Photo by Bess Davis

Adjunct professor Pam Podger introduces her feature writing class to a collection of columns that will be discussed in class during spring semester. Podger is one of two new adjunct professors joining the School of Journalism this year.

New adjuncts Podger, Szpaller bring experience to UM J school

By Bess Davis
J-School web reporter

Two new faces greet journalism students from the front of Don Anderson Hall classrooms this semester. Missoulian reporters Pam Podger and Keila Szpaller have joined the journalism school’s staff of adjunct professors.

The retirement of Sharon Barrett and leave of absence of Sheri Venema created teaching opportunities for the feature writing class and a section of the pre-journalism reporting course.

Podger, 47, a business reporter for the Missoulian, has taken on the feature writing class, bringing broad experience and a penchant for analysis to the class.

Podger has a bachelor’s degree in English from Hobart & William Smith Colleges in Geneva, N.Y., and graduated with a master’s degree in journalism from Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University in 1986.

She has worked as a reporter for The Wall Street Journal, the Associated Press, a suburban Boston paper, the San Francisco Chronicle and The Roanoke Times. She covers business for the Missoulian. Podger was a Fulbright Scholar in 1989, when she traveled to Columbia and reported on “cottage industries.”

“I’m a big believer in the circuitous route in journalism. You get a lot of chances to learn from people,” Podger said.

Podger and her husband, John Cramer, who is an environmental reporter for the Missoulian, moved to Missoula from Virginia in October 2007 to raise Luke and Jack, whom they adopted from Russia last year.

“We wanted to get back West and we wanted to raise our boys with Western values and outlook and perspective,” she said.

Podger brings structured analysis similar to that in English courses to her feature writing class. Students read famous feature stories every week on a class blog and deconstruct the stories during class discussion. Podger wants her students to look at Pulitzer-winning work to learn how the stories are put together and identify what makes them good.

Podger enjoys sharing what she has learned over her years as a reporter with students in the journalism school. “It’s fun. It’s a really fun class to teach. It’s not a straight-jacketed inverted pyramid class,” she said.

Szpaller, 33, is a city government reporter for the Missoulian and has taken over teaching a section of sophomore-level reporting.

Originally from the West coast, Szpaller moved to Missoula 10 years ago and graduated from UM’s journalism program with a master’s degree in 2002. Like Podger, she also has a bachelor’s degree in English.

Szpaller has worked for a variety of Montana newspapers including the Missoula Independent, the Great Falls Tribune and the Missoulian.

Despite a busy schedule reporting for the Missoulian, Szpaller enjoys teaching beginning reporting students and working in the new building.

“When I first got a tour of the new building I was awed and envious at the same time,” she said.

Although she’s struggling a bit with the new technology, Szpaller knows what she wants to give to her students. “I am definitely trying to talk freely about situations in the newsroom,” said Szpaller.

“One thing I liked about the school is it’s very focused on preparing people for the real world,” she said.

Regular adjuncts have also returned for their spring classes. Printer Bowler is teaching Editing II, which focuses on page design. Kagan Yochim and John Twiggs are teaching sections of Introduction to Television Production, and Sally Mauk is teaching broadcast reporting. Gita Saedi teaches documentary production.

Jeremy Lurgio is a visiting assistant professor this academic year, teaching basic photojournalism, multimedia projects and Native News. He is filling in while the school looks for a replacement for former Assistant Professor Teresa Tamura, who resigned at the end of the last academic year. Former Dean Jerry Brown has returned from a semester’s leave and is teaching Introduction to the Mass Media, as well as opinion writing and reporting.
Posted March 5, 2008

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