October 10, 2014 www.plaintalk.net Plain Talk: Heritage Edition THE VOLANTE A reputable source, a tradition of excellence By Alan Dale The Plain Talk It takes a second, a heartbeat, to look at the intense expression of Emily Niebrugge to know that she means business. Then as you take a closer look you can see the floating images of greats float just below the surface of Niebrugge’s brow starting with the seat she now holds as Editor-in-Chief of The Volante. For Niebrugge holds the chair once held by USA Today founder and former Volante boss, Al Neuharth. It was here where Neuharth developed his journalism chops and this 127-year-old newspaper has been a force to be reckoned with ever since. “I take a lot of pride working at this particular publication and being at USD and in Vermillion,” Niebrugge said. “I think there is a long standing tradition here and if you look at the awards we’ve gotten, that just tells you our standards and how high we keep them. We take a responsibility to be the best in the state and to do the best on campus getting news out to our readers. We take a lot of pride in that and we take it really seriously.” Neuharth was editor-in-chief back in the 1940s in times of war and progress. The senior Niebrugge and junior managing editor Trent Opstedahl have entered their seats at the head of the table at a time of great growth in the print media and they have jumped all over it. “We do take a lot of pride in our work and that’s what drives us to get better,” Opstedahl said. “People are actually following us so we have to take it seriously and keep pushing. “This past semester we had a huge push for our online presence and have really improved our website. That’s one thing we lacked in when I came here. With online there are so many opportunities for video and photos. That’s what creates the social aspect of it. People can say ‘oh I Tweeted something out’ and it ends up in a story. People don’t always recognize that.” The Volante is a student-run newspaper with a staff than can run as high as 50 members. It is editorially independent and has won a number of Pacemaker Awards – considered the Pulitzer Prize of collegiate journalism – which is awarded by the Associated Collegiate Press. Niebrugge and Opstedahl are Neuharth scholars and that is a driving force as they lead the newspaper forward. “We have it in the back of our heads the entire time we have been here,” Niebrugge said. “That’s been the forefront of our minds, that history and that role of excellence. Obviously Al Neuharth was a pretty big deal and was very well known for his work in the media. He is someone we have a lot of respect for his work in the industry. It’s really neat to sit here and thinking they’ve been doing this for so long and Al Neuharth has been here and a lot of people who are on the wall and have a lot of awards came to USD too. Today’s Volante staff is working hard to bring the best news to University of South Dakota students. Alan Dale/The Plain Talk “You look back and see the longstanding tradition and wonder maybe you can be a part of that and do big things too.” This attitude has filtered its way down to the present staff from many others before it. “It was a great and valuable experience,” Justin Rust, a class of 2010 alum, said. “We had a lot of pride in our paper and we treated it like any other paper out there. We wanted to get anything out there in Vermillion and the university because that’s what we thought was what the students deserved. “Everyone that is there passes their experience on to all the freshmen there. They want to keep the tradition there from Al Neuharth to now. We just hope it keeps going.” Rust currently works at the WaverlyDemocrat in Iowa. There is also an extra motivator of not being that Volante that doesn’t carry its weight. “So if we are that losing team? I do not measure our success by awards or publicity we get,” Niebrugge said. “I measure our success by our work ethic and if we are getting news out to the campus and what they want to read about. If we are getting good feedback from the students and the faculty that we are really hitting the issues people really want to read about and I think we are doing that. “We have really stepped up our writing especially in our skill. I measure it more on me being able to teach people. At the end of the day it comes down to me saying I was able to mentor her and she’s a writer now or he’s a photographer now.” “We are very proud of what we do here,” Opstedahl added. “We have real lives here and are students with social lives, but this is a full time-job here and we are definitely committed. We are really excited for what we publish this week or the next week.” Niebrugge, who is halfway through her second semester leading the charge, believes in the value of good newspaper work and ethics and not just fitting a stereotype. “You can be in journalism and not like to write,” she said. “What I love about it, is to be able to tell other peoples’ stories. I want to report and have a conversation and see why what they’re doing is so awesome that we can tell the rest of the student body about it. That’s what we are trying to instill: Getting that story told. It’s not about writing, it’s about being a storyteller. “Our standards are so high for professionalism. We are teaching how to be professional and how to interact with the faculty and everyone they do in a professional manner. That’s what sets us apart that we take ourselves seriously on a professional level.” Alas, working in the now has its drawbacks and with Niebrugge’s eye partially trained to view what’s happened before, she does see some of the nuances of what used to be in the newspaper business. “Sometimes I do wish — and I appreciate where I am now and this age of journalism and where it’s going — that we can kind of take a step back and hone in on a story,” she said. “Not to worry about when I can get it online, how fast I can get it online, can I get it first, can I get it fast, and how many platforms can I get it on. You look at things like Watergate that was insane, but which was investigative journalism and I just wish I didn’t have to worry about how many platforms and I could just worry about things like that.” Tackling all the challenges won’t deter The Volante and its current staff from aiming to make a difference in the future. “We realize the standards that were set before us,” Niebrugge said. “Our advisors, our faculty, our department, they keep pushing us. We know we can take it to the next level. It’s that pride to keep it historically at that level, but it’s also us getting ourselves ready for the real world and what we want to bring to the real world when we are done here.” Who is a Dakota Days committee member? By Angela Morrow The Plain Talk Ever wonder who plans the Dakota Days activities? How did they get picked for the job? Is it something you could do? Kate Turner a senior in the Strategic Communications program serves as the Dakota Days Board External Over All Chair. Taylor Vavra a senior in the Marketing program serves as the Dakota Days