Abstract:

This article details a case study analyzing the planning and implementation of a 5-campus student media initiative for a central Pennsylvania college district, HawkEye Media. The business plan focused on providing Communication students an option to gain practical media experience, advance career skillsets, and apply course concepts. Shuttering individual campus publications in favor of launching a single, web-based, unified publication in 2020, planners anticipated tethering HawkEye Media to academic programs with a percentage of funding from credit-hour financing. The overall intent, however, saw HawkEye Media “to be supported by the college, both academically and financially” (Plan, p. 3).

Prior to the launch, plan developers laid groundwork to build support relationships with subject area deans, meeting with division leaders and detailing feeder course options, offering assignment ideas to auxiliary courses, and consulting with grant leaders to secure renewable seed funding f
As curriculum in Mass Communications offers a mix of practical and theoretical instruction, the research focus often aims at the level and approach toward providing relevant experiences leading to appropriate skillsets combined with a conceptual study of effects, ethics, and responsibility. Curricular trends emphasize “experiential learning” concepts initially promoted by John Dewey (1938), with models including a journalism “teaching hospital” (Newton 2012), and incorporating practicum courses that feed or support campus media outlets, building what has been established as “Community of Practice” (Wenger-Trayner & Wenger-Trayner, 2015).

Research examining the structure and operations of campus media tend to point to experiential learning, community of practice model, and curricular options, such as practicum or internship credits for lab-type classes, as foundational structures. This case study, thus, offers an in-depth look at the pedagogy and relevant literature behind this plan development, why it was successful, and what was missing.

While the Community of Practice model was applied, the sustainability elements were not developed. Nowhere did planners look beyond seed funding to examine a revenue stream, thus denying business, marketing, promotions, or advertising students opportunities to gain practical experience cultivating campus, community, and government sources into a network of clients.

Additionally, findings show that while HawkEye Media students produced award-winning work and analytics reveal strong engagement with campus, area businesses, and communities, the role and benefits of campus media needed to be articulated to all players – not just administration and academic deans and faculty – for such a plan to succeed. Mid-level staffers who manage branding and external communication can view campus media as competition. Prior research shows campus media and campus administration having minimal digital engagement (Terracina-Hartman & Nulph 2016) thus, dismissing such concerns.

Since HawkEye Media, six campuses "integrated" and Chancellors indicate plans to unify campus publications. This article concludes with Top Tips for educators facing top-down restructuring, including maintaining an Operations Manual, (job descriptions, staff policies, conflict of interest statements), publishing a statement of independence, ad rates, and letters policy, and hosting a Business Operations Manual (client database, market study, and budget).

Keywords:

Campus media, journalism, education, scholastic journalism, community of practice.