PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs Teacher Workshop

Name: Jamie Flanagan

Hometown: Detroit

School: Fraser High School in Fraser, Michigan

Six-word philosophy: Everybody has a story. Find it.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: The droids we’ve been looking for.

Favorite websites: FHS The Flash, 101Detroit, Internet Archive

What inspired you to join SRL?
I wanted an opportunity for my students to see that their work and ideas are valued beyond the four walls of our school.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
Where do we go next and how to do it all over again? It is a new crop of broadcasters every year. How do we make each one great?

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
I am a DJ for weddings, parties, bars and the Hot AC station in Detroit, 96.3 WDVD. Music is a big part of my life.

Most memorable teaching moment?
I was on the air at the radio station, and I get a caller. It was not a request but a former student from at least five years prior. He said he heard my voice and needed to call and thank me. He apologized for not being the best student or the best-behaved student — he wasn’t — but said that he ‘got it’ now. He thanked me for pushing him even when he pushed back. It was neat for my two lives to cross paths like that, and it is nice to know that even when they leave and it seems like they just didn’t care or might not ever, sometimes they do.

Name: Donna Griffin

Hometown: Greenfield, Indiana

School: Arsenal Technical High School in Indianapolis, Indiana

Six-word philosophy: Reporters have the best job ever.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: A sense of adventure and enthusiasm, Nora Roberts novels and my laptop.

Favorite websites: Facebook, Twitter, WTHR, Frontline, National Geographic, Jane Friedman’s blog

What inspired you to join SRL?
I have been working with our local PBS affiliate, WFYI, for three years on special projects and want to broaden the scope of our coverage through the Urban Media Project, our multimedia journalism initiative. Plus, I am an unabashed broadcast news junkie.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
How to integrate multimedia, not only in our print, online and video news coverage, but in English language arts in general. How to tell the story of our students both visually and verbally.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
Wrangling my grandchildren or vice versa, writing children’s picture books and serving as director of the Dani’s Dreams Outdoor Education Center at Zion Lutheran School in New Palestine, Indiana.

Most memorable teaching moment?
Sitting at my desk in our newsroom at 10 p.m. or later, watching student editors and producers huddled over computers, deep in the writing, layout and editing process on deadline night. The mash of music, the cacophony of voices, phone dings, text beeps and the ever-present ticking clock — magic!

Name: Richard W. McGhee

Hometown: Washington, D.C.

School: Suitland High School in Forestville, Maryland

Six-word philosophy: You get paid for what you know.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: My laptop with editing software.

Favorite websites: Too many to list.

What inspired you to join SRL?
PBS cares about developing our next generation of broadcast journalists. That’s good enough for me.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
How to make a better news package.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
Reading what I want and breaking down movies.

Most memorable teaching moment?
Watching my students execute making a movie short in 48 hours. They had to write, direct, shoot and edit a movie in two days. Not only did they do it, they won for best special effects in the student film festival held by Prince George’s County at the American Film Institute in Silver Spring.

Name: Victor Fernandez

Hometown: I was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and I live in Miami, Florida.

School: Alonzo and Tracy Mourning Senior High Biscayne Bay Campus in Miami

Six-word philosophy: Caring for students cannot be taught.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: My canon, lenses, mic and iPad.

Favorite websites: Film Riot

What inspired you to join SRL?
The opportunity for my students to produce stories for a real newscast and not just for school.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
My degree is in film production, so I hope to learn more about journalism and improve my teaching skills in writing for the news.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
I have three small children — Victoria, Matthias and Sophia. I enjoy going to the pool, park and playground with them.

Most memorable teaching moment?
The most memorable teaching moment was when the entire class worked together in producing a documentary. Everyone did their share and I really loved how they all came together to make it happen. The documentary won several awards and it was the culmination of a lot of work and dedication from all of my students.

Name: Chris Lazarski

Hometown: Chicago, Illinois

School: Wauwatosa West High School in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin

Six-word philosophy: Disable all notifications on your phone.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: Headphones, a salami sandwich and plenty of hair gel.

Favorite websites: PBS NewsHour

What inspired you to join SRL?
Student Reporting Labs provides a format and a framework to engage students in media literacy and media production and encourages them to identify and relate the stories of their own community to a larger national narrative.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
How to establish classroom management systems and techniques to help students manage the storytelling process and thoughts about how to balance the content of a course with the tasks associated with SRL. Some Final Cut training would be useful as well.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
Wrangling my three children.

Most memorable teaching moment?
Every time a student does something they didn’t think they could do. Every time a student doesn’t do something because they think they can’t.

