_{Photojournalism students travel to Honduras to document relief efforts}

(Photos by James V. Shipley)

The heartbreak of poverty and natural destruction in Honduras was documented by three UM photojournalism students over winter break.

Juniors Jennifer Sens and James Shipley and senior Stuart Thurlkill traveled to Tegucigalpa, the capital of Honduras, in early January to participate in and document the relief efforts of the Sisters of Mercy and Habitat for Humanity.

Already the second-poorest country in the Western Hemisphere, Honduras suffered huge setbacks when Hurricane Mitch struck late last October. The country is now struggling to rebuild.

"There was severe devastation to most structures near water, but it was the conditions before the hurricane that were most disturbing to me," Sens said. "It seems like natural disasters come and go in Central America while the social catastrophes stick around."

The UM trio saw areas, mainly along rivers, where nearly every home and business had been completely wiped out by flooding. The students pushed through language barriers and culture shock to form bonds with Honduran orphans, children with AIDS and others who had lost everything in the hurricane.

"We visited a shelter that housed 600 damnificados, the Spanish word given to those people who lost their homes to the hurricane," Shipley said. "Many of the damnificados had lived at the shelter since the hurricane hit."

The students were deeply touched by the economic realities of life in Central America.

"The low points were when women would offer me their beautiful little children or when I would have to explain to someone why I couldn't get them into the United States," Sens said. "Everyday we would see terrible poverty -- and it was so frequent and horrible that it became sort of surreal at times. I often cried as I wrote in my journal at night."

For Thurlkill, the differences between his hometown of Missoula and the cities of Honduras were stunning. He described tiny wooden shacks that housed entire families, garbage-filled rivers and pollution so thick it was hard to breathe. Yet he expressed optimism for the third-world country.

"Being with the people gave me a sense of hope and a sense that Honduras will be able to pull together better than before the hurricane," Thurlkill said.

He also said the experience has made a lasting impression on him, one that may steer him into a career in international journalism.

"It really amazed me to realize how blessed I am," he said. "Seeing another culture ... really shakes you up and gives you an appreciation for what we have in the United States."

The students plan to publish some of their work in upcoming issues of the Kaimin. They also will speak at the Jeannette Rankin Peace Potluck on Feb. 25 at the University Church. Several campus slideshows are planned but have not yet been confirmed.

The students received funding for their trip from a number of sources, including ASUM and the Latin American Human Rights Network, UM President George Dennison, the Joe Durso Special Projects Fund of the School of Journalism and personal donations from professors, family and friends.

_{UM students capture more awards in Hearst Competition}

Journalism students at UM have put the school in fourth place nationally in both the print and broadcast competitions in the Hearst Journalism Awards Program. Photojournalism students are ranked in fifth place nationally.

In the Broadcast News Semi-Finals, Cari Cast, a junior from Missoula, placed fourth in radio news, winning a $750 scholarship and a matching grant for the J-school. Cast is one of 10 broadcast students nationally who will move on to finals, for which she must submit a second round of tapes by March 22. If she places in the top three in the final round, she will go to Hearst's national championships May 21-25 in San Francisco.

Also in broadcast competition, senior Truxton Rolfe of Helena placed 11th in TV news, while sophomore Sabrina Olson of Great Falls placed 17th in radio news. Both students receive certificates.

In the In-Depth Writing competition, senior Katie Oyan of Kadoka, S.D., scored a 13th place certificate. Print journalism students will compete in three more rounds of competition. Oyan joins recent graduates Kim Skornogoski and Tom Mullen, who earned honors in Feature Writing and Editorial Writing competitions. Skornogoski's 6th place won her a $500 award and the school a matching grant.

In photojournalism competition, senior Ann Williamson of Missoula landed $500 for a seventh-place win in the Sports and News category. The J-school receives a matching $500 grant for Williamson's win. Stuart Thurlkill, a senior from Missoula, placed 14th in the same contest,following his ninth-place win in the first round of photo competition. He also won $500 and a matching grant for his earlier effort. Photo students compete in one more round. The 12 highest-scoring students in the three photo rounds advance to the championships in San Francisco.

UM winners in this year's Hearst competitions have thus far earned themselves and the J-school a total of $4,500 in award money.

_{New, visiting and returning faculty keep things lively at the J-school}

The spring semester schedule for UM's journalism and radio-television programs includes classes taught by several new, visiting and returning faculty.

Three Missoulian staffers -- Tad Brooks, Sherry Devlin and Ginny Merriam -- are bringing their real-world knowledge into the classroom as visiting instructors.

Tad Brooks, news editor for the Missoulian, is teaching students copy editing skills in News Editing II, J 381. The class, which he taught for the first time in spring 1998, gives students hands-on experience in using QuarkXPress software to design newspaper and magazine pages.

Since graduating from Pennsylvania State University in 1982 with a bachelor's degree in English writing, Brooks has worked for a number of Montana news organizations, including the Hungry Horse News, Bozeman Chronicle and Lee Newspapers State Bureau. He's also published freelance articles in publications ranging from Fly Rod and Reel to Newsweek.

Brooks said teaching at UM is fun and rewarding. "I find it personally challenging because it forces you to articulate the rationale behind the things that you do and the decisions that you make," Brooks said. "It's a real learning process for me." When he's not working or teaching, Brooks enjoys fishing, hunting, hiking and spending time with his 5-year-old daughter, Mariah.

