Journalism

What is the program’s mission statement or statement of purpose? Why does the program exist?

The Department of Journalism is committed to excellence in teaching, in professional and creative activity, and in service to journalism and public relations.

The department will promote excellence in learning by encouraging students to become skillful communicators, critical thinkers, knowledgeable media consumers and users, and ethical leaders capable of understanding and protecting the democratic process. An enriched professional environment will encourage students to gain the experience and skills essential to life-long learning. The faculty will assure excellence in teaching that reflects the diverse heritage that enriches a free and democratic society and prepares students for an ever-changing media landscape. The faculty will educate students to understand the role of journalistic media in a multicultural, diverse and ever- changing national and international communications environment.

The faculty will promote quality integrative learning and undergraduate research experiences for students.

The faculty will demonstrate a commitment to lifelong learning through continuing scholarly, creative and professional activities.

The faculty will demonstrate excellence in service through a commitment: (1) to develop a media-literate society through cultural and educational enrichment for journalism consumers, educators and students in Illinois, for Eastern students and for journalism majors, (2) to broaden the practice and understanding of the communication of public information so crucial to the preservation of a free and democratic society, (3) to provide opportunities for continuing intellectual development for journalism and public relations professionals, and (4) to contribute to department, college and university committees, activities, programs and service.

The Department of Journalism will provide education that is (1) durable enough to weather changes in the careers of our alumni, (2) flexible and broad enough to span the time and space of their lives and careers, (3) responsive to the changes in the discipline, and (4) practical and successful in teaching students how to communicate knowledgeably, critically, ethically and effectively.

How does the program mission align with the university mission?

Like the university’s mission statement, the department’s statement places an emphasis on excellence in teaching, research and service, an emphasis on faculty-student collaboration, an emphasis on service learning, an emphasis on diversity and inclusion and an emphasis in promoting good communication skills and ethical decision-making.

Whom does the program serve?

The program primarily serves students, high schools and community colleges and media professionals in the state of Illinois. However, the unit does enroll a limited number of out-of-state and foreign students. As detailed in No. 7 below, the department contributes to the centrality of the university’s mission and other academic programs buy offering general education courses, continuing education courses and online courses that serve non-traditional students.

What are the services provided? How do these services align with the university mission and program mission?

Offers a BA degree in journalism, a minor in journalism, a minor in public relations and a minor in sports media relations. 

For the past 27 years, the unit has sponsored a fall publication workshop for the Illinois Community College Journalism Association. Since 2004, faculty members have judged the ICCJA’s annual editorial contest. Since fall 2003, the journalism department has acted as headquarters for the ICCJA. Dr. John Ryan was executive director of ICCJA until spring 2013 when Professor Joe Gisondi took over those duties.

Dr. Ryan and Bryan Murley direct the activities of the Mid-America Press Institute, which is headquartered in the Journalism Department. The MPI is an organization made up of more than 50 newspapers from more than 20 states in the Midwest, from Nebraska to Ohio and Minnesota to Texas. MPI conducts five continuing education workshops each year and has a Web presence at MPInews.wordpress.com. The organization has been headquartered inthe department since 1995. 

Professional journalists serve each summer on the faculty of the Illinois Press Foundation/ EIU High School Journalism Workshop sponsored by the McCormick Foundation, the Dow Jones News Fund, the Illinois Press Foundation, and EIU. 

The department has partnered with the Illinois Press Foundation in many other ways including sponsoring a series of free multimedia workshops for high school teachers.

The department engages in substantial service to scholastic journalism with the high schools of Illinois. The department has been headquarters of the Illinois Journalism Education Association since 1988. Dr. Sally Renaud serves as executive director of the organization. IJEA sponsors publication workshops and contests and promotes high school journalism throughout the state.

 The department also coordinates and hosts the annual state finals of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Journalism Competition.

Describe the program’s origins (e.g. year established, purpose, expectations).

