Enterprise story Idea

I found an idea that could work for the enterprise story. There is a non-profit organization called the Colfax School Foundation that works to raise money for scholarships for Colfax students' upper-education. It is mostly funded by donations, and is an interesting topic when you look at the census for typical household earnings as well as the percentage of the population that earns at least a bachelor's degree.

quotes

1. "Mary is trying hard in school this semester," her father said.

 

2. "Early in the show," Steven Wright asked, "How do you tell when you're out of invisible ink?"

 

3. Did Steven Wright say, "If at first you don't succeed, then skydiving definitely isn't for you"?

 

4. "No,  I cannot get you to the airport in fifteen minutes," the taxi driver said.

 

5. Gov. Peterson said she will support a tax increase this session. "Without it, schools will close," she said.

 

6. "My favorite line is when Jerry Seinfeld said, 'My parents didn't want to move to Florida, but they turned sixty and that's the law'" Smitty said.

 

7. My French professor said my accent is "abominable".

 

8. She asked, "Is Time a magazine you read regularly?"

 

9. When did Roosevelt say, "we have nothing to fear but fear itself"?

 

10. "Can you believe," Dot asked me, "that it has been almost five years since we've seen each other?"

 

 

Adapted from the University of Purdue’s Owl Resources, the World Wide Web and other assorted online back alleys.

Outline and Sources

I. Nut Graf
a. why might extra material not get shown?
b. who decides?

II. Didn't show speech.
a. why?
b. parents?

III. Policies.
a. school district policy
b. JES vs. FES guidelines.

IV. Presented the speech.
a. to who?
b. why?
c. Parent response?

V. Future decisions to show extra material.
a. importance?

Sources:
Craig Nelson: 509-332-2617
Rachelle Brown: 509-334-5641 ext. 619
Kim Keifer: 509-334-5641
Joni Stevens: 509-332-2617

Political story

Teachers get the green light on showing extra material in classrooms, including President Obama’s speeches, with only a few regulations, according to Principal Craig Nelson at Jefferson Elementary School.

Political issues can be tricky to introduce in a classroom setting, especially with younger children, and more importantly, their parents. “If an angry rally of parents came to the superintendent or myself concerning material that may be shown in class, then we probably wouldn’t show it,” said Nelson. But if a teacher can prove the material’s educational value and can present it in a non-biased and age-appropriate manner, than the teacher has the right to teach the material, said Nelson. President Obama gave a speech directed towards students ages K-12 concerning the first day of school. Some teachers decided to show the speech, others did not. But how does a teacher decide if material is appropriate for class? And how can that teacher prepare for a negative response from parents?

“As a high school student, one of my teachers set up the T.V. for us to view the launch of the space shuttle, Columbia. We watched in horror as it exploded in the air, and we realized that we just saw the whole crew die. That has stuck with me, and I believe that some things are best viewed at home and discussed with families” said Rachelle Brown, the Title Reading and Math Paraprofessional at Franklin Elementary School. I don’t think it is a good idea to show things like that live, I would always suggest recording it, reviewing it, and then showing it in class, Brown said.

This idea of waiting to view or excluding material that could seem controversial or perhaps present problems is not uncommon. “We did not plan on showing the speech,” Said Kim Keifer, Secretary for Franklin Elementary. “It was really up to the teachers, but as far as I know, none of them have shown it and probably won’t,” Keifer said.

According to the Pullman School District Administrative Procedure 2311.1P, teachers who wish to show video or film in classroom must meet criteria that will enrich or aid the curriculum, and teachers must place principle above personal opinions or prejudices. In addition, teachers must receive permission from a principal or superintendent to show the film. Any film or video with a rating above “G” also requires a signed parent permission form in order for students to view the content.

Teachers taking time to review a speech prior to showing it is beneficial for both designing lesson plans around the material to provide validity for its use and preparing teachers for possible questions from parents or students. “if you are watching something for the first time with your students, you aren’t prepared for the teaching moments that come up… I think that if you haven’t briefed yourself before presenting materials, there are so many lost chances and potential risks” Brown said.

Because President Obama’s speech aired on September 8^th, elementary teachers in Pullman were given an extra day to review the speech and then later decide whether or not to show it to their students.

Joni Stevens, a fifth grade teacher at Jefferson Elementary, said she received an email from the Superintendent and Administrator providing information about the protocol for showing the speech in class. Teachers were to send out a letter to parents saying that they planned on viewing the speech in class and giving them the option to preview it, Stevens said. Stevens said she had no parent objections, and after the speech was reviewed the class discussed its main message. Stevens said she felt no political controversy was within the speech, and that its message was basically for students to be in charge of their own education and for students to do their best.