Missoulian environmental reporter Sherry Devlin is teaching Reporting Public Affairs, J 571, this semester. Devlin, who has been at the Missoulian for the past 10 years, has also taught Reporting, J 270, during her three years at UM. Devlin assigns students to cover Missoula City Council meetings each Monday night, in addition to their own news beat. She has a bachelor's degree in news editorial journalism from the University of Colorado and has reported for newspapers in Colorado, Washington and Montana.

Devlin said she enjoys the challenge of teaching. "I find that working with students on their reporting skills and their writing really challenges me to look harder at my own reporting work at the paper," she said. "It really energizes me." Devlin has two children: a son, Conor, who attends Sentinel High School; and a daughter, Kelly, who goes to Washington Middle School.

Ginny Merriam is a veteran Missoulian reporter currently covering health, medicine and social issues for the paper. A 1986 graduate of the J-school, Merriam has returned to teach Reporting, J270. Merriam instructs her students in the fundamentals of reporting and writing news. She said she enjoys seeing the amount of progress students make during the semester. "What it does for you as a teacher is it reminds you of why you love journalism, why you became a reporter," she said. "It's wonderful rediscovering that and communicating that to students." The product of two longtime Montana families, Merriam enjoys backpacking and skiing.

In the radio-television department, five UM staffers have taken on new teaching responsibilities, while Professor Greg MacDonald has returned from sabbatical and Professor Bill Knowles has gone on sabbatical.

Gus Chambers, producer and director at the Broadcast Media Center, has been a visiting instructor at UM for the past 15 years. This semester, Chambers is teaching Introduction to Radio-Television Production, RTV 151. Chambers instructs his students in the basic principles of shooting and editing video tape, including miking, lighting, interview techniques and writing for TV. He has a bachelor of science degree in microbiology from the University of Georgia (which explains his bulldog nature) and a bachelor of arts degree in radio-television from UM.

Chambers is the weekend newscast director at KECI-TV in Missoula and hosts Thursday Morning Freeforms on KUFM, Montana Public Radio. He also is a producer of the award-winning Backroads of Montana series. Known around campus for his dry wit, Chambers says of teaching: "I can't think of any better way to spend three fun-filled hours a week. It beats an abcessed tooth."

Ray Ekness, producer and director at UM's Broadcast Media Center and adjunct faculty member of the radio-television department, is teaching three classes this semester: TV Production II (RTV 351), Digital Television (RTV395) and Broadcast Operations II (RTV 451). In TV Production II, Ekness teaches the students how to become producers, directors, photographers and editors of news and commercial programs. In Digital Television, students learn the history of non-linear editing and get hands-on experience with AVID and 3D Studio Max software. And in Broadcast Operations II, the broadcast students are joining with print students from the Native News Honors Project to produce an in-depth look at Native American issues in Montana.

Ekness, who received a bachelor's degree and master's degree from UM, has worked at several TV stations in the Northwest and has freelanced for a number of network and cable channels. He also is a producer of the award-winning Backroads of Montana series.

Professor Bill Knowles is home recovering from double-bypass open-heart surgery. He's also on a sabbatical assignment this semester to complete a long-in-the-works anecdotal history of Montana broadcasting.

Greg MacDonald, professor and chair of the Radio-Television Department, has returned from a fall-semester sabbatical . This spring, he's teaching Television Production II (J 351) and Broadcast Operations II (J 451). In Television Production II, MacDonald tells his students to regard him as a TV station news director and themselves as reporters. By the end of the semester, the students will have produced news stories on government, economic, educational and legislative issues.

MacDonald has a bachelor's degree in English literature and a master's degree in communication in journalism from the University of Michigan. Before coming to UM in 1974, he worked at WGN in Chicago and the NBC affiliate in Detroit. In Missoula, he was manager of KUFM radio for six years and has freelanced for nearly every TV network. "The best part of this job is teaching," he said. "You see a certain amount of excitement when it all comes together for students and they see they can do good stuff." In his spare time, MacDonald enjoys fly fishing, backpacking, skiing, canoeing and rafting.

In her 16-year position as news and public affairs director for KUFM, Montana Public Radio, Sally Mauk has supervised many student interns. This semester, she's getting her first taste of formal teaching in Writing/Reporting for Broadcast, J 280. Mauk holds a bachelor's degree in western European history and German language and literature from the University of Kansas. She has won several professional honors, including the 1998 regional Edward R. Murrow Award and a first place in 1997 from the Society of Professional Journalists Pacific Northwest Excellence in Journalism competition. She is a member of SPJ, the Radio Television News Directors Association, the Montana Japan Club and the Garden City Tennis Association.

John Twiggs, a producer at KUFM-TV, began teaching at UM in fall 1994. This semester, he's teaching students the fundamentals of television photography and videotape editing in Introduction to Radio-Television Production, RTV151. Twiggs, whose work at KUFM-TV involves production of educational programs for youth, is producer of the award-winning history program for middle-school students, "How the West is Fun." The first episode served as Twiggs' professional project when he completed his master's degree in journalism at UM in 1996.

After graduating from Eastern New Mexico University in 1986, Twiggs spent eight years working in TV sports. He was a reporter and anchor in New Mexico, Montana and Indiana before returning to Missoula to enter the graduate program. Along with his colleague Ray Ekness, Twiggs plays in a senior baseball league. "Senior is defined as over-30 and not very good," he said. Twiggs also donates his time as a volunteer for Camp Mak-A-Dream, a summer camp for children with cancer.