Jobless? Listen Up!

I recently completed an audio story about the advantages of on-campus jobs in which I interviewed TU students working on-campus jobs. Towson University offers many different jobs for its students, but students have to be aggressive about them. There are only a limited amount of job opportunities on campus, and at a school with a population of over 18,000, these jobs go fast. Listen to my audio story, "How Towson Can Make You Money" to get the spill about the benefits of on-campus jobs.

Also, for those interested in work, Towson University is holding a Part-Time/Summer Job Fair on April 6 in University Union.

And, in case you missed it, check out my feature story, "How to Live Within Your Means Off-Campus," a story that discusses tips to living affordably off-campus.

Mastering the Broadcast Lead

Recently, we've been discussing broadcast news writing. To get started, you'll want to start with the broadcast lead. The broadcast lead should include:

1) The essence of the story
2) One or two of the "W's"
3) Relation to the audience
4) Up-to-date information

Here are some examples of summary leads transformed to broadcast leads from nytimes.com...

From the story "Gunman Kills Pastor at Illinois Church" by J. David Goodman:

Shortly after services begun at 8:15 Sunday morning, a man walked straight down the aisle of an Illinois church and shot the pastor to death, according to the state police.

In broadcast lead format:

State police say that at an early Sunday morning church service, a man shot and killed a pastor at an Illinois church.

From the story "Discharge From the Army Relieves Mother" by The Associated Press:

A North Caroline mother who reported for Army duty with her two young children said she was happy and relieved that the military granted her an honorable discharge.

In broadcast lead format:

Like any military mom, a North Carolina woman was relieved to be granted honorable discharge from the military.

Farewell RAs, Hello Landlords

In the quest to find an apartment while also saving money, some Towson students may be scratching their heads, wondering where to begin. In the Towerlight article, "TU Eases Off-Campus Move," author Mike Fila gives the low down on some of the ways Towson is helping students find off-campus living to fit their individual needs. Yet whether students are focused on location or amenities, the price is always the most important aspect of searching for a place to live.

"The new policy implemented on a per credit basis. Students with 90 credits or more are required to move off campus, while those with 60 to 89 credits are being entered into a housing lottery for available space." The key word here is "lottery," meaning there's no real guarantee for space, even for those qualified to live on campus.

Towson University is now offering an Off-Campus Housing Locator, a database for those searching for available apartments and those looking to fill vacancies. Also, Housing and Residence life hosted an off-campus living fair, where vendors were able to hand out information about their complexes and invite students to visit to make sure their facilities are a fit.

In this article, I would have liked a link to the housing database. I think that it would be a quick way to allow curious readers to check it out for themselves. I also would have liked to see a quote from one of the students who might be planning on attending the off-campus living fair. I'd also like to know how effective the housing database is. Has it helped anyone find a place to live? I would have liked to see a quote from a student who has used it before.