July 01, 2009

Wow! Where did June go? It seems like I just finished up with finals and now the Fourth of July is on Saturday! Summer just goes by way too fast. I have been keeping pretty busy though which probably adds to the speed. Take that and add the "not so summer like days" we've been having here in the Twin Cities, and you've got a recipe for one fast moving month.

June was full of work, video projects, more work, journalism camp, and....yep...more work! I have been keeping busy working full time in the Admissions Office. I am now running the tour guide program this summer and must keep track of schedules, time off requests, and special group tours. It is definitely keeping me on my toes!

Earlier this month a group of students and I finished up a video highlighting 50 years of teaching journalism at St. Thomas. It will be up on the Communication and Journalism website soon. When it is up, I'll be sure to link it to my blog so you can watch it.

I spent the last two weeks in June working for Journalism ThreeSixty, a program here at St. Thomas that gives high school students the chance to learn journalism skills and produce their own stories. I worked with two high school students and together, we produced a story about how the media in the Twin Cities is representing minorities in their reporting. It was a very interesting story, plus we got to go to some pretty cool places to do interviews. We went and saw the presses at the Star Tribune, talked to the General Manager and Vice President of WCCO-TV, and went to see Paul Douglas at his new company WeatherNation. Being a huge media geek, it was probably the best two weeks ever!

Looking ahead to July, I can already see that this month is going to go by just as fast! This week is Fourth of July (the best holiday EVER), next week my family is coming up to visit because my brother is starting at St. Thomas this fall and will be attending orientation, the next week my fiancée’s parents are coming up to visit, and the next week I'm going to Washington DC for a little summer vacation.

Well better get back to work. Have a great week and an awesome holiday weekend!

Shane

June 02, 2009

Class is out of session, the weather is beautiful, and summer is in full swing. Life is great. I've enjoyed not having the pressures of class, homework, or projects lately. Usually I go home for the summer break but this year I am spending the summer in St. Paul and working on campus. It feels odd to be on campus but not be in class. It is also great to have some extra time to do fun stuff!

The Twin Cities has so much cool outdoor stuff in the summer. My Memorial Day weekend was packed full of outdoor activities that were all free! (of course...I'm in college!) We hit up Como Zoo in St. Paul, Lake Phalen, and the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. All are really fun places to go and hang out.

Last weekend I met up with some friends and we had a BBQ at Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis. It was a lot of fun. There was good weather, good food, and a lot of good storytelling about the past semester. The downtown Minneapolis skyline overlooks Lake Calhoun so it looks pretty cool there, especially at night!

When I'm not running all over the Twin Cities, I'm busy working here in Admissions. My video projects this summer are starting to come along as well. I have a shoot scheduled for tomorrow morning for the one that will be shown during Orientation and Registration to the parents. I'm looking forward to it...should be pretty funny!

Well that's about all I know for now. It looks amazingly gorgeous outside so I think I'll take a quick walk around campus during my break!

Talk to you later,
Shane

May 20, 2009

If you've read any of the other Tommie Blogs recently, you've probably figured out that this is finals week and the school year is coming to a close. I only had one final this semester so life wasn't too stressful. Now that my junior year of college is over, I only have one year left. It is crazy to think that a year from now I'll be the one getting ready for graduation!

This summer is going to be pretty cool. The last two summers I have gone back home to Pipestone, MN and worked at KELO-TV in Sioux Falls, SD. This summer I am going to be staying here in St. Paul. I will continue to work in Admissions as well as take on a couple other projects. One big news item around campus is the end of the student newspaper, The Aquin. Starting next fall, the print edition will no longer exist. In its place will be TommieMedia.com, an advertising supported news website featuring print, video, photos, radio reports, and more. I am the student director of the site and will be busy this summer hiring managers, reporters, videographers, photographers, and advertisers. I am pretty excited for this new venture, and I think it will really expand my experience level.

I am also working on some video projects for different departments around campus. One will be featured during Orientation and Registration, while the other requires a trip to small town Iowa to talk to some farmers about the Pope. Two different extremes, but never a dull moment when working in news.

If you're a senior and are graduating in the next week or so, congratulations! If you are headed to UST this fall, I hope you have a great time at O & R and write a great beginning to your college story. If you're not graduating this year, I hope your college search is going well. Keep checking out schools, and keep reading the Tommie Blogs!

Later,
Shane