The Daily Cardinal Alumni Association

Join the DCAA & Daily Cardinal on April 17 in Madison!

Every year the Daily Cardinal Alumni Association Board of Directors and the Daily Cardinal Media Corporation Board of Directors meet in Madison to discuss joint goals for their organizations, talk with the staff about their plans for the coming year, and most importantly, socialize with the current generation of Cardinal staff.

This year's meeting is planned for April 17, 2010. Save the date on your calendar now!

Alumnus Fred Schepartz gets novel published

Well, it's kind of old news, but I just joined the DCAA, so I guess it's new news. Earlier this year, my novel "Vampire Cabbie" was published by Literary Road, a small press based in Seattle.

Mission of the DCAA

Mission

The mission of The Daily Cardinal Alumni Association (DCAA) is to promote the publication of a high-quality, independent, daily, student-run newspaper for the UW-Madison campus; to serve as a professional development resource and network for current and former Daily Cardinal staff members; and to provide opportunities for alumni to renew and maintain social, personal, and professional relationships with each other.

Purpose

1. provide current and future members of the Daily Cardinal staff with mentoring and support, including scholarships and special projects, by those who went before;
2. provide former members of the Daily Cardinal Staff an opportunity to reconnect with their colleagues and contribute to the ongoing success of the newspaper;
3. cooperate with the Wisconsin Alumni Association in promoting the best interests of students involved in the Daily Cardinal as part of their on-campus experience.

Acclaim for New Daily Cardinal Biography

Doug Moe, columnist for The Capital Times in Madison, recently talked with Allison Hantschel about her new book, It Doesn't End with Us: The Story of The Daily Cardinal. The book also features a foreword by Richard Schickel, Time magazine film critic and fellow Cardinal alumnus.

Of the book, Moe writes: "[It] made me jealous for my own student newspaper days."

Read Moe's complete review and the full interview here:"Story of Daily Cardinal relights fire for news biz"

It Doesn't End with Us is available from Amazon... but, if you act now and renew your membership with the DCAA at the director level of $100, we will ship you a copy signed by Allison for your library for free!

Your donation will go towards supporting DCAA programs that sustain the Cardinal and the students who work at it today.

Use the donation form on the right to make your contribution and we'll contact you to arrange for delivery of your copy. Of, if you prefer, send an email to cross (at) dailycardinal.net to make your donation over the phone.

Don't miss this chance to experience the Cardinal's history, as told by your fellow alumni. It Doesn't End with Us is a great opportunity to reconnect with your own student newspaper days.

Meet the DCAA's Newest Board Members

The DCAA is pleased to announce the addition of three new directors serving terms on the board:

Vince Filak is an assistant professor of journalism at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, where he also serves as the faculty adviser to The Ball State Daily News, the university’s nationally recognized, award-winning newspaper. Prior to his arrival at Ball State, he taught news writing and reporting at UW-Madison and the University of Missouri. He also worked as a night-side city desk reporter at the Wisconsin State Journal and as the police and courts editor at the Columbia Missourian in Columbia, Missouri. He holds his BA and MA from UW-Madison and a Ph.D. from University of Missouri.

Vince's work at The Daily Cardinal included a stint as a writer and city editor from 1994-1995, as the interim business manager during The Shutdown of 1995 and as the business manager from 1995-1997.

Adam W. Lasker is an associate attorney with Lavelle Law Group, a Chicago law firm where he concentrates his practice in election law, zoning, municipal law, business formations and residential and commercial real estate matters. Adam received his juris doctor degree from The John Marshall Law School after having worked for several years as a journalist. Prior to law school, he was a staff writer for The Chicago Daily Law Bulletin, the nation's oldest daily law journal. While at the Law Bulletin, Adam received journalism awards from the Illinois Press Association and the Illinois Associated Press Editors Association.

