Spotlight On Dickey’s Achievements in Scholastic Journalism

Since 1973, Beth Dickey has been intrinsically linked to scholastic journalism through her various director titles of the Southern Interscholastic Press Association, a 15-state regional organization housed at the School of Journalism and Mass Communications. Although the titles have changed, her goal hasn’t: Help strengthen student publications in schools throughout the Southeast. That’s one goal her predecessors will need to live up to now that she’s retiring in June.

SIPA moved to the College of Journalism in 1973 after a three-year stint at the University of Georgia. When its J-School decided not to keep it, Dean Al Scroggins was first in line to accept it, knowing Dickey would be a good point person. His decision proved to be right: For 34 years, Dickey has organized SIPA’s spring conventions, edited hundreds of newsletters and brochures, coordinated fall Executive Committee planning meetings, lined up thousands of spring convention speakers, worked with dozens of undergraduate and graduate student assistants, assisted with plans for the summer Carolina Journalism Institute and even helped in the establishment of a SIPA endowment that’s grown to well over $75,000.

“Beth’s caring demeanor has helped make SIPA a very ‘personal’ organization for so many publication advisers and student journalists who regularly attend the spring convention,” said Bruce E. Konkle, former director the South Carolina Scholastic Press Association and colleague of Dickey’s for the past 21 years at the School of Journalism and Mass Communications. “People describe her as a low-key or behind-the-scenes type of person, and I would agree. But that’s been an effective management style that’s worked for her. Almost everyone involved scholastic journalism at any level knows of SIPA because of Beth’s untiring work on behalf of the organization.”

Directing SIPA activities also led to roles in other scholastic organizations, including serving on the Board of Directors for the Student Press Law Center in the 1980s and 1990s and presiding over the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication’s Scholastic Journalism Division. Numerous trips to Columbia Scholastic Press Association and Journalism Education Association/National Scholastic Press Association conventions also were ways she stayed in touch with what went on in scholastic journalism circles throughout the country. So, too, was the judging she did over the years for dozens of state and national student press contests, competitions and publication evaluations.

Her association with AEJMC’s Scholastic Journalism Division as a former head and a long-time member set the stage for her being named to present its prestigious Honors Lecture at the 2003 AEJMC summer convention in Kansas City, Kan. Part of her upbeat message to those in attendance: “When I look toward the future, I see a world where testing will not take the joy out of going to school, and school administrators will not take the joy out of writing and exploring new worlds, new ideas. I see a world where high school journalism is on a par with calculus.”

Being selected to present the Honors Lecture was only one accolade Dickey garnered for her work in scholastic journalism. She also received top awards from CSPA (Gold Key), NSPA (Pioneer Award) and the Columbia Scholastic Press Advisers Association (James F. Paschal Award). The CSPAA award, in fact, recognized her as the most outstanding director of a scholastic press association in 1988.

She’s certainly put her positive outlook on SIPA and scholastic journalism during her long tenure with the regional organization. Few directors of scholastic press associations come close to challenging her longevity record as an executive director, and most could learn quite a lot from the optimistic approach she has concerning the future of the student press.

Karen Flowers, who will succeed Dickey as executive director of SIPA, said, "Beth has been the quiet, driving force behind 33 years of SIPA conventions in the spring and executive board meetings in the fall. She is the glue that holds all the rest of us together throughout the year. She sees a problem and uses her phenomenal PR skills to correct it, always quietly involving those who will benefit from the solution, so they will take ownership. I think it is fair to say that SIPA is the strongest, regional scholastic organization today because of Beth Dickey.