By Lisa Couch
Journalism Instructor
Stories are powerful. They connect us to each other. They create order out of chaos. They help us make sense of the world.
Not much makes sense these days. For so many people, the story right now is about just trying to hang on. There is uncertainty. There is fear. By the time the world gets back to normal, everyone will know someone who got sick, or worse, from COVID-19.
Around the world, journalists are working to tell the story, to write “the first rough draft of history” in these historic times. They are risking their lives, and in some cases, their liberties, to empower us with information at a time when we all feel pretty powerless.
Here at Moraine Valley Community College, student journalists are rising to the occasion. The students in JRN 111 and COM 151 are new to real journalism, but over the past couple weeks, while their own lives have been turned upside down, they have learned on the job, plunging into reporting and writing the stories of how members of OUR community are affected by this crisis.
This week, they will bring you stories of students who have lost their jobs and those who are working on the “front lines” at grocery stores, athletes who are coping with cancelled seasons, and students who are missing graduation and other milestones. You’ll hear the perspective of a student who has had a heart transplant—who is now, like others, facing this crisis with a compromised immune system.
There will be hopeful stories, too—of nursing students and professors who are becoming true heroes–and helpful information on things like how to take care of your mental health and how to take advantage of financial assistance available.
In preparation for the launch of the online edition of The Glacier today, these students worked tirelessly on deadline to bring you some of this chapter in Moraine Valley history. I couldn’t be more proud of the work they have done.
There are more stories to tell. If you have, or know of, a story, please let us know.
If you would like to be a part of telling future stories, register for JRN 111-Media Writing in the fall. For more information, contact Lisa Couch, communications instructor, at couchl3@morainevalley.edu.
We’ll work on the first draft of history together.
Lisa Couch can be reached at couchl3@morainevalley.edu.
