The A&T Register
1601 E. Market St.
Greensboro, NC 27411
For immediate release
Contact Emily Harris at edburch@ncat.edu or 336/285-3449
Register alumna attending Columbia
Sylvia Obell, Freedom Forum scholar, working on master’s in digital media
GREENSBORO, N.C. — The A&T Register’s former managing editor has moved to New York to pursue her master’s in digital media at Columbia Journalism School.
Sylvia Obell, who graduated in May with her bachelor’s in Journalism & Mass Communication/print concentration, is working on The Bronx Ink, an online news site run by Columbia students.
“Working at The A&T Register prepared me to be in a newsroom,” Obell said. “It taught me about production and editing and helped me get used to writing on a deadline.”
She joined The A&T Register in 2009 as a contributor and worked her way up through the ranks: reporter, news editor and managing editor.
Her resume includes:
- Freedom Forum Diversity Institute Multimedia Scholar (2011)
- Reporting intern for the News & Record in Greensboro, N.C. (2011)
- Reporting intern for the Advocate- Messenger in Danville, Ky. (2011)
- Fellow at Campus Coverage Project at Arizona State University(2012)
- Member of the Student Multimedia Projects team for the national NABJ conference in New Orleans (2012)
Obell said her time at the Register has helped her be more creative in her story telling.
“It was the first time I was allowed to be innovative. If I hadn’t been allowed to play around and use what I learned at the Register, I wouldn’t have been able to visualize the ‘Stop and Frisk’ story.
In her work at The Bronx Ink, Obell has worked on the following pieces:
- Arther Aviles and Teaching Dance in the Bronx, a multimedia piece
- Dance Company Prepares for Final Curtain Call in the Bronx, a story with photos
- A Day in the Life: A photo essay on New York Daily News reporter Michael Feeney
“The A&T Register opened doors for me to get internships,” Obell said.
About the newspaper
The campus newspaper is open to all N.C. A&T students, said faculty adviser Emily Harris.
“The A&T Register offers students hands-on training with industry-standard equipment to help students gain the training and skills they will need to land internships and jobs,” Harris said.
“It is the hope of the newspaper’s advisory board members and those in the College of Arts & Sciences that students across all majors embrace this opportunity to join the staff, learn about how news content is produced and engage in the critical-thinking skills involved in the process,” she said.
The A&T Register, which publishes 24 print issues during the academic year, is funded in part by student fees and advertising revenue.
The newspaper is housed in the College of Arts & Sciences and is editorially independent from the Department of Journalism and Mass Communication and the university.
About the editorial side
Students on the editorial side concentrate on content generation for the print and online products:
- Stories (news, breaking news, investigative, sports, features)
- Multimedia pieces (photography, photography with narrative, video)
- Photo essays (with or without sound and in print and online)
- Social media outlets (Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram)
- Page design
- Copy editing
When national or international content is needed, editors pull from The Associated Press or McClatchy Campus wires, much as editors in professional newsrooms do.
However, editors have been involved in conference calls with the White House, speaking to both President Obama and first lady Michelle Obama.
About the business side
Students on the business side sell advertising and build and maintain relationships with clients in the Greensboro community.
Training opportunities come from the paper’s membership with the Southern University Newspapers group and a partnership with the Department of Marketing, Transportation and Supply Chain (MTSC) in the School of Business and Economics. Students who are studying marketing with a sales concentration lead the business staff.
About training
Training is offered twice each month.
Recent training sessions include:
- A partnership with UNC-Wilmington and Methodist University in Fayetteville:
- Generating and finding story ideas, led by Mike McCray, former Register editor in chief and current features reporter at The Fayetteville Observer
- Writing strong leads
- Sourcing, interviewing and fact-checking
- Media law basics
- An in-house training session
- 10 tips for writing strong stories
- How to cover your campus
- Hands-on story planning
Training sessions have also included trips on the Register’s dime to national conventions.
“I think it’s critical that students take advantage of training when it’s offered to them,” Harris said.
“We offer training to help them, to give them tools and skills they will need for their futures, be it in journalism or in law school,” Harris said.
“Sylvia worked hard, and her dedication to her craft have led her to Columbia,” Harris said.
“I hope other students will follow in her footsteps.”
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