Terry Fairfield

Harold and Marian Andersen supported projects across the campuses

NU Foundation Director Terry Fairfield made the following comments at the Journalism Alumni awards luncheon on Friday, April 9.

Thank you for the opportunity to talk to you this morning. Nebraska’s College of Journalism and Mass Communications is one of the university’s brightest academic stars. I think I have a pretty good feeling for the quality of a journalism program. My son is a newspaper reporter in Arizona. He is a graduate of the University of Kansas, a program that also has a national reputation for excellence, but he reports that Nebraska’s college is considered top-notch by those in the news and journalism industry. I think the alumni receiving today’s awards attest to that perception. My congratulations to alumni award winners and to students whom we will honor later.

My conversations with Nebraska faculty and with students, many of whom are reporters with the student press, confirm my view that our college is one of high caliber. Its strengths are many.

First, the college faculty do an exceptional job of maintaining the intimacy of a small college despite enrolling nearly 900 students. This is difficult because journalism training is essentially one-to-one. Time is a crucial component, and our faculty are generous with their time. This creates a tight-knit community of students, a culture that enhances retention and encourages learning. The students form long-lasting friendships that extend beyond their college years. It is not unusual for journalism graduates to network among their friends nationally. This almost familial relationship is promoted by faculty who take an almost parental interest in the welfare of their students both during their undergraduate years and after graduation. Several faculty send letters to parents of soon-to-graduate seniors, thanking the parents for their support. Faculty commonly keep in touch with students for years after graduation, following their professional development and continuing to guide and mentor them as they pursue their careers. This seems to be unique to the journalism culture but is an attribute I wish other professors throughout the university would emulate.

The decision of the college to center its curriculum squarely in the liberal arts is to be applauded as well. This broad-based education certainly helps students when they leave the university and begin to cover issues ranging from family and domestic violence to city budgets to roads and infrastructure. And it gives them the critical thinking skills of healthy skepticism, curious inquiry and perseverance. The very best of these students can look at the link between those aforementioned issues and perhaps show readers and viewers that a city budget that spends too much — or too little — money on infrastructure might be short-changing its families.

But while the college bases its curriculum on the liberal arts, it does not ignore the teaching of strong, practical skills in written and oral communications. A graduate of the UNL College of Journalism and Mass Communications is known to have mastered these essential skills.

Faculty members have solid, real-world experience that gives students the knowledge they need. This is not pie-in-the-sky theoretical journalism — although research is an ongoing component at the college — but practically centered education that prepares undergraduates of jobs in a variety of fields. One mark of excellence is demand for graduates. Placement of University of Nebraska graduates into industry jobs continues to be successful, even though the industry itself is contracting. And we continue to be successful in placing students in quality internships.

Students in journalism continue to win awards at the national and local level. Each year, a significant number of students matriculates through the University Honors Program. Journalism students continue to fill the ranks of honor societies such as Phi Beta Kappa, Kappa Tau Alpha, Alpha Epsilon Rho and Golden Key.

The future holds much promise. Recently a public relations track was added to the list of major sequences, and new quarters are planned for the college. In fact, we will be making a major announcement about the new building at a luncheon this afternoon.

One final note: I am truly heartened that so many family members have attended to celebrate their students’ achievements. Family support of academic accomplishment is a key to success. Although many students do well without family support, all indicators show that family support often defines the margin between a good and a great student. All of you should be proud of your students today. I know that I am.