Like many, Adam held played several roles at The Cardinal:
Fall 1995 - Spring 1997: Photo editor, reporter, photographer
1997-98: Reporter, photographer, distribution manager, part-time ad rep
1998-99: Editor-in-chief
1999-2000: "General lackey and doughnut picker-upper".

Michael Looby is the Gift Planning Director at Carmel Catholic High School in Mundelein, Illinois. He is soliciting major gifts for the yearly Annual Fund and developing the school’s planned giving program for the past 3 years. Prior to that, he owned Diversified Graphics for 23 years in Niles, Illinois, where he also resides.

Mike's tenure at The Cardinal included work as campus reporter, day and night editor, board member on the Daily Cardinal Board of Control, Fall 1976 - Spring 1978, (secretary/treasurer 1977-1978) and as Business Manager 1978-1979. Mike also worked as a pressman's assistant in the Journalism Typography Lab on the 3-unit web press from 7 p.m. to 3 a.m. during his junior year.

The DCAA board is actively seeking new members. If you are interested in learning more, please send an email to Anthony Sansone at asansone@dailycardinal.net.

Cardinal Contends for National Pacemaker Awards

The Daily Cardinal has been nominated for three national Associated Collegiate Press Pacemaker Awards, which recognize the best student journalism in the country. The winners of the contest will be announced at the National College Media Conference in Washington, D.C. October 24-28, 2007.

The Cardinal is a finalist for ACP Newspaper Pacemaker in the "four-year daily newspapers" category.

Additionally, these individuals have been nominated:

2007 ACP Design of the Year Finalist: Erik Opsal

2007 ACP Cartooning Awards Finalist: Phil Hands

Check back to this space to see the results. Congratulations to the staff!

Donate Airline Miles to The Cardinal

Looking for another way to support The Daily Cardinal? It's Badger football season and that means The Daily Cardinal is on the road.

In October, The Cardinal is planning to send a reporter and photographer to the Wisconsin vs. Penn State game.

Can you help them get there? Specific needs are two (2) round-trip tickets from either Madison, WI or Chicago to State College, PA.

If you can help, please send an email to Managing Editor Sarah Wieckert at me@dailycardinal.com or call (608) 262-8000.

Thanks for your support!

Don't Miss an Issue! Subscribe Now to The Daily Cardinal

Looking for a quick and easy way to stay in touch with the paper while supporting The Daily Cardinal's operations?The Daily Cardinal is pleased to offer subscriptions. It is a great way to follow news and events on and around the UW-Madison campus.

Choose from these packages:

The Enthusiast: Receive each day's issue (five issues/week) compiled and delivered to your doorstep at the end of the week. Read every issue of The Cardinal as if you were still on campus!

Editor's Choice: The Cardinal's Editor-In-Chief will select the best issues each month, sent for your reading enjoyment.

The cost for either package is $120 for the academic year or $70 per semester.

If you would like more information about our subscription service, please contact The Daily Cardinal Business Manager at (608) 262-8000 or via email at business@dailycardinal.com.

Daily Cardinal Alumni Chicago Gathering

Calling all Chicago-area Cardinal alumni! Come out and meet the current editors and reconnect with other alumni in Chicagoland.

When: Thursday, August 9, 2007, 6:00PM

Location: Billy Goat Tavern, 430 N. Michigan Ave at Lower Level, Chicago

Meet today's Daily Cardinal editors and business staffers for drinks and discussion at the Billy Goat, and give these out-of-towners a taste of Chicago's journalism community.

Editor in Chief Jill Klosterman, former Editor-in-Chief Sam-Omar Hall, business managers Josh Janos and Babu Gounder will be visiting from Madison to talk with you about their plans for the 115th year of the Midwest's best daily student paper, and answer your questions about The Cardinal of today.

Reconnect with other Chicago-area Cardinal alumni and share stories of your time at the paper. If there's one thing we all had in common back then, it was the desire to hash over the day's stories, preferably over a cold beer or two!

