LASU campus journalists association to hold maiden training session

Association of Campus Journalists, Lagos State University (ACJ-LASU) is set to hold its first training session for members and new intakes of the university. The training will take place on Saturday, March 7, 2020, at Eco Library, School of Communication Annex, Ojo Campus, LASU.

The first of its kind training session’s topic is “The art of news writing and publishing”. In a bid to sustain the momentum garnered by the association since a three-day training in conjunction with Premium Times in November 2019 consolidated its creation, the association is seeking to equip members with 21st Century reporting skills.

Members of the editorial board, Mariam Illeyemi, and Afeez Rabiu, who are also outgoing members of the association, will facilitate the training.

The president of the association, Okerinde Ayobami pointed out that journalists need to constantly keep ourselves abreast of what it takes to be a journalist, “ there is need to learn, unlearn and relearn”, he affirmed.

According to him, the motivation for the training is to remind campus journalist of their duties and also to be accurate, factual and objective when we they do their job.

“What we intend to achieve with the training Is to reawakening campus journalism. During the training, we should welcome new members and also unveil the new sets of executives that will lead the association”, he said.

One of the facilitators, Mariam illeyemi revealed that she initiated the meeting and training because she perceived LASU students need more sensitization and enlightenment about journalism.

She hopes to use this avenue to give back in her own way. 

She went further, “I dedicated my time to self-development in news writing, so I want to change the mindset of students who are interested in Journalism but are discouraged because they can’t write, they need to start from somewhere, particularly 100level students. They also need to know the benefits of Campus Journalism, I wish there was ACJ-LASU earlier before my final year in LASU, that was last year”. She will be taking students on news writing, types of the headline, how to construct a headline, lead, etc.

As a member of the editorial board, Seye believes that training will go a long way in helping and preparing members for the task ahead. “I expect that at the end of the training, existing and new members will be propelled to start writing”, he said

A member of the association, Joseph Gbadamosi believes the training topic will enlighten members on the fundamental tenets of Journalism. He said, “This training will not just help in opening the eyes of intending journalists to the essential elements of a good news story but will also give attendees knowledge of what to keep in mind if at any point in time he/she finds himself in situations that demand this skill.” He expects the training to be very practical since Journalism is more practical than theoretical.

Another member, Oyero Olorunsola Timothy maintains that this program will ginger people to push their pen harder and provide guidance in writing and publishing. He noted that new members will also join if they hear the testimony of previous meetings and the provision of a certificate for participation.