Write It Down (N, Y, W)
Before you can write a great article, you need to ask the right questions and take solid notes. Learn tips for better interviewing and note-taking, including using the right equipment (notebook vs. recording device), questions you should ask every source, and how to be an active listener.
Joy Visconti, High School Journalism Coordinator, Detroit Free Press
Reporting on Religion (N, Y, P, V, W)
Religion is a vital part of the cultural mix, necessary for understanding politics here and elsewhere, deeply important to readers and viewers. The religion beat still gets short shrift, both because religion is a tricky subject to get right and because reporters and editors haven’t thought about how to take religion coverage beyond churches, temples and synagogues. Learn about how to find good stories on the religion beat and general tips for covering religion from the Religion Newswriter Association’s 2013 Cassels Religion Reporter of the Year.
Matt Miller, Reporter, Lansing State Journal
Tackling Social Media (N, V, W)
Sports journalists across the country are using social media in new ways to connect with players, coaches and fans. Get tips on how you can join them.
Chris Solari, Sports Reporter, Lansing State Journal
Gude Creations, Part 1 (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Some stories are better told visually using photos and different kinds of graphics like drawings, maps, charts, timelines, etc. Karl Gude, a former graphics editor at Newsweek, will teach you how to conceive of and design infographics and also give you some free online tools for making interactive graphics for the Web! Brainstorm ideas and then stick around for Part 2.
Karl Gude, Graphics Editor in Residence, MSU School of Journalism
The Library: It Ain’t Just for Books (N, Y, A)
Learn how to use InDesign to modify a simple design inspired by a magazine clip into multiple templates to be used in your publication for alternative story packages, mods or infographs. This could change your life. (Seriously.)
Lydia Cadena, Adviser, Novi HS
The Long and Short of It (N)
Look at student publications and you’re likely to see a lot of medium-length stories. We do those well. But what really long, in-depth pieces? Or how about the short quick reads that are so important to cutting-edge writers?
C.E. Sikkenga, Newspaper Adviser, Grand Haven HS
Five Fast Foto Fixes (N, Y, P)
Oh no! This image looks lousy. How do we make it look better? Learn some quick Photoshop fixes that can help save those less-than-perfect exposures.
Ike Lea, Professor, Lansing Community College
OK, Glass: Use Cool Technology to do Journalism (N, W, V)
Check out some cool stuff you can use to do journalism at your school from this Google Glass explorer.
Jennifer Ware, Assistant Professor, MSU School of Journalism
Copyright and the Student Journalist (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Can you download pictures, music or text from the Internet and use it in student newspapers, yearbooks or broadcasts? Or is it copyright infringement? Discuss the do’s and don’ts of using another’s work in student press and when fair use applies.
Nancy Costello, First Amendment Law Clinic, MSU College of Law
Set Your Newscast Free (V)
Take your television news program outside school walls and getting your reporters into the community. Learn how to cover real-life news stories like the pros, and build up contacts and clout for your career and your program.
Randy Scott, Instructor, Davison HS’s DTV
Google Docs and Edmodo Changed My Life (A)
You can use Google Docs, peer editing and Edmodo to collaborate in new ways with your students and improve your student media. Learn how.
Tracy Anderson, Adviser, Catherine Longshore, Teacher Intern, Community HS
Presentation Slides
Wither Journalism (A)
You see the headlines and get the questions from your principal, parents and students. But what does research really show about the news industry, jobs for students, internships, etc.? See why journalism is still a great opportunity.
Ed Simpson, Assistant Professor, Central Michigan University
Breakout Sessions 4
Featured Speaker:
The Law (and Life) After Tinker (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
The 1969 Supreme Court Tinker decision is commonly acknowledged as something of a high-water mark for student free speech rights in America. Join Student Press Law Center attorney Mike Hiestand as he talks about what courts have done since and how that has affected student expression today. This session will address the Supreme Court’s 1988 Hazelwood decision and other court cases involving student media as well as off-campus and Internet-based student expression.
Mike Hiestand, Tinker Tour
Beyond the Box Scores (N, W)
The best sports stories do more than just report on this play and that play that happened in Friday’s big game. Get beyond what’s in the box scores to report sports stories that really matter to your school.
Chris Solari, Sports Reporter, Lansing State Journal
Gude Creations, Part 2 (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
You must also attend Part 1. Turn your ideas into realities.
Karl Gude, Graphics Editor in Residence, MSU School of Journalism
It’s Not Over Until the Fat Lady Edits (N, Y, A)
Improve the professionalism, consistency and flow of your copy by following a set of writing and editing rules that make sense. You’ll understand why ‘”That’s what,’ she said” is no joke.
Lydia Cadena, Adviser, Novi HS
C.E.’s Favorite Things (N)
Join MIPA’s newspaper chair as he shares some of his favorite pages and concepts from other publications. We’ll look at some great stuff and discuss ways you can borrow, modify or re-purpose them in your paper.
C.E. Sikkenga, Newspaper Adviser, Grand Haven HS
Build A Video Story Package Using What’s In Your Pocket (N, W, V)
You don’t need fancy equipment or be a video production class to make a great video story. Chances are you have everything you need in your pocket right now.
Jeremy Whiting, Adviser, Ovid-Elsie HS
Ace College Journalism (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
If you’re serious about journalism as a major and as a possible career. This is your session. It is led by a speaker with 20 years of professional recruiting experience. Find out what colleges and employers are looking for — and how to get started today.
Joe Grimm, Visiting Editor in Residence, MSU School of Journalism
If It Weren’t for Those Meddling Kids … (N, V, W, A)
The primary purpose of journalism is to hold those in power accountable — for students, that means the administrators who run your school. Learn from top editors at MSU’s campus newspaper how to unearth questionable practices by the leaders of your school. They’ll discuss some of their stories, including reporting that questioned ties between the Romney family (yes, that Romney family) and the MSU Board of Trustees, examined security practices in the wake of a school shooting and exposed potentially illegal practices by administrators.
Ian Kullgren, Editor in Chief, and Beau Hayhoe, Managing Editor, The State News
Tricks For Great Audio and Video In The Field (N, Y, P, V, W, A)
Telling a story has never been more dynamic with the new technologies available, but how do we make it as good as we can? Check out this session to discuss what we need to do for making our audio and video stellar.
Jon Whiting, Academic Specialist, MSU Department of Telecommunication, Information Studies & Media