Morgan Kopitsky

What do you do? I am the Assistant Director of Alumni Engagement for the Mizzou Alumni Association. How did you get your job? I was a journalism ambassador during undergrad, and it sparked my passion for being a representative for Mizzou. When looking for jobs my senior year, I often checked the postings for jobs … Continued

Dave Matter

A month after Dave Matter, BJ ’00, graduated from the University of Missouri, he sat in Quinton’s Bar and Deli with Columbia Daily Tribune sports editor Kent Heitholt and sports reporter Jason Williams. The casual lunch turned into the biggest moment of his young life when Heitholt offered him the University of Missouri football beat … Continued

Linda Geist

“You will never be the same as the rest of the world from now on. You will always think differently and process things differently than every one else you know. Welcome to the University of Missouri School of Journalism.” So went the speech professor Hal Lister gave to his introductory news students on the first … Continued

James Muench

What do you do? I am an author, free-lance writer and instructor. I teach journalism at Mizzou and English at Columbia College and Lincoln University. How did you get your job? Each one is different. The writing developed over many years of experience. What is the best professional lesson you learned at the J-School? Professional … Continued

Sandi Orent Strother

What do you do? I am the executive director for the Veterinary Cancer Society, an international association comprised of veterinary oncologists, technicians, students, residents and interns. My responsibilities include planning, organizing and preparing for any association conferences around the world as well as managing our international membership. How did you get your job? I worked … Continued

Beth Pike

What do you do? I freelance as a producer/writer for television news and entertainment programs, working regularly for NBC News in the Midwest. Since 1992, I’ve been a regional field director for Entertainment Tonight where I’ve had the chance to work with many of our talented J-school alumni. More recently, I’ve had the privilege of … Continued

Mark Maassen

What do you do in your role as assistant executive director of the Missouri Press Association? The Missouri Press Association is a trade association of Missouri newspapers. We have about 270 member newspapers and represent these newspapers’ interests in Jefferson City during the state legislative session. Our job is to lobby for Sunshine Law, Freedom … Continued

Ted Farnen

Best professional lesson learned at the J-School? How to write on deadline. Putting the important stuff first and filling it out as you go along (the inverted pyramid!) really helps when you have limited time to complete an assignment. What would be your best advice to current students? Be intellectually curious. Try to read a … Continued

Doug Crews

What do you do in your role as Executive Director of the Missouri Press Association? The Missouri Press Association is a trade association of Missouri newspapers. We have about 300 member newspapers. I’ve been executive director since 1990, and I worked here 11 years prior to that as assistant director. I’m in charge of what … Continued