7. Campus Hard or Feature News

 

Nowadays, it's almost too easy to get caught up with the constant release of "bad news" on a college campus. People generally focus on the bad, which makes it the most popular news genre. Whether it's articles over new COVID-19 cases on campus or a tragic death of a peer, it seems that every news headline features a devastating story. 

Today, I will not be focusing on the "hard news" stories that flood your notifications everyday, instead I will be discussing a lighthearted point of view for feature news stories, which will hopefully shine a positive light on college campus news stories around the country. 

In a state where "everything is bigger", Texas A&M University ranks as the 9th largest college campus in the United States, which is home to over 70,000 students (second-largest student body in America).

While the size of Texas A&M is impressive, it does not compare to the community that surrounds the student body. From freshman to all-star athletes, Texas A&M University is all inclusive and supportive to their "family". While the students and faculty remain an encouraging community, it would be hard to feel included and up to date without a reliable news platform.  On this large campus, news is constantly a reliable source for students to remain up to date on campus activities and news. Texas A&M Today is the most popular news website for current and graduated Aggies to utilize throughout the school year. 

This website features the different schools of education, campus life, and athletics, keeping every Aggie up to date on the newest achievements of the impressive university.

Recently published on October 1 under "Campus Life", was an article highlighting the university's most recent achievement: receiving the National Diversity Award for the third consecutive year. The Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award (HEED) is a national honor presented to colleges in North America who "demonstrate an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion." 

To qualify for receiving this prestigious award, requires an in-depth and comprehensive application which discusses the leadership support for diversity on campus as well as the process of recruitment and retention for students and faculty members. Lenore Pearlstein, publisher of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine discussed the criteria for choosing the recipient of the award, "We take a