JOU 3101

Susan Willey, assistant professor of Communication at FAU

My first class Tuesday morning was JOU 3101, or News & News Reporting. These comprise three of the 39 total credits needed to graduate with a Bachelors in Communication. It appears to be a relatively basic course about reporting. The class should be a very good benchmark for me. It’s my first real foray into college level Journalism. It’ll give me a chance to see if this is truly the field for me.

Dr. Susan Willey is the professor of this course, along with one other class I take on Tuesdays and Thursdays. According to her, she worked previously as a journalist and graduated from the University of Missouri School of Journalism. I’m trying to discern whether she’s a Democrat or Republican. Early indications lead me to believe she’s conservative, but there’s been no overwhelming evidence as of yet. I expect she’ll be a very helpful teacher. For two of the three papers, she’ll give us time to edit per her revisions. As long as I meet deadlines, the course shouldn’t be too difficult to succeed in.

There is only one midterm test this semester, coming on October 21. The final will be a polished reporting project, to be turned in only once. She noted that we’d have quizzes every Thursday. This shouldn’t be too hard for me, considering they’ll be mostly on current events and text reading. The key in this class, like many others, is to budget my time well. It’s imperative to do so, since a lot of interviewing has to be done for story assignments.

Finally, attendance is mandatory for this course. It depends on the professor in college. Some people tell me that they only show up for exams. In this class, along with her Mass Communication course, you get an “A” in attendance for missing 0-1 classes. It is 10 % of the final grade.