"Chair Chat" - Report from the Chair
(April 2002)
Greetings and Welcome!
 Since
December, the Governing Board met to discuss plans and
activities. I invite you to read the
minutes for all the details, but I am happy to report that
15 people were in attendance, including those who participated
via the Internet chat room provided by Board Member Stuart
Rivchun at Microsoft.
Our most visible achievement this past year
was the awarding of the first annual
Willis L. Butler Leadership Prize
at last May's School of Speech Convocation. The Butler Prize
consists of a cash stipend and the addition of the recipient's
name to a plaque posted prominently (and permanently) in the
WNUR studios. Associate Speech Dean Citron presented the 2001
prize to Drew Pounds, WNUR's
2000-2001 general manager.
Another major accomplishment for our
Organization is the linking of the WNUR alumni website to the
JobFile listings of the Illinois News Broadcasters Association (http://www.inba.net/jobfile.html),
through the efforts of Career Development Committee Chair Bob
Bresse-Rodenkirk. Plans are in the works to expand the
functionality of this link to permit WNUR students and alumni to
post resumes and audio files to the site, and to expand listings
to include non-news/sports jobs.
Members of our Mentoring Committee have
conducted three in-service "Road Shows" this year to provide
professional training for the WNUR news department, and a fourth
session is scheduled for spring quarter.
Internet/New Media Committee Chair Jonathan
Lehrer has regularly updated the alumni website to include news
of the Governing Board meeting, the awarding of the Butler
Prize, posting of minutes, and creation of the JobFile link.
As many of you know, the Archives Committee
has emailed questionnaire forms to everyone on this list to
determine what historical materials exist in the hands of the
alumni, and eventually to establish a catalog and library of
materials. If you have tapes, old staff lists, program guides,
T-shirts, and any other WNUR memorabilia, please request a
survey form and fill it out. Don Jacobson, Archives Committee
Co-Chair, may be reached at
Donjacob@seize-theday.com.
Recently, the Governing Board was asked by
the WNUR student executive board to put together a social
gathering of WNUR alums and current staff members. Although we
were prepared to stage a symposium, lecture, panel discussion,
etc., the exec board asked us to participate in an informal
get-together and to share stories about WNUR as it existed in
our era(s). For most of us, this should be the easiest event to
stage--simply show up and wax nostalgic about our days at WNUR!
(Read about the event.).
Speaking of "active and dedicated," we've
received word that nine WNUR news and sports staff members have
been selected to receive prestigious Society of Professional
Journalists regional awards. These awards recognize excellence
in Journalism and are competitively judged. Those who place
first in their category are automatically entered in the SPJ
national competition. The rankings are revealed to the students
at the regional conference, so we don't yet know if any of our
students are going to compete at nationals. However, last year,
WNUR students brought back a first-place national win, so a
repeat is possible.
The station will be dominating two
categories, In-depth reporting and sports reporting, where WNUR
students are bringing home two out of the three places. The work
entered was done primarily on a co-curricular basis and truly
reflects excellence in student work product. Accomplishments
such as these help set WNUR/NU students apart in the
marketplace. The students should be congratulated on their hard
work and on the outstanding quality of their reporting.
Just a brief additional thought on the
Butler Prize...Last year, a group of our Governing Board members
informally "passed the hat" to fund the Prize and to purchase a
suitable permanent recognition plaque. While this certainly
would suffice again this year, several more WNUR alumni have
approached me to ask how they could participate. It's
simple--just send a contribution to:
Ms. Anita Hillin
Development Office
Northwestern University
2020 Ridge Avenue, Room 471
Evanston, IL 60208
Just let Anita know that your donation is
for WNUR's "Willis L. Butler Leadership Prize" to be awarded at
the Speech Convocation. Make the check payable to Northwestern
University (You'll get an NU gift receipt for tax purposes). The
Prize recipient is selected by the WNUR student executive board,
with input from the faculty advisor. This is a very direct and
intimate way for us to help a current student. Don't you agree?
Thanks, everyone, for staying with me and
reading all the way down to the bottom. You'll hear from me
again when we set the date and time for this spring's WNUR
alumni-student get-together. Hope to see you there!
Respectfully submitted,
Steve Rudolph, Sp., '75 President
(April, 2002)
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