Aggie journalism department writes own obituary

Grads, journalists oppose plan to close A&M program

Reporters and editors across the state who cut their teeth in the newspaper business in the Texas A&M journalism program are outraged and in shock that their alma mater is moving forward with plans to eliminate the 55-year-old department.

A&M College of Liberal Arts Dean Charles A. Johnson sent a letter July 10 to journalism department faculty outlining his recommendation to begin the process of closing the popular program that currently has about 650 students seeking journalism degrees.

The move has met opposition from current and former students and industry professionals.

“I think it is a shameful travesty that a university of Texas A&M’s size would even consider closing its journalism school, particularly one for which growing popularity, ironically, is considered an insurmountable problem,” said Brian Pearson, a 1985 graduate and managing editor of The Beaumont Enterprise. “Most journalists I know are not rich people, so we don’t have the kind of financial firepower that other A&M alumni might have when it comes to school donations. However, if the university is willing to spend millions of dollars on unnecessary campus additions such as bell towers and doggie graves, surely it can invest a few hundred thousand dollars to fix a popular journalism

program that, for decades, has been as much a part of maroon-blooded A&M tradition as any other program you care to name.”

Paul McGrath, page one editor of the Houston Chronicle and an A&M journalism graduate, has been teaching news editing classes at A&M for three years and is upset that the college did not consult working journalists before reaching the decision. McGrath said journalism schools are the lifeblood of Texas newsrooms.

“I like to see journalism students get a decent grounding in reality,” McGrath said.

He added that it may be time for newspapers’ corporate companies to begin supporting journalism programs to ensure that the supply of trained journalists remains flowing.

“If you want to look to the future … make sure journalism schools are putting out the kind of people you want in your newsroom,” he said.

Ken Sury, assistant city editor of the Waco Tribune Herald and a 1986 A&M journalism graduate, agreed that closing the degree program will further shrink the pool of college journalism graduates from Texas.

“Texas newspapers will be losing a great pipeline of journalists should this closing occur. While many a fine journalist has come from outside the state to work at Texas newspapers, I think it’s a real benefit to have Texans writing, editing and broadcasting for our papers and stations in the state. Who better knows what Texans care about?” Sury said. “And I’d match my journalism education at A&M against any program anywhere.”

The A&M College of Liberal Arts commissioned an independent review of the journalism department in 2001. The reviewers reported that the department’s curriculum needed revising and noted the department’s two unsuccessful department head searches and a record of high faculty turnover.

The review recommended three options for the embattled program that has lacked a permanent department head for three years — invest substantial resources to fix the problems, merge the program with another degree plan or close the program.

“In light of our difficult fiscal situation, the large investments needed to strengthen the program to acceptable levels, and the low probabilities of success if the investments were made, I believe this is the best option for the College and the University,” Johnson wrote in a July 10 memo to the department staff.

The dean’s recommendation must be approved by the University System Board of Regents and Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board. Under his proposal most current students would be allowed to complete their degrees and tenured faculty would be moved to other positions. An agricultural journalism degree still would be offered through the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.

Even in the summertime news of the recommendation to close the department moved quickly and opposition began to grow.

Battalion editor True Brown, class of 2004 senior agricultural journalism major, and managing editor Dallas Shipp class of 2003 senior journalism major, launched a petition drive July 14 on campus and on the Internet and 1,000 individuals pledged their support for the Department of Journalism. Eventually, the petition will be presented to A&M President Bob Gates, Provost David Prior and the Board of Regents.

“We don’t want to be known as the last journalism majors to graduate from Texas A&M,” Shipp said. “This department has a tradition for producing highly skilled graduates. But this is one instance in which A&M apparently doesn’t mind turning its back on a longstanding tradition.”

The Battalion’s blank editorial page on July 28 was to protest to the college’s plans. The page had the all-capital header: “The Texas A&M Administration’s Vision of Journalism” then a full page of blank space with the small statement on the bottom also in caps: “Save Aggie journalism. Let your voice be heard. www.savejournalism.com.”

The Web site is home to a grassroots effort led by current students with support from the Former Journalism Students Association, which represents more than 4,000 graduates as well as former staff members of The Battalion and Aggieland student publications.

“The administration says it wants to produce quality journalists, but we think this blank page more accurately portrays their true commitment to journalism,” said Battalion editor Brown. “We hope the Board of Regents will realize that a serious, dedicated journalism program is critical to Texas A&M’s goal to be recognized as a top-tier university.”

After the independent review two years ago, the college implemented enrollment management when the undergraduate program had climbed to about 1,000 majors for eight full-time faculty. Last year, the college transferred the newly created telecommunication media studies degree program from journalism to the Department of Communication.

Johnson estimates it would take $500,000 to fix the problems.

Earlier this year state universities and agencies were instructed to cut their budgets by 12 percent. Ultimately A&M had only 1 percent of its funding cut.