Final Evaluation of MCOM 407...it got an 'A'

I hope I did, too! I know that's impossible...I'm in-line for a 'B,' my lowest grade ever at Towson. That's OK; I learned a lot from this class and from my research on this project.

I wasn't interested in this assignment at first, but once I started researching and conducting interviews I really got into it. There were plenty of times that I wanted to give up; people didn't want to talk to me and I was falling way behind. Professor Lieb mentioned that many students in the past had simply given up...I was not going to take that option!

I think that my final project turned out to be a success. I started out with a pretty awful story about Single Volunteers of Baltimore/Annapolis. I met with them just once, and wasn't confident enough to even ask members for their pictures or personal stories. I don't think they felt comfortable with me either, and after our first meeting, I was never able to reach them again. Email after email went unanswered, and considering I received a reply to my first email the next day, I knew this was a bad omen. To this day I've never heard back from the group.

At that point I wondered how I'd ever pass this class. I had numerous ideas that came to an abrupt end when I was unable to reach anyone for comments.

Just when all seemed lost, I found the group Dinner for Ten. Members actually sent me stories via email and were willing to talk to me over the phone. It wasn't until I was able to meet with the group at a restaurant, and was given permission to take photos and record audio, that I knew that I could make this work.

Debbie Mandley from Parents Without Partners supplied me with the final pieces to this puzzle called Writing for New Media 407. She gave me an incredible story, pointed me in the direction of reliable contacts, and arranged for me to meet with other members at the next scheduled event. I was able to create a slideshow and record two audio tracks from current members.

I am deeply indebted to these individuals. I started-off slowly in this class, and had it not been for these two organizations, I'd have nothing to show for all my hard work. More than likely, I'd be graduating next year instead of next week.

I really enjoyed this assignment. Unlike most classes, at the end of the semester you can actually see what you accomplished over the last four months. That's what I liked most about Digital Publishing, and it's even more enjoyable now. I never had to interview anyone I didn't know, or take pictures of strangers and record audio clips from them last semester. This wasn't a comfortable situation for me, even with my prior experience writing for The Towerlight.

I feel I learned a lot from this assignment. I met new people, learned how to make contacts, and even worked on a deadline (and even though it may seem like a semester is a long time to complete this work, it is not). I feel more confident working with online journalism, and have even decided that I'd like to work online for my career.

Thanks again to all who helped out!

Sincerely,
Jon Parr, Towson 2008