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SPRINGFIELD – Today’s publishers have a tough time hiring experienced journalists for their newsrooms — particularly those in smaller markets. The result: Rookie employees with no formal training or professional experience struggling to learn on the job with minimal guidance. Now there’s free help available to ease that learning curve.
The Illinois Press Foundation has contracted with Kansas Publishing Ventures (KPV) to provide Illinois newspapers with access to a free, self-paced online training course entitled “Earn Your Press Pass.” The course is designed is to help prospective and rookie reporters who have solid reading and writing skills by teaching them solid journalistic skills.
“The labor shortage is real, and finding former journalists or recent journalism school graduates to move to smaller communities is nearly impossible,” KPV majority owner Joey Young said. “The purpose of the course is to give the basics to a solid candidate who just needs a little bit of training to make a good reporter.”
Illinois Press Foundation Executive Director Jeff Rogers said the program is a good fit for today’s newspaper environment.
“Our members are finding it tougher than ever to hire experienced journalists,” Rogers said. “Publishers and editors are looking for efficient online training aimed at teaching the basics to newcomers and honing the skills of those already on staff. The ‘Earn Your Press Pass’ program offers high-quality online content presented in user-friendly, self-paced segments.
“I think there also are opportunities for a local newspaper to share the course with readers and with scholastic journalists in their area to enhance news literacy.”
Lindsey Young, co-owner of KPV and a practicing journalist, teaches the course. A former high school journalism and public speaking teacher, she has been immersed in community newspapering since Joey and Lindsey purchased their first community newspaper, The Clarion, in 2014.
“I wanted to create something that feels more like a conversation with a well-informed friend than a traditional class,” Lindsey said. “There aren’t any homework assignments or quizzes. Instead, the ‘test’ for Earn Your Press Pass users will be becoming a part of their community newspaper and writing about local issues.”
As someone who has both a teaching background and practical real-world newspaper experience, Lindsey is able to teach the basics to a new or potential hire so an overworked editor can focus on other tasks.
“We needed an on-demand solution,” Joey said. “So we came up with what we would want a new hire to know, and Lindsey started working on the curriculum.”
Lindsey teaches simple interviewing steps to make new reporters more successful. Additionally, the course outlines basics like newspaper jargon, editing and basic photography.
“My hope is that people who go through the course will come out the other side with all the fundamentals and a list of questions for their editor or publisher so they can have meaningful, well-informed discussions about expectations and the nuances of their own community,” Lindsey said.
Joey said newspapers are increasingly relying on new hires who "are naturally curious and have decent writing ability,” but have no training or journalism experience. The solution, he said, is to “train them up."
"We need bodies who can go to these things, cover it, and feel competent. That’s what Lindsey set out to do, …to help people feel a little more confident.”
“We just want people to use it,” Joey said. "I really believe this is something to bridge the gap for papers that struggle to recruit."
The training syllabus is now available to all members of the Illinois Press Association. To sign your newspaper up to participate in Earn Your Press Pass, contact Rogers at jrogers@capitolnewsillinois.com.
The Youngs will be giving a presentation at 10 a.m. June 8 during convention about the online course and how newspapers can incorporate it into their recruiting processes.
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 24, 2025 Contact Information: Ride Illinois Dave Simmons, executive director (630) 216-9282 dave@rideillinois.org
Illinois Bike & Walk Summit coming to Springfield
Creating Connected Livable Thriving communities: Illinois Bike & Walk Summit Fosters Learning and Lobbying Among Advocates and Practitioners
Ride Illinois and its partner organizations are pleased to announce the 2025 Illinois Bike & Walk Summit. Three hundred advocates, professionals, and public officials will gather in Springfield (May 7-8, 2025) for an important conference to help shape the future of biking and walking across the state. The conference will take place over two days in Springfield. Day One - May 7 ● A welcome from Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher ● Breakout sessions with topics including: ○ Completing the Great American Rail Trail ○ Developing Low-Stress Bike Networks ○ Bike/walk legislation at the state and federal level: 2025 and beyond ● Keynote Speaker: Tom Flood ○ A bold and visionary advocate who uses striking design and messaging to challenge car-centric culture, and a champion spokesman of safer streets for all. ○ Flood's Presentation Topic: Reframing Road Safety. This presentation will highlight his work and its importance in challenging the narrative around active transportation and road safety.
Day Two - May 8 ● Lobby Day ● Workshops focused on: ○ Advocacy training ○ Trail development ○ Best practices for the planning, design, and incorporation of complete streets into transportation projects. ○ CM and PDH credits available. Dave Simmons, executive director of Ride Illinois, emphasized the new format of lobbying and advocacy: “It’s important that elected officials hear from their constituents. Lobby Day is an opportunity for Illinois residents to voice their concerns related to biking and walking in their community.” The legislative goals of Lobby Day include advocating for bills that will increase safety for pedestrians and bicyclists. Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher shared, “I am honored to greet attendees to the 2025 Illinois Bike & Walk Summit. I look forward to the summit and also look forward to making Springfield a more bike/walk friendly community.” With a strong foundation built on the educational and empowering sessions of day one, the day of lobbying will bring a buzz to Springfield with the hope of creating safer, more accessible active transportation options for all ages and backgrounds. The end goal being that active transportation becomes a viable and welcoming choice for everyone. Conference Details ● Illinois Bike & Walk Summit to convene in Springfield, May 7-8 with a focus on creating connected, livable, thriving communities. ● Highlights of the event include: ○ Keynote speaker Tom Flood ○ Inaugural lobby day ○ Breakout sessions ○ Workshops ○ Networking opportunities ● The 2025 Illinois Bike & Walk Summit will take place at the Wyndham Springfield City Center, conveniently located in the heart of Illinois’ state capital. ● Registration for the conference starts at the affordable price of $20! ● For more information and to register for this event, visit IllinoisBikeWalkSummit.org.
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