As a new semester is now underway, the faculty and staff of the Meek School of Journalism and New Media are busy preparing students for the changes in the journalism and marketing industries.
Changes have been made to classes from the 100 to 400 levels and even more changes have been happening outside the doors of Farley Hall.
While journalism and student media always have been connected informally, effective July 1, 2009, the S. Gale Denley Student Media Center (SMC) was merged with the Meek School of Journalism and New Media. Before July 1, the Department of Journalism was in the College of Liberal Arts. SMC was a department within the Division of Student Affairs.
The SMC is home to The Daily Mississippian, the DMonline.com, NewsWatch, Rebel Radio and the Ole Miss Yearbook. The center is devoted to putting students first and is dedicated to providing a hands-on, real-world experience for a diverse group of students interested in the field of mass communications. It exists to instill in students strong newsgathering, writing and production skills, a deep sense of journalistic values and an appreciation of the importance of journalism and mass communications in society. The SMC is an independent student-operated organization that operates under the direction of a professional staff and faculty advisers from the Meek School of Journalism and New Media. More than 200 students work in the SMC each year. Students generate products that serve the community, including the university and surrounding communities, with news, information, entertainment, and advertising exposure for local, regional and national businesses. In this rapidly changing media and technological atmosphere, the SMC is affording students opportunities to work in multi-media environments by disseminating news and information across media platforms.
The SMC professional staff and students are excited about the merger and look forward to a productive, rewarding relationship and the many new opportunities this partnership presents.
The SMC is led by Patricia Thompson, newly appointed director, and a dedicated professional staff that includes:
Darcy Davis, Administrative Assistant
Timothy Davis, Lithographer
Stephen Goforth, Broadcast Manager and Assistant Professor of Journalism
Darrel Jordan, Engineer
Arvinder Kang, Manager of Media Technology
Traci Mitchell, Associate Director
Dylan Parker, Creative and Technical Services Supervisor
Benny Rikard, Production Manager
Melanie Wadkins, AdvertisingManager