The End of the Road

James Wagner, Courtney Eiland and Danny Davis at dinner.
My new little sisters from left to right -- Maggie Thach, Kate Crandall, Lourdes Castillo, Jill Tompkins and Angela Busch.

My little brothers from left to right James Wagner, Brandon Meachum, Danny Davis, Andy Vazquez and seated Chhun Sun, Sirage Yassin and Ronald Clark.

Another SJI Class has come and gone. The week was a fulfilling one. You never know what to expect when you come together with a group of people of different backgrounds.
I know I look forward to this time of year to give back but more importantly help these students reach their potential.
I can see great things from this group and I am proud to say with confidence that this group can and will go far. I saw it in their eyes this week. They were hard workers. They were up from sun up to sun down but never missed a beat.
I love them as my little brothers and sisters.
I get a bit emotional on the last day where we take the kids to brunch. This year was a different experience because we spent it at the beach, which was great for the kids and instructors.
I am soooo amazed that Leon and Sandy has done this 14 times now.
It is a great amount of work, but we all love it. That is why I have been so involved the last five years and will be for years to come.

SJI, Day 3

Manager Sojo chats it up with

the eager student reporters.

Every year, the 10 days of SJI are my favorite days of the year. The days are long, the mornings come way too early, and there are many questions asked that I will never have the answers for. But it's through the quest that we learn, both the students and the instructors. I always grow at SJI, though often not without pain (but that's why there's the term "growing pains").This is an amazing class. Thirteen students, every one of them a good writer, possibly a first for us. And more than in any other class have respect for and interest in the craft of editing, a very encouraging sign for both them in their job searches and the profession that needs them.As amazing as the class is the Poynter Institute, the best classroom setting in journalism. You truly can almost feel the spiriit of Nelson Poynter as you walk the halls (and I don't tend to be a new-age-spiritualist person).Today we are at Legends Field in Tampa where the Yankees are gracious hosts (as were the Devil Rays last night). As we headed to the press box after interview sessions in manager Luis Sojo's office and a free-form round of interviews in the player clubhouse, a p.r. person said she was glad we had come and that the team now hopes for more visits like this, that the players learn what being interviewed by the media is all about. I was so proud of the class, which is also learning, but to the outside world clearly comes off as pros.It won't be my last proud moment this week.--sandy

Another Year...SJI Begins New Era

SJI alum Ed Encina speaks to class about his job

as Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat reporter.

It's another year of training the next class of rising sports journalists. So far the class has showed the eagerness needed to be successful in this business.

On day one the students covered Game Six of the Eastern Conference Finals and had their first sports check. The highest score was six out of 10 questions. That was a rough debut, but it will teach them to pay attention to what is going on in the world.

On day two, the class had a 15 questions sports check with two bonus questions. The highest score was 10.

The class also reviews their game stories from the Heat-Pistons game. There was some promise with some of the ledes, but the students have a longggggggggg week ahead.

1997 alum Ed Encina gave the class points on how to cover baseball. The next two days the class will cover the Devil Rays and a Yankees' minor league team.

Stay tuned for more.