Name: Gina Gray

Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia

School: Dalton Middle School in Dalton, Georgia

Six-word philosophy: Fervently give every student a chance.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: iPad Air, Nikon camera and Panasonic SDR-H80

Favorite websites: Dalton Middle School Cougar News, YouTube

What inspired you to join SRL?
The opportunity to show my kids real world experience.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
I hope to learn some cool, innovative ideas from other teachers, tricks of the trade and that there are other teachers as excited as I am.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
I am the ultimate swim and stage mom to my two incredible boys, 13-year-old Jack and 11-year-old Will. So I’m either at the pool or the theater. I also love flowers and I spend several weekends a year doing flowers for weddings.

Most memorable teaching moment?
I can’t narrow it down to one particular moment, but my favorite moments have to be when I’m sitting with a group of students brainstorming ideas for a video and things suddenly just start clicking and we get all excited.

Name: Jennifer Overdevest

Hometown: I grew up in Hacienda Heights, California, and I’m raising my family in Valencia.

School: West Ranch High School in Santa Clarita, California

Six-word philosophy: Not sure if I have one, but I do constantly tell my students and children “things happen for a reason.”

What I’ll pack for the workshop: Whatever is needed.

Favorite websites: Yahoo, Nordstrom, Student Television Network

What inspired you to join SRL?
I have a student who really wanted to produce a documentary for the collaborative Student Television Network Documentary, so being a part of that collaboration made me realize what a great opportunity it would be to be a part of SRL.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
I hope to understand firsthand the steps necessary for producing a news segment — steps that I can relate back into my teaching.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
I enjoy spending time with my family watching my two children wake board, snowboard and swim on their teams. This year has been more enjoyable as my 14-year-old daughter is attending my high school and she has become one of my students. It’s been a great experience as a teacher and a mother.

Most memorable teaching moment?
STN 2007 was only my program’s second year, yet we competed in the Sweet 16. Students spent all day getting their 14 minute broadcast completed but spent an hour and a half trying to burn it to Mini DV Tape. By 10:30 p.m., students were in the halls crying from exhaustion and the thought that they might not turn the video in on time. Since I do not know technology very well, I did not step in to help them. They did finally figure out what to do and were able to burn the project onto a Mini DV with two minutes to spare. They turned it in, and seeing the pride they took from knowing they completed it and figured out the problem was by far one of my highlights in teaching. And, of course, when they won first place, it felt even better to have let them solve their own problem. They earned it.

Name: Shonda Tindall

Hometown: Sunnyvale, Texas

School: Mesquite ISD Technology Excellence Center in Mesquite, Texas

Six word philosophy: Mistakes are life’s way of teaching.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: My DSLR, MacBook Pro and iPad

Favorite websites: Pinterest, Film Riot, NoFilmSchool

What inspired you to join SRL?
I love bringing in new opportunities for my students to have industry experiences and collaborate with professionals. Anytime I can make what they do feel more relevant, it makes them feel more valued and proud of the hard work they put in.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
I hope to gain a more critical eye for visually telling a story.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
I’m home wrangling my children or working on my latest DIY project.

Most memorable teaching moment?
Anytime a student comes back to see me after they graduate and tells me how much my teaching helped them as they moved forward in life, no matter what path they may take.

Name: Brandon Lopez

Hometown: Miami, Florida

School: Archbishop Coleman F. Carroll High School in Miami, Florida

Six-word philosophy: “It’s kind of fun to do the impossible.” - Walt Disney

What I’ll pack for the workshop: An open mind and my creativity!

Favorite websites: Twitter, Facebook and BuzzFeed

What inspired you to join SRL?
I wanted to be able to give my students an opportunity to get a firsthand look into the world of television production. It’s an experience I wish I had while I was in high school. Now that I have the ability to do it for them, it’s a great opportunity.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
I hope to learn new skills I can take back into the classroom and into the workplace. I also hope to continue learning about things I already know, so that I can refine my skills.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
Resting! I also enjoy binge watching shows like “The Office,” “Friends,” “Scandal” and more.

Most memorable teaching moment?
This was my first year teaching. My most memorable moment has to be when I first taught the students how to write a voice over. I explained to them the different elements that went into a voice over. To see them grasp the concept and then continue to do it as a warm-up exercise and thoroughly enjoy doing it every morning was definitely memorable.

Name: Rakeda L. Ervin

Hometown: I’m from Springfield, Massachusetts, but I’m currently living in Austin, Texas.

School: Manor High School in Manor, Texas

Six-word philosophy: Have compassion, spread love, live happy.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: Electronic devices to capture information and insight.

Favorite websites: Fusicology, Wired, Vimeo, Pinterest, KLRU

What inspired you to join SRL?
A teacher friend and the awesome success of his Student Reporting Lab students inspired me to join.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
I hope to learn new strategies for effectively implementing SRL on our campus.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
I enjoy family, social outings and being creative.

