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SPRINGFIELD – Today’s publishers have a tough time hiring experienced journalists for their newsrooms — particularly those in smaller markets. The result: Rookie employees with no formal training or professional experience struggling to learn on the job with minimal guidance. Now there’s free help available to ease that learning curve.
The Illinois Press Foundation has contracted with Kansas Publishing Ventures (KPV) to provide Illinois newspapers with access to a free, self-paced online training course entitled “Earn Your Press Pass.” The course is designed is to help prospective and rookie reporters who have solid reading and writing skills by teaching them solid journalistic skills.
“The labor shortage is real, and finding former journalists or recent journalism school graduates to move to smaller communities is nearly impossible,” KPV majority owner Joey Young said. “The purpose of the course is to give the basics to a solid candidate who just needs a little bit of training to make a good reporter.”
Illinois Press Foundation Executive Director Jeff Rogers said the program is a good fit for today’s newspaper environment.
“Our members are finding it tougher than ever to hire experienced journalists,” Rogers said. “Publishers and editors are looking for efficient online training aimed at teaching the basics to newcomers and honing the skills of those already on staff. The ‘Earn Your Press Pass’ program offers high-quality online content presented in user-friendly, self-paced segments.
“I think there also are opportunities for a local newspaper to share the course with readers and with scholastic journalists in their area to enhance news literacy.”
Lindsey Young, co-owner of KPV and a practicing journalist, teaches the course. A former high school journalism and public speaking teacher, she has been immersed in community newspapering since Joey and Lindsey purchased their first community newspaper, The Clarion, in 2014.
“I wanted to create something that feels more like a conversation with a well-informed friend than a traditional class,” Lindsey said. “There aren’t any homework assignments or quizzes. Instead, the ‘test’ for Earn Your Press Pass users will be becoming a part of their community newspaper and writing about local issues.”
As someone who has both a teaching background and practical real-world newspaper experience, Lindsey is able to teach the basics to a new or potential hire so an overworked editor can focus on other tasks.
“We needed an on-demand solution,” Joey said. “So we came up with what we would want a new hire to know, and Lindsey started working on the curriculum.”
Lindsey teaches simple interviewing steps to make new reporters more successful. Additionally, the course outlines basics like newspaper jargon, editing and basic photography.
“My hope is that people who go through the course will come out the other side with all the fundamentals and a list of questions for their editor or publisher so they can have meaningful, well-informed discussions about expectations and the nuances of their own community,” Lindsey said.
Joey said newspapers are increasingly relying on new hires who "are naturally curious and have decent writing ability,” but have no training or journalism experience. The solution, he said, is to “train them up."
"We need bodies who can go to these things, cover it, and feel competent. That’s what Lindsey set out to do, …to help people feel a little more confident.”
“We just want people to use it,” Joey said. "I really believe this is something to bridge the gap for papers that struggle to recruit."
The training syllabus is now available to all members of the Illinois Press Association. To sign your newspaper up to participate in Earn Your Press Pass, contact Rogers at jrogers@capitolnewsillinois.com.
The Youngs will be giving a presentation at 10 a.m. June 8 during convention about the online course and how newspapers can incorporate it into their recruiting processes.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 8, 2025 Contact Information: Christopher Weishaar Digital Public Relations Specialist cweishaar@studentloan.org (515) 273-7140
Six $1,500 scholarships now open to Midwest high school seniors High school seniors from six Midwest states have a chance to earn the scholarships
WEST DES MOINES, IOWA — High school seniors from Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota and Wisconsin now have a chance to receive one of six college scholarships worth $1,500. Registration is open now through April 30, 2025. Parents are also able to register their student. High school seniors or their parents may register for the ISL Midwest Senior Scholarship at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/Midwest. ISL Education Lending will award $1,500 scholarships to six students whose names are randomly drawn after the registration period. There are no financial need, grade point average or class rank requirements. The ISL Midwest Senior Scholarship can be used at any eligible institution in the United States. Registered participants also receive emails highlighting financial literacy tips, such as the importance of early career and college planning and ways to reduce student loan indebtedness. “Student loan debt is a huge concern for new college students,” said Steve McCullough, president and CEO of ISL Education Lending. “As a nonprofit, we provide tools and resources to help high school seniors plan so they can reduce the amount of debt they need to take on while achieving their education goals. Students sign up for a chance at a $1,500 scholarship, and we take that opportunity to share information with them about our free resources.” The ISL Midwest Senior Scholarship is open to legal U.S. citizens who are seniors at a high school in one of the qualifying states during the 2025-2026 school year and who intend to attend college, either virtually or physically, in fall 2025. It is a no-purchase-required program, and full rules and details are available at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/Midwest. Additional Resources Available In addition to offering student loans, ISL Education Lending has other resources for families planning for college and for students who intend to pursue advanced degrees. The Parent Handbook consists of valuable tips to help families of students in sixth through 12th grades prepare for success in college and other postsecondary options. Parents of students in eighth through 12th grades can also sign up to receive twice-monthly emailed tips on academic, college and career planning through the Student Planning Pointers for Parents program. The College Funding Forecaster helps families understand the total cost of four years of college based on a freshman-year financial aid offer. Information about these resources is available at www.IowaStudentLoan.org/SmartBorrowing.
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About ISL Education Lending Established in 1979 as Iowa Student Loan Liquidity Corporation, a private, nonprofit organization, ISL Education Lending helps students and families obtain the resources necessary to succeed in postsecondary education. ISL has helped nearly 400,000 students pay for college, offering student loans and other products under the name ISL Education Lending. The organization, based in West Des Moines, Iowa, also provides an array of borrower benefits, financial literacy tools and community reinvestment programs, including support for free college planning services for students and their families. For more information, visit www.IowaStudentLoan.org.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 7, 2025 Contact Information: Illinois State Medical Society Jann Ingmire janningmire@isms.org (312) 520-9802
Illinois State Medical Society offers free programs for health professionals to address human trafficking awareness
As January marks National Human Trafficking Awareness Month, the Illinois State Medical Society (ISMS) is offering a free, two-part webinar series aimed at equipping physicians and other health care professionals with the tools to identify and support those individuals exploited by human trafficking. The series, which is available on demand, is designed to challenge stereotypes, clarify the various factors contributing to trafficking, and provide practical approaches for assisting survivors of both sex and labor trafficking. Health care professionals are uniquely positioned to identify and assist trafficking victims due to their frontline access and trusted roles within the community. By offering these programs, ISMS aims to raise awareness and offer resources to professionals who may come across survivors in their care. January 11 is recognized as National Human Trafficking Awareness Day, and the month as a whole is dedicated to increasing awareness of trafficking, which affects millions globally. According to a 2017 survey of 127 human trafficking survivors, 69% reported having accessed health care services at some point during their exploitation. Of those, 85% sought treatment for injuries or illnesses related to their trafficking. Despite this, only 6% of health care workers reported having treated someone who was a victim of trafficking. The two no-cost, on-demand programs, available 24/7, offer continuing medical education (CME) credits and are designed to help health care professionals recognize signs of trafficking, improve their response, and ensure proper support for survivors. Human Trafficking: Identification and Response in a Healthcare Setting Presented by Anna Pastor, coordinator, Cook Co. Human Trafficking Task Force Human Trafficking: Practical Approaches and Resources in a Healthcare Setting Presented by Traci Kurtzer, M.D., medical director for trauma informed care and education, Northwestern Medicine The programs are free to all health care professionals and the public.
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