Committee Board Internal Over All Chair. Turner, Vavra and about twenty students help to plan and organize the Dakota Days activities. “It starts back in January when we choose the new overall chairs,” Turner said. “Then we put out an application for all the student body to do it. We explain all the positions. They apply for two and then we kind of narrow it down after that.” It is more than applying for a job. Vavra says there is a deeper meaning to Dakota Days. It is more than one school celebrating their homecoming. “Takes somebody who I think appreciates Dakota Days for more, and appreciates Dakota Days for what it is,” Vavra said. “It’s so many things put together. It’s something that students celebrate their university and their Coyote pride. I think it’s also a time for Vermillion to appreciate the University. It’s a time for the alumni to appreciate their alma mater. “It’s so much more than just D-days” It takes a wide variety of students to help create an event that has something for everyone. That is where the committee comes in. “We got a really good group of students this year,” Turner said. “(We have) a really broad range of students. Greek life, non-Greek. We’ve got students that are involved in every other organization.” While checking emails, reserving spaces, and getting banner approvals the committee works with a lot of other groups and departments on campus. Turner and Vavra divide up responsibilities so they can get everything accomplished. “I deal with the community more so. I do the events and the parade, so stuff that affects the whole community,” Turner said. “She (Vavra) does internal campus and student involvement. That’s kind of like how we divide because we have all the co-chairs below and that way if they have a specific question they can go to me or her.” Committee members work together to plan something everyone will enjoy. They plan for students, faculty, alumni and the community. “We helped pick the comedian, the talent show, the downtown street party.” Turner said, “There’s also a drive-in movie we’re doing right outside the MUC. “We put that together, photo creations, pep rallies.” But it doesn’t stop there. There is the parade and the homecoming royalty. “We plan the parade, we make sure coronation, all the backstory of coronation is happening,” Vavra said. “And so making sure the royalty are in the right place and their pictures are done. All the dignitaries are contacted and ready for the parade. That our parade route is approved by the city.” Finally there is the big home game. “We help with tailgate and we do the entire half time of the game,” Turner said. “We do all the marketing, all the advertising, all the design, all the printing for every event.” With all the extra work it takes to pull off Dakota Days the football players aren’t the only ones giving it their all this week. “This is my second year doing it and it can be very stressful because you feel the pressure of Dakota Days riding on your shoulders,” Vavra said. “But the week of (Dakota Days) makes it so worth it when you see everything panning out the way you planned. When you see everyone enjoying the things you’re putting on, the things you planned, it makes it so worth it in the end.” B3 WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A VERMILLION FAMILY DURING DAKOTA DAYS By Katie Clausen For the Plain Talk The annual Dakota Days homecoming week may be a University of South Dakota tradition, but it impacts more than just university students, staff and faculty. Being a Vermillion resident during this time of pomp and circumstance can be both a challenge and an opportunity. “It takes patience.” said Vermillion resident Staci Olsen of being a Vermillion resident during the big D-days weekend. “Traffic can get kind of crazy, and I’ve had family not be able to visit that weekend because hotel rooms are hard to find. “But overall, those are small prices to pay for such a sense of community that D-Days brings.” “There are good and bad sides to it” said Miranda Lindula, Vermillion resident. “On the one hand there is lots of beer drinking and people can get carried away, on the other hand, the liquor and beer sales are good for the city.” Sales means more work for local businesses and that’s just part of the process. “For Dakota Days, we are all working, the whole staff,” said Shelton Long, who has been employed at the Vermillion Liquor Store for one year. “We will be changing how we ID people – doing it as they come in – to streamline the operations in the store.” Long noted they will be sure to stock what the college students, and other DDays participants, will be looking for. “We will be catering to the crowd,” Long said. “There are a lot of similarities among what people like at the university”. His list of most popular brands included domestic light beers and lower priced liquors. Dakota Days isn’t just about partying. The annual parade is a large source of entertainment for kids. Families from the tri-state area come to enjoy the festivities. “The biggest thing about D-Days for kids is the parade,” Lindula said. Jordan Krogman, a Vermillion mother of four, also had comments about the parade. “They do love to go and catch candy, and have contests to see who can collect the most political stickers. If it’s really cold out, though, we have no problem just skipping it entirely”, Krogman said. Alisha McPherson, a lifelong resident of Vermillion also said the parade was top on the list for her family. “For my kids D-days means the big parade with lots of candy and seeing Charlie the Coyote. They love Charlie! None of my kids are in the parade this year, but they still enjoy dressing up in ‘yotes gear for the occasion,” McPherson said. Tiffanie Wakeley, a USD alumnus, really enjoys bringing her children back to Vermillion for campus festivities. “The kids really enjoy going into the dome and of course seeing Charlie Coyote,” Wakeley said. “They enjoy being able to see the band, the dance team, all of it. “Coming from where I grew up living 40 miles outside of a small town, Vermillion was a big step for me, even though Vermillion is smaller. It’s a safe community with enough of a small town feel, but big experiences.” Wakeley uses Dakota Days as an opportunity to reconnect. “When I get back its fun to see everyone and have an appreciation for the community,” Wakeley said. “I usually go back for D-Days to go out, but I will be bringing the kids this year.” Wakeley, a mother of four, finds that USD events and D-Days are good ways for her kids to experience what a college town has to offer. “It’s easy to take the little ones because the University is just the right size,” she said. “They can experience all of these things but it’s not as hectic as traveling to a larger city or university is.” Vermillion Area Farmers Market The best in local produce, breads, meat, cheese, honey, eggs, crafts and more Thursdays through October 3:00-7:00 Clay County Fairgrounds Winter Markets: Third Saturdays Nov.- April Clay County 4H/Extension Building VAFarmersMarket@gmail.com www.vermillionfarmersmarket.org g