Growing out of a minor in journalism and a vigorous student publications program, the B.A. degree in journalism at Eastern was approved in the summer of 1974 as a major in Community Press Media. The first six degrees were awarded in May 1975. Ten courses were offered that year, including nine professional courses. The faculty consisted of three members whose duties included business management and editorial advising for a daily student newspaper, a yearbook and a magazine. The program's original news-editorial orientation has been broadened over the years to include offerings in broadcast journalism, public relations, advertising, photojournalism and new media. The program was administered as a studies committee in the English Department until December 1978 when the Department of Journalism was created.

How has the unit changed or adapted over time?

The program has attempted to change its curriculum and focus over the years to meet the rapidly changing needs of the news media attempting to adapt to technology changes. For example, in an attempt to meet perceived changes in how news is delivered, the unit made major changes in its curriculum, effective fall 2008. Foremost among those was the creation of an Introduction to Multimedia Journalism class and its inclusion in the core requirements for the major. Additionally, the faculty voted to include History of American Journalism as a required course in our 18-hour liberal arts block because assessment data showed that graduating seniors did not believe that they had a strong grasp of historical concepts. Small changes were also made in several concentrations.

 Also, in 2006 the department was declared by our accrediting agency (Accrediting Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication) to be out of compliance with its “Scholarship, Research, Creative Activity and Professional Activity” standard.

The deficiency in traditional scholarship was addressed by the hiring since 2006 of several faculty members with an interest in research. These faculty members have engaged in scholarly activity since joining the faculty. In addition, the chair has provided release time for research to several faculty members and has made an effort to more fully reimburse faculty members for travel to conferences when they present papers. The effort has resulted in a dramatic increase in scholarly production. 

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the program’s history and relevance to university mission.

Provide data showing the four-year trend in the number of majors, minors, options, and concentrations.

Provide data showing the four-year trend in student credit hour (SCH) production, percent of SCHs that are general education, and percent of SCHs that are taught to non-majors.

What elements of the program’s curriculum are offered specifically to support other academic majors, minors, options, and concentrations?

The department offers two senior seminars for non-majors – Journalistic Media and Society (EIU 4165G), and Freedom of Expression: Dissent, Hate, and Heresy (EIU 4158G). All EIU students must take a senior seminar to complete their general education requirements. The courses are intended to be a cross-disciplinary culminating experience that provides students with an opportunity to apply concepts and use skills developed in both their general education and major courses. The Journalistic Media in Society course identifies and assesses the effects of the interrelationship between journalistic media and social, cultural, political, economic and technological systems and processes in the context of the media’s major societal roles. The Freedom of Expression course examines legal rights, philosophy, theory and ethical responsibilities regarding free expression.  Journalism majors and minors cannot enroll in either of these courses. They must take a senior seminar offered through another discipline.

The department offers a service course—Journalism 3820: Publicity Methods—designed to teach basic writing and design skills to non-majors. The course is populated primarily by students majoring in communication studies, family and consumer sciences, marketing and business.

Other journalism courses are taken by non-journalism majors as a requirement or choice in other programs. For example:

• JOU 2001G / 2091G (Journalism and Democracy / Honors) is a general education course that can be taken by students across all majors. In addition, it is a required course for all Journalism majors.

• JOU 2101 (News Writing) and JOU 3000 (Advanced Reporting) may be taken by communication studies students concentrating in broadcasting or public relations and by students with a minor in either creative writing or professional writing.

• JOU 3610 (Broadcast News Writing) and JOU 3620 (Electronic News Gathering) may be taken by communication studies students concentrating in broadcasting. 

• JOU 3953 (Perspectives on Sports and the Media) is a course that is cross-listed with a CMN prefix for communication studies students.

• JOU 4102 (Journalism Ethics) is taken by communication studies students concentrating in broadcasting.

• JOU 4771 (Communication Law) is taken by communication studies students concentrating in broadcasting, and by students pursuing a pre-law minor. Graduate students in communication studies and political science also take the course.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the internal demand for the program. Note any clarifications or special circumstances (e.g., curriculum changes made by another program) that should be considered when reviewing the above data.

List relevant data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) Occupational Outlook Handbook, the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) New Graduate Salary Survey, and the EIU Career Services Annual Report.

