Edge-u-cator

Letters to my digital media students to think big and then to think bigger

January 26, 2020

I want you to remember as we go through this course that 1989 marked the invention of the world wide web by Sir Tim Berners-Lee, a British computer scientist. That is the year I graduated from college, and nearly a decade before most of you were born. So I come under no false pretenses that I know more than you when it comes to digital media, software, apps, and how to make it all work. You were born into this world of digital wonder and can probably teach me a thing or two, which I cherish, being the lifelong learner I am.

So why am I here? What do I have to offer you? I am a big advocate for the technology being the tool to really get at the heart of connecting us as friends, neighbors, and communities but the real champion of this feat is storytelling. And storytelling, most of my friends might tell you, is my thing, not in that I claim to be a be-all-end-all practitioner of it. Rather, I am wild about the qualities of storytelling that bring us together through shared experiences, connect us through words and images, thoughts and heart, and move us to action.

During my 20+ years as a journalist, I learned how to research, fact-find, and share a story one way. And then I took that into higher education and fundraising and learned how to share a story another way. And in my journey to become a documentary filmmaker, yet more lessons are to be learned.

I am excited to share what I know with you as we continue to learn together, always with the hopes that you will challenge yourself just one step more beyond where you believed your imagination, creativity, and ability to share a good story could go. Thus, you now know how I titled this blog: EDGE-U-CATOR. I want you to push yourself to create, to produce, to make something of which you are proud. Something that has potential impact for those who engage with your story.

Soon, we'll work to create your own blogs. I thought it made sense, then, for me to do that along with you this semester. So here you have it. Part of being a lifelong learner is the willingness to try something new. I'm ready to share what I know but also walk alongside you on this journey of discovery.