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Boot Camp a go this Time By Lisa Carnahan This one’s a go. The 2001 Journalism Boot Camp will get underway in a couple of weeks, filled to capacity...actually, past capacity. KPA had originally set a cap of 20 participants at the request of the instructor, but 23 participants are expected for the three-week course that begins July 16 at Georgetown College. Boot camp instructor Jim St. Clair, head of the journalism department at Indiana University Southeast, agreed for the additional participants. Several other interested candidates have been placed on a waiting list for the next boot camp. The camp was proposed last year and a three-week course was scheduled but canceled due to a drop in the number of participants just prior to the scheduled start. Several changes were made to the format — changes that must have been favorable to many of those interested. One major change, attendees this year were given the option of either staying on campus or commuting daily to the sessions. Last year, it was a requirement that those attending stay on campus at Midway College. Several newspapers indicated they had employees who would have benefited from the boot camp training but who found it unfeasible to stay away from home for an extended period of time. Another change is the cost. This year’s boot camp fee is $995 for those staying on campus and $595 for commuters. The $995 fee includes lodging in a college dormitory or area hotel, three meals a day, all materials and handouts for the training and computer use. The commuter fee includes a continental breakfast and lunch each day, materials and handouts and computer use. The boot camp concept is the brain child of KPA Vice-President David Greer, publisher of The Kentucky Standard in Bardstown. The training, dubbed a “boot camp” because of the intensive training over a relatively short period, is designed to provide additional training for inexperienced newsroom employees or allow newspapers to hire a person from the community who has potential, but no journalism background. The boot camp will run for three weeks, five days per week. Class times each day will be from 9 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., 1 p.m. to 4:15 p.m., and there will be meeting times available with St. Clair from 4-6 p.m. daily. St. Clair’s career in journalism began as a sports writer for his hometown newspaper. While in the Army, he worked as a reporter for the Army Signal Corps and upon leaving the service, worked as a reporter and editor for the Bedford Times-Mail. He’s worked for business publications in Louisville and has co-authored two books and a number of screenplays. Kentucky journalists and First Amendment attorneys will also serve as guest instructors throughout the camp. Topics planned during the three weeks include: Understanding and Writing News, Spelling, Punctuation and Grammar, Conforming to Associated Press Style, Brainstorming Story Assignments, Meeting Stories, Feature Stories and Photojournalism. St. Clair plans for the class to produce a “Boot Camp Newspaper” during the final days of the session.
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