From U.S.Bureau of Labor Statistics (Employment in 2008 compared to projected employment in 2018: Demand for authors, writers and editors should increase by 8%; demand for news analysts, reporters and correspondents should decline by 6%;demand for photographers should increase by 12% demand for public relations specialists should increase by24%; demand for technical writers should increase by 18%; demand for film and video editors should increase by 12 percent. From Illinois Department of Employment Security (Employment in 2010 compared to projected employment in 2020: Demand for advertising and promotions mangers should increase by 10.11%; demand for public relations managers should increase by 33%; demand for radio and TV announcers should increase by 6.34%; demand for broadcast news analysts should increase by 9.64%; demand for reporters and correspondents should decline by 18.91%; demand for public relations specialists should increase by 15.62%; demand for editors should decline by 10.03%; demand for technical writers should increase by 12.88%; demand for writers and authors should decline by 0.27%; demand for photographers should increase by 5.05; demand for film and video editors should increase by 10.48%.

Is the program accredited or approved by a recognized external agency or otherwise certified to meet established professional standards? Provide an executive summary of and link to the program’s most recent accreditation or certification report, if available.

The journalism program was first accredited by the Accrediting Council for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (ACEJMC) in 1982. The program was granted re-accreditation in 1988, 1994, 2000, 2006 and 2012). Summary of the 2011 ACEJMC site team that found the unit in compliance with all nine accrediting standards: 

1) Summarize the strengths and weaknesses of the unit.

    Strengths:

• Students, faculty and others on campus all praise the warm and close relationships between faculty and students and the way that relationship enhances learning.

• The faculty have significantly increased the level of their research/creative activity since the last accrediting visit.

• Assessment practices are firmly established, and the faculty uses the assessment results to change and improve classes and the overall program
• The unit does an admirable amount of service work, including its support of scholastic journalism throughout the state of Illinois and the nation.
• Students have many opportunities for working on award-winning campus media.
• Facilities are better than those at many larger schools.  The campus continues to invest technology resources in the unit.

Weaknesses:

• The unit does not have a strategic plan.  Although the university does not require one, administrators spoke to wanting a clearer vision of the unit’s plans.
• The unit has seven concentrations; some of them have fewer than 10 students in them.  The majority of the unit’s students have elected not to choose a concentration.
• Faculty and students as well as administrators outside the unit noted that both the Department of Journalism and the Department of Communication Studies offer majors in Public Relations and Broadcast News. The issue was referenced in the last accrediting report and has yet to be addressed.
• The university has seen a decline in enrollment, as has journalism.  The unit has 145 students, down from 209 at the time of the last visit.  There is no recruitment plan in place, but the unit is aware of the decline in enrollment.

Is the program required to meet any regulatory or legal requirements? Is the program subject to any special auditing requirements?

No

What are the most important outreach or public service activities supported by the program?

For the past 27 years, the unit has sponsored a fall publication workshop for the Illinois Community College Journalism Association.  Since 2004, faculty members have judged the ICCJA’s annual editorial contest. Since fall 2003, the journalism department has acted as headquarters for the ICCJA. Dr. John Ryan was executive director of ICCJA until spring 2013 when Professor Joe Gisondi took over those duties. 

Professors John Ryan and Bryan Murley direct the activities of the Mid-America Press Institute, which is headquartered in the Journalism Department. The MPI is an organization made up of more than 50 newspapers from more than 20 states in the Midwest, from Nebraska to Ohio and Minnesota to Texas. MPI conducts five continuing education workshops each year and has a Web presence at MPInews.wordpress.com. The organization has been headquartered inthe department since 1995. 

Professional journalists serve each summer on the faculty of the Illinois Press Foundation/ EIU High School Journalism Workshop sponsored by the McCormick Foundation, the Dow Jones News Fund, the Illinois Press Foundation, and EIU.

The department has partnered with the Illinois Press Foundation in many other ways including sponsoring a series of free multimedia workshops for high school teachers.

The department engages in substantial service to scholastic journalism with the high schools of Illinois. The department has been headquarters of the Illinois Journalism Education Association since 1988. Dr. Sally Renaud serves as executive director of the organization. IJEA sponsors publication workshops and contests and promotes high school journalism throughout the state. 

