CONTINUING EDUCATION

Journalists, public affairs officials and mid-career professionals return every year to polish communication skills in workshops organized by the School of Journalism and Mass Communications. As many as 2,000 take advantage of this training each year.

In addition to these workshops provided under contract to governmental agencies, the School works with many commercial and non-profit organizations to provide similar training. The Southern Newspaper Publishers Association (SNPA), South Carolina Bar Association, American Society of Newspaper Editors (ASNE), Readers Digest and the United Way are among industry leaders that have been served over the past six years.

The School also has hosted and judged annual industry competitions, such as the Religion Newswriters Association writing competition, the Texas Advertising Awards, the Veterans Health Administration Excellence in Public Affairs Award and the IRS Public Affairs Newsletter Competition.

The School, in conjunction with the University’s Division of Continuing Education, participates each year in the “Summer at Carolina Youth Program”. The School offers several courses to these elementary and middle school students. These programs include mini-courses such as Driving on the Net, MacKids and Introduction to Pagemaker.

The School has coordinated numerous workshops for such organizations as the United States Army, Social Security Administration, Internal Revenue Service, Veterans Health Administration and the South Carolina Department of Education. These workshops ranging from a half day of intensive instructions to 10 weeks of study for graduate credit . cover a wide array of topics from research methods to media training. One of the most requested training is simulated television and print interviews in which managers respond to various scenarios that range from a live TV interview to an aggressive and hostile print reporter.

One of the most beneficial and highly requested week-long seminars is the “Strategic Communications Training Course”. It provides participants with the opportunity to increase their understanding and knowledge of public affairs to hone and enhance the skills they will need in the new millennium. The School not only provides all instruction for these courses but handles all logistical needs so these participants can concentrate on getting the full benefit of their academic experience. Examples of instructional topics are interactive Broadcast and Print Media Training, Effective Speech Presentations, Coalition Building and Crisis Management.

The School also serves the community at large by volunteering its services to offer pro bono training seminars. It is this type of community outreach that has led to the formation of a collaborative effort between the School and the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) that links the judging of an IABC writing contest and a strategic media communications training seminar.

QUICK LINKS
Media Training

NEWS RELEASE
Jackson elected to IABC executive board

CONTACT US
Patricia Jackson
Continuing Education
School of Journalism and Mass Communications
Columbia, SC 29208

Phone: 803.777.6973
E-mail: pat.jackson@sc.edu
Fax: 803.777.0553