Most of the teachers who felt the speech was age-appropriate showed it, and I certainly encouraged it as well, Nelson said. We as teachers are trying to be good at giving information about outside occurrences, this speech is an example of that, Nelson said.

However, some teachers still felt the political nature of the president giving a speech was a risk for upsetting parents and could perhaps create controversy in teaching agendas. “I think that if the speech had been a long standing tradition and given and shown in school by each president, it may have been a totally different situation. It wouldn’t give a perception of perhaps pushing political views or ruffling any feathers—it would just be part of the back-to-school tradition,” Brown said.

Political story ideas

I would like to focus on the President Obama speech from the 8th and Jeff Williams' rally of angry parents to prevent the speech being shown at elementary schools. The speech was not shown at the Pullman elementary schools, and many parents kept their kids from school that day to watch the speech. The importance here is not the actual speech, but more the role of the schools for events such as this. Is it a judgement call of school officials to show/not show such public speeches? Is it a policy? What will happen in future events similar to this? At what point can we draw a line between what children deserve to know about what's happening in their country versus feeding them some sort of propaganda?

Nathan Cohen Speech

Students listened intently and applauded with gratitude toward Nathan Cohen who gave a speech about his contemporary art on Thursday in Pullman.

There was a rare quiet in the moments before the artist took to the podium. Whereas coordinators warned that the student turnout for such an occasion as an artist’s speech would be sparse, the Fine Arts Auditorium was nearly full of professors and aspiring student artists. Whether or not the turnout was a result of sheer curiosity, or for class credit, the audience was nonetheless respectful while waiting for the guest. After being introduced, Nathan Cohen received not only applause but what felt to be genuine appreciation for his ideas. The speech was advertised as being his explanation for his new geometric art, but quickly became part of the bigger picture for all artists to relate to.

Cohen, who spent much of his childhood in New Mexico and has lived or traveled to endless locations worldwide to exhibit his art, credits his travels and the history of the world to his inspiration. “What drives us to make images?” Cohen said. The speech included personal photos of places such as Chaco Canyon, New Mexico and their relation to historical accounts of humankind's strive to record images. Our ancestors may have imagined Earth a certain way, but they couldn’t actually see it, and it’s important to see how they perceived it, Cohen said. The emphasis is placed on time and space for Cohen’s motivation, as well as attention to detail. “Our desire to create images transcends our human capabilities,” Cohen said.

Cohen’s attention to other artists’ attempts at detail and surfaces created inspiration for the three-dimensional geographical art Cohen is currently exploring. Surfaces can be evocative of memories, it is important to know how to make surfaces appear real, Cohen said. Other elements such as light and its importance on the change it makes in an image was also a technique Cohen is exploring. Cohen said he works closely with many scientists and engineers to conjoin new inventions such as invisibility-enabling cameras with images to create an entirely new look at the art represented.

The bright colors and intricate structure of Cohen’s pieces have received great appreciation and invitations to paint murals in locations such as Tokyo and Cuba. When asked what message Cohen tries to convey through his art, he modestly replies there isn’t one. “It’s not appropriate to hand people a perspective, they have the right to find their own,” Cohen said. Instead, Cohen said he has a rather optimistic view of his art in that he tries to create new perspectives for others and in return inspire others to create something else.

“I loved his photos, I had heard abut Cohen previously and his take on space and time is wonderful,” said Tamra Helm, an art professor at WSU. During Cohen’s speech not one audience member appeared to be disenchanted. Rather professors and students alike listened and received the speech as a lesson, an outside perspective that was not the self-praising of an artist, but the crediting to many other artists and experiences that give the artist the ability to convey art. “I like that he focused on the physicality of art, landscape, and the ancient arts,” said Garric Simonson, an art student at WSU. Cohen motivates other young artists to travel and find their own ideas to understand the endless possibilities of art. The photos you see can never justify the reality of a situation, Cohen said.

Sources:

Tamra Helm: 509-337-5367

Garric Simonson: garric_simonson@wsu.edu

Nathan Cohen: contact@nathancohen.co.uk

Swine Flu

President Floyd addresses the prevention of more Swine Flu cases in Pullman on Tuesday and the unnecessary panic the outbreak has caused. 

