Strong journalism requires self sacrifices, patience, and practice. No one knows this better than The Eagle’s News Staff.

On Oct. 3, the news staff travelled an hour away to the Kent State Campus to attend the OSMA (Ohio Scholastic Media Association) conference. An event which attracts hundreds of students involved in journalism annually; moreover, offering a myriad of seminars to attend which better the skills of the students. The staff has gone for over 20 years now, and it just may be our most exhilarating year yet.

Around 25 students attended up to 3 seminars spread throughout the day, covering a wide variety of topics such as business, design, and ethics. This year in particular was a big year to pay attention to, as we had just made the switch to a magazine, and many troubles came with it. My personal favorite seminar helped immensely with this: business. The speaker, Kent State’s Director of Student Media Kevin Dilley, gave us an insight on selling advertisements, gaining sponsors, and generally informing us on how to promote our product.

Other students received advice on different integral parts of journalism.

“We talked to a guy about design, he was a sports designer and he gave us a lot of really good ideas on how to be creative with our designs,” news editor Savanah Donnelly said. “He was cool because of how passionate he was about the topic.”

Overall, the day was informative and fun. With lessons scattered throughout the day, and some Quaker Steak and Lube to break up the monotony, the experience is one to be remembered.

“OSMA is always a really great opportunity for us to learn how to make our paper better. Every year is a blast and really eye opening as to what we can do to change and improve.” Editor-in-Chief Sydni Porter said.

OSMA is an excellent experience that helps us to improve our paper for you, the readers. So we’ll keep attending, and you just keep reading!