Centennial Directory Project Launched for Alumni, Faculty, Staff and Students

Modified Alumni Directory to Feature Awards Won and Books Published

Dean Mills Convergence Journalism Dean

Links

Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute Harris Connect Mizzou Alumni Association

How to Participate in the Centennial Directory

You can update your directory information in one of three ways. E-Mail Questionnaire: Those with a valid e-mail address on file at the University will receive an electronic questionnaire beginning this spring. Hard Copy Questionnaire: Paper questionnaires will be sent in March to the most recent address on file. Toll-Free Phone Call: Harris Connect will publicize a toll-free phone number after the questionnaire mailing process where participants can call to update their information.

Columbia, Mo. (March 20, 2007) -- When Walter Williams established the Missouri School of Journalism with approximately 60 students in 1908, he probably never imagined what the thousands of alumni, faculty, staff and students would accomplish in the next 100 years.

Now, the School is offering a chance to learn more about those people who have made it the world's first and best school of journalism. This spring, the Missouri School of Journalism is launching the Centennial Directory project, where alumni, faculty, staff and students can be recognized as part of the Missouri Journalism legacy.

The Centennial Directory, the result of several upcoming months of data collection, will be an 8.5 x 11 hardbound volume containing profiles, career information and achievements of those affiliated with the School. Participants will be able to submit standard contact information in addition to unique features, including:

• home and business address, telephone number and e-mail;
• job title;
• spouse and children's names;
• top two career awards;
• up to two books published;
• a current headshot photo.

The School has selected Harris Connect to compile the Centennial Directory. Harris Connect is a leader in the directory and data services industry, publishing 600 titles annually. School officials have partnered with Harris on several directory projects, most recently in 2002.

To be included in this Centennial Directory, alumni, faculty, staff and students must simply respond via e-mail, hard copy or phone questionnaires that the School will be distributing in conjunction with Harris Connect. Harris Connect will use current alumni information on file with the University to contact participants.

A highlight of the directory is a multiple-page, full-color Missouri School of Journalism timeline included in the editorial section. Each decade will contain events and photos illustrating the School's 100-year history. A large biographical section follows, containing individual profiles and photographs (if provided) of thousands of alumni, faculty, staff and students. Those listed in the biographical section also will be cross-referenced in three additional sections by class year, geographical location (city and state) and career networking classification.

Participants have the option to purchase the Centennial Directory book or CD version through Harris Connect only; however, a purchase is not necessary to be included in the project.

Dean Mills, dean of the School, said the Centennial Directory is special not only for the obvious networking reasons, but also because it provides evidence of where the School has been in the past 100 years.

"This is a chance for everyone connected to the School - not just alumni - to be documented as part of our historical legacy as we move into our next 100 years," Mills said. "Plus, the Centennial Directory will be an invaluable networking tool for the School, our alumni and future alumni."

E-mail contact regarding directory participation and questionnaire mailings will take place during March and April. Updates will continue throughout the spring and summer and will end in the fall of 2007.

Several alumni may have been contacted recently about inclusion in the Mizzou Alumni Association's member directory. Those alumni will be re-contacted about the Centennial Directory, which offers a more comprehensive listing of journalism alumni and expanded features such as photos, awards and books published.

The Centennial Directory is just one of many projects planned in conjunction with the 2008 centennial of the School and dedication of the new Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute.

Related

Feb. 12, 2007: Missouri Journalism Announces Big Plans for Twin Celebration in 2008 The Missouri School of Journalism today announced plans to celebrate the centennial of the School and the dedication of the Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute. The festivities on the University of Missouri-Columbia campus are scheduled for Wednesday through Friday, Sept. 10-12, 2008. It was on Sept. 14, 1908, that the world's first school of journalism held its first day of classes, and the faculty-run, student-staffed Columbia Missourian published its first issue. [More]