"Fortunately, as most of you know, the symptoms of this flu have been quite mild in most of the people on our campus who have contracted it; by most accounts, it has been milder than the usual cases of seasonal flu" Floyd said.

Dr. King's speech

In one of the greatest demonstrations in the history of our nation, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. spoke of justice and the pursuit of happiness in Washington D.C. today. 

With thousands of civilians listening intently, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said, " After the emancipation proclamation, 100 years later, the negro still is not free". Addressing such issues as segregation, discrimination, poverty, and justice, the people cried: Now is the time. 

Notes:

The greatest demonstration in the history of our nation, emancipation proclamation, 

100 years later, the negro still is not free. 

segregation, discrimination, poverty, 

prospects of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness

pay wages

the riches of freedom, the security of justice. 

promises of democracy, now is the time.

now is the time

we must be guaranteed

I have a dream. 

sweltering with the heat of injustice

let freedom ring. thank god almighty, we are free at last

Questions for Jonathan Randall

1. How do foreign affairs in the U.S. differ in coverage versus in France?

2. Was it ever difficult to find a good approach to a story because of emotional conflicts or personal opinion based on your experiences?>

3. Was there any point when you thought, I can't do this anymore? What's the point? if so, how did you overcome this?

4. What is your overall goal when you write a foreign affairs piece? what do you ultimately want readers to take away from it?

5. Who is your biggest influence as far as morale and ethical decisions goes?

beat selection/stories/possible sources

Beats:

I have chosen to write focusing on an education beat, specifically grade schools, learning centers and daycares. . I think this focus is important because it is usually overlooked, especially when it comes to personal stories. Many education stories involve district meetings or school board’s decisions with a few primary resources rather than an individual affected by the decisions.. Many Pullman locals have children in grade school, and parents would appreciate information given from different perspectives in the media about their community public education system. I think covering education will provide both happy feel-good personal stories as well as a few issues surrounding early education. Examples of issues include increased shortage in special needs teachers/assistants in conjunction with an increasing number of students with Autism. Also, other smaller but equally substantial issues could include teacher-student ratios and their effects on attention and learning or new techniques for standardized testing.

Education is important on several levels. It is important on a national level because all public schools will be affected by any larger change with things such as expenditures in federal funding. Covering education is important on the state level because the state government ultimately decides the amount of funding a public school shall receive as well as standardization, teacher salary, and curriculum. This in turn affects local public schools, in which many local citizens have children attending. Therefore it is important to cover all aspects, federal, state, and local.

Good sources to consider to within my proximity would be sociologists, school counselors and psychologists, school officials, PTA, teachers, and even students. With Gov. Gregoire pushing initiatives that promise change in schools, what’s really being done and who is paying for, benefiting from, affected by these changes? How are teachers being compensated for extra time spent tutoring students? How much does Washington spend for standardized tests? Are they working to improve students overall education? How are daycares training staff for early learning? The three articles below focus on similar ideas that I would like to cover. The first has to do with the national issue of the economy and parents’ and schools’ attempts to save money for back-to-school shopping. The second article is focused on the improvement of special needs facilities at a high school, and the third article covers an elementary school’s decision to offer an all-day kindergarten to save money on student transfers. All of these articles pertain to my beat, however I would still like to have more humanistic levels in my articles.

1. New Special Needs classroom training/techniques, with an emphasis on children with Autism

2. Day care employee training, employee satisfaction, and difficulty with funding

3. PTA involvement, what parents are involved and its effects on students' learning.

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/sep/01/kitsap-shoppers-going-back-to-school-on-a-budget/

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/sep/01/central-kitsap-high-improves-facilities-for/

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2009/aug/28/all-day-kindergarten-coming-to-pearson/

Possible Sources: Jefferson Elementary

Brian Moore
Principal
brianm@psd267.wednet.edu

Kim Keifer
Secretary
kkeifer@psd267.wednet.edu

Jane Rosenberg
Counselor/ Psychologist
jrosenberg@psd267.wednet.edu

Susan Horstman
Counselor/ Psychologist
shorstma@psd267.wednet.edu

Runell Gallina
Special Education
rgallina@psd267.wednet.edu

Co-President
Amy Tull
334-5864
amybtull@hotmail.com

Co-President
Julie Tarlyn
334-4486
julietarlyn@hotmail.com

PTA ^

Mark Goddard - Executive Director, M.Ed.

Phone: 509-334-1234

Email: director@pullmanlearningcenter.com