The department also coordinates and hosts the annual state finals of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA) Journalism Competition.

How do the local community and the region benefit from the program?

• The department sponsors public presentations on journalism/media issues. These are presented by faculty and visiting alumni/professionals.

• All student media are read/viewed/listened to by local and regional residents.

• Several courses , primarily in public relations, sponsor service learning/integrative learning projects that benefit area non-profit organizations/activities.

If needed, provide supplemental comments or data sources to help the reader understand the external demand for the program.

Journalism (B.A.)

Significant Achievements that Document Quality/Improvement

Significant achievements that document support of VPAA and/or University goals

Integrative Learning Opportunities

Student Research/creative Activity

Faculty-student collaboration

Strategies to improve P-16 teaching and learning

External Partnerships

Pass rates on any professional/ occupational licensure exams

Faculty Achievements

Student Achievements

If needed, provide supplemental comments or data sources to help the reader understand the quality of program outcomes.

Note any special benefits (e.g., personnel support, equipment, permanent improvements) that the program has received in the past three years from its grants and other sponsored programs.

How does the program benefit from donor gifts (e.g., scholarships, endowed chairs)? Does donor support provide a significant percentage of the program’s overall funding?

• Endowed scholarships funded through donor gifts helps defray expenses for journalism majors. For FY’14 endowed scholarships totaled $16,640.

• The department’s gift account, accumulated over the years from donor contributions, provides money for equipment, faculty travel and other expenses not funded through the department’s appropriated account.

• Donor support accounts for about 10 percent of the department’s overall funding.

List two or three key relationships that the program maintains with external constituencies (e.g., community colleges, other universities, government bodies). How do these relationships advance the university mission or otherwise benefit the university?

As described earlier, the department has important relationships with the Illinois Press Association/Illinois Press Foundation, with the Mid-America Press Association, with the Illinois Community College Journalism Association, the Illinois Journalism Education Association and the Illinois High School Association, These relationships provide great visibility for the department, provide service and learning opportunities for students and faculty, and provide a number if student recruitment opportunities for the department.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the resources generated by the program. Note any clarifications or special circumstances (e.g., revenue pass-throughs) that should be considered when reviewing the above data.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the productivity of the program. Note any clarifications or special circumstances (e.g., accreditation requirements, curricular changes, program restructuring) that should be considered when reviewing the above data.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the costs associated with the program. Note any clarifications or special circumstances (e.g., expenditures made centrally or externally, expenditures made on behalf of other units) that should be considered when reviewing the above data.

How does the program seek to distinguish itself from similar programs at other institutions?

The department distinguishes itself by emphasizing professional/practical experience provided through student media. The department and university have a strong staff and financial commitment to student media operations.

Note any unique and/or essential contributions that the program makes to the university.

The student media, particularly The Daily Eastern News, Warbler yearbook and WEIU TV/FM, provide the university community with up-to-date news and information and create an historical record of university activities. The DEN is the primary communication tool at the university.

Provide any program-specific metrics that help to document program contributions or program quality. Examples of some commonly used program-specific metrics may be found here.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand the program impact on the university mission.

Provide a link to or listing of the program’s goals and/or strategic plan.

The department is developing a strategic plan in fall 2013.

What role will the program have in the implementation of the university’s strategic plan (provide link to strategic plan)?

The department plans to continue to promote many elements of the university strategic plan, including:

• Service/integrative learning opportunity for students through classes and student media

* Ethical decision-making

• Good communication skills

• Diversity and inclusiveness

• Excellent teaching, research and service by faculty

• Faculty-student collaboration

What are the program’s two or three most promising opportunities that could help advance the university’s academic mission? Provide an estimate of additional investments or other costs required and additional student credit hours, revenue, or other resources generated.

Update and create 2+2 plans with community colleges

Revise curriculum to meet changes in the knowledge and skills required of journalists

The department needs to be able to hire at least two tenure-track faculty members (broadcasting and public relations) to meet future curriculuar demands.

If needed, provide supplemental comments to help the reader understand future opportunities for the program.