The party starts at 6 p.m. but we'll be there till the wee hours - come out and join us! If you have questions, or need directions, please call 1-877-DCAA

From the Editor-in-Chief, 1977

It has been 30 years since I served as Editor-in-Chief of The Daily Cardinal and it is still rare if a day goes by when I do not apply at least one of the lessons I learned at that unique newspaper to my job, or my life, today. It isn't just that my Cardinal portfolio secured me my first professional job in this business; it's that the entire experience there formed the underpinning to the journalist I am today.

If your time at The Cardinal was anything like mine, I know you understand. The paper is a connection we all share, no matter what generation we come from. It's a connection that lives today, and a connection from which we can still gain much if we nurture it.

As a director of the Daily Cardinal Alumni Association, let me share some of our recent successes in preserving The Cardinal's great legacy:

+ This year, though support from alumni like you, the DCAA was able to support students with scholarship assistance to encourage experienced editors to stay on staff. This year's recipient is incoming Editor-in-Chief Jill Klosterman, who will receive $1,000 towards her 2007/08 tuition.

+ Also, with alumni support, the DCAA helped provide the Cardinal office with new furniture, computers, photographic equipment and office supplies for only $1,200.

+ For the second time in three years, the Society of Professional Journalists named The Cardinal the Midwest's best all-around student newspaper. Alumni donations helped defray costs for the paper to enter this contest, providing students who are working for free with the opportunity for regional and national recognition.

+ In April, the DCAA held its annual staff appreciation event in Madison. More than 30 current Cardinal staffers talked with and celebrated another year of achievement with alumni. Of the weekend, one student wrote: "I wanted to send a special thank-you for coming to Madison this weekend. I know that for me personally, I was 're-energized' and ... ready to work."

This success deserves your support and celebration. Take a moment to remember your time at The Daily Cardinal and the significant impact that even a small contribution could make. A contribution today goes directly to supporting students currently working at the newspaper. If you have questions on what The Cardinal needs, or how the DCAA has helped in the past, please email me at skerch@dailycardinal.net

Any amount will make a difference: As I'm sure you'll recall, The Cardinal staff is nothing if not resourceful, no matter what the prevailing financial or journalistic climate. That's just another of the many legacies the DCAA is working to preserve.

You can make a gift in moments by clicking the Make a donation on the upper right.

Thanks for all your help!

Join The Conversation

Have an idea on how to help the Cardinal or improve the DCAA? Attend our annual meeting this Saturday, April 21, beginning at 9 a.m. at the Pyle Center:

702 Langdon Street
Madison, WI 53706-1420
Front Desk: 608-262-1122

We'll be talking events, awards, fundraising and more, as well as gathering with the staff that evening for pizza and fun. Join in and give us your thoughts!

From The Staff: Happy 115th Birthday!

Greetings from Cardinal management!

This semester has been an exciting one at the Cardinal.

The Daily Cardinal took home not one, not two, but nine awards at this year's regional SPJ awards. For the second year in a row, the Cardinal was awarded first place for Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper. We’re very proud of everyone whose hard work was rewarded. The award is a testament to the tradition of excellence we are honored to continue at the Cardinal.

Congratulations Are In Order: Cardinal Wins Top SPJ Awards

Last week the Society of Professional Journalists announced their student press award winners and the Daily Cardinal took home the SPJ's top prize.

The Daily Cardinal Today

The Daily Cardinal staff has been sending us pages from some of their best issues to show you what the paper looks like today. These are from their recent groundbreaking series on campus safety and security:

Letter From The Cardinal Staff

Editor in chief Sam-Omar Hall addresses the Cardinal's spring recruiting session.

In contrast to the freezing weather outdoors, spring semester has seen a crop of smoking hot Daily Cardinals on newsstands campus-wide. The Cardinal staff burst out of the gates Jan. 19 with the Spring Welcome Back Issue and has not looked back since. Some exciting changes kicked off the new semester: