25 Thursday Apr 2013
Posted in Clips
This article was published in The Appalachian.
It all started with a letter.
After 9/11, Appalachian State University was looking for a way to help – “trying to figure out what to do,” said Jenny Koehn, associate director of Student Programs.
Former Dean of Students Barbara Daye decided the university could best help by connecting with one family affected by the tragedy. Continue reading
25 Thursday Apr 2013
Posted in Clips
This article was published in the Lenoir News-Topic.
In the basement of Pisgah Baptist Church, eight women are making comfort.
Comfort, of course, isn’t a tangible thing. But a handmade quilt is about as close as it gets.
Since 2011, the Pisgah Sisterhood of Quilters has made a quilt for anyone the members think might need one – people who are sick, or have a new baby, or are confined in rest homes. Sometimes, it’s “just because.” Continue reading
24 Wednesday Apr 2013
Posted in Work
Full disclosure: Of all the types of journalism out there, all the important and civic-minded things I could be doing, I am really best at fluff.
I can’t help it. I mean, I can do other things. I can cover a meeting with the best of them. But when it comes to my actual specialty, the thing that comes naturally, the thing I do better (hopefully) than the guy next to me — it’s fluff. Fluff, fluff, fluff. Continue reading
22 Monday Apr 2013
I don’t actually disagree with this Wall Street Journal blog post that being a newspaper reporter is the worst job of the year.
I mean, I am tired. Tired.
My brain is absolutely gelatinous from trying to pound out content six days a week. My nerves are shot from trying to maintain patience, patience, patience with sources and PR reps and readers — from trying to please everyone all the time while still keeping a grasp on objectivity and news judgment and all those old, essential pillars. Continue reading
22 Monday Apr 2013
When I interviewed reporters to work at The Appalachian, they all tried to sell me on one thing: How extroverted they were.
There was very little, “I’m a great writer/videographer/photographer/data journalist.” Almost never any, “I have a great grasp on [x] subject I’ll be covering.” It was all, “I’m a people person. I love to talk to people.”
This makes sense. Continue reading
21 Sunday Apr 2013
Posted in Work
I’m about as digitally native as it gets.
I never used Google Reader — or any RSS reader. I picked through newspapers and devoured magazines as a kid, but when I got older and started caring about the news (and stopped having time to read actual books), where I turned was Twitter.
But, native or not, I still struggle with the seminal problem of getting your news online (for free): Separating the signal from the noise, sifting through the sea of content and finding something worthwhile.
Here are a few strategies that have helped me find gems in the pile of pixels: Continue reading
18 Thursday Apr 2013
Posted in Life
When I first came to Appalachian State, I thought it was perfect.
I tell this story a lot: I sent in my deposit before I ever visited. It wasn’t that I’d heard a lot of great things about Appalachian. Instead, I’d been rejected from my first-choice university and all my friends had been accepted, and the twin ideas of mountains and far-away seemed infinitely appealing.
And then I visited. No feelings I’ve ever had for a person could merit the phrase “head over heels,” but when I first saw the way the sun stretches over the bell tower on Rivers Street, I went tumbling. Continue reading
15 Monday Apr 2013
Posted in Clips
This article was published on HerCampus.com.
Not long ago, it was pretty tough for creative collegiettes™ to show off their skills. Budding poets could show off a few verses in their school literary magazines and artists could submit a few pieces to local galleries—but overall, creativity was a dorm room affair.
Now, things are different. Now, collegiettes™ who spend their time writing or illustrating or shooting photos have an easy way to show their work to the world – and it’s as simple as a few clicks. Continue reading
15 Monday Apr 2013
Posted in Clips
This article was published in the Lenoir News-Topic.
Work on a series of additions to the Lenoir Aquatic and Fitness Center, including new indoor and outdoor waterslides, so far has remained under budget, the Lenoir Parks and Recreation Department reported Tuesday night to the city council.
The total projected cost is $313,500. The N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation and Lenoir each committed to contribute $156,750 from 2011 to 2014.A total of $190,629 has been spent so far. Continue reading
15 Monday Apr 2013
Posted in Clips
This article was published in The Appalachian.
The Queer Film Series began last night with a showing of “The Mormon Proposition.”
Since 2000, the series has provided free screenings of documentaries and feature films that are of interest to the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgendered, Queer, Intersex community. Continue reading