Most memorable teaching moment?
The first time students expressed gratitude for the lessons and experiences I shared.

Name: Mark Eaton

Hometown: Ann Arbor, Michigan

School: T.C. Williams High School in Alexandria, Virginia

Six Word Philosophy: Everything works if you let it.

What I’ll Pack for the workshop: Lots of curiosity!

Favorite websites: New York Times

What inspired you to join SRL?
I wanted to see what could be done in high schools beyond print-based journalism.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp 2015?
Almost everything.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
I travel, watch movies and play tennis.

Most memorable teaching moment?
There are too many to count.

Name: Neena Kumar

Hometown: Greenville, South Carolina

School: Legacy Early College High School

Six-word philosophy: There are no shortcuts in life.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: Don’t know yet. What should I pack?

Favorite websites: BBC World

What inspired you to join SRL?
Curiosity

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
More than what I know about the process of video reporting.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
I paint, hike and work with my hands.

Most memorable teaching moment?
Last fall, when the student editor of our magazine looked up and said we still had a quarter page to fill and one of my usual troublemakers volunteered to write a poem. She delivered the finished product in 15 minutes!

Name: Heather Jancoski

Hometown: Minneota, Minnesota

School: South Mountain High School in Phoenix, Arizona

Six-word philosophy: Life is like taking a photo.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: My DSLR, Dramamine and caffeine

Favorite websites: JEA Digital Media, ClassDojo, Pinterest

What inspired you to join SRL?
At first it was access to resources. Then it became the fact that my students could contribute to a bigger community and get a bigger audience.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
More techniques with building students portfolios, how to team build within the class and anything with editing.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
Spending time with my family, playing with my dogs and going on trips!

Most memorable teaching moment?
This year when I was able to get the students in to record President Obama and a student asked if we were really going, I began to talk and another student stopped me and said, “Of course we’re going, its Mrs. Jancoski!” At that moment, I knew they had finally understand how hard I am working for them and they in turn did the same for me!

Name: Karen S. Davis

Hometown: New York, New York

School: Miami Country Day School

Six-word philosophy: I live by many:
Success is failure turned inside out.
When life throws lemons, make lemonade.
Live like there is no tomorrow.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: Clothes, laptop, external mic and smartphone — all any journalist needs in the field!

Favorite websites: Journalism Education Association, YouTube, One Kings Lane, TED, Diigo

What inspired you to join SRL?
I’ve been inspired by PBS most of my life. Jim Lehrer, Ken Burns, Charlie Rose, Frontline, Sesame Street, Masterpiece Theater — all iconic inspirations. All on PBS. Through Student Reporting Labs, the curriculum you’ve developed and the access to PBS professionals comprise a winning platform for teaching. For this news junkie and nascent teacher, joining SRL was a no-brainer for me once I began teaching Broadcasting and Journalism after many years as a media professional. I needed pedagogical and curricular support and PBS was there.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
I hope to come away with ideas to better motivate my students to be inquiring reporters and to increase their engagement with SRL. I’d also like to hear how other educators have forged strong relationships with PBS professionals in their areas.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
When not wrangling students from PK3 through twelfth grade, I wrangle my own preteen and watch how he miraculously meets every challenge with seamless effort. I marvel at his writing skills and intuitive abilities. When not marveling, I’m off writing, playing with my new Inspire Drone, figuring out new ways to tell stories, walking, traveling, cooking and being on the water — not all at the same time.

Most memorable teaching moment?
Having a somewhat introverted student thank me after a grueling week of shooting and editing for “really getting me out of my comfort zone” after delivering a great news story.

Name: Clint Gima

School: Maui High School in Maui, Hawaii

Six-word philosophy: Never compromise doing the right thing.

What I’ll pack for the workshop: My iPhone

Favorite websites: Gmail, Vimeo, Weebly and Amazon

What inspired you to join SRL?
In Hawaii, we have a strong media consortium where teachers and students from across the state collaborate, inspire and share our resources, stories and curriculum. Still, sharing and collaborating at the national level is mind-blowing.

What do you hope to learn at #SRLBootcamp2015?
I hope to learn how to tell better stories with today’s mobile technology.

What do you enjoy doing when you’re not wrangling students?
Traveling with my family and fishing by my home.

Most memorable teaching moment?
After more than 20 years of teaching, I have several memorable teaching moments. I have celebrated the successes and learned from the failures of my career. But the one that I will always remember is the day my daughter entered my classroom as a freshman. It was both weird and gratifying at the same time. I was fortunate to have her in my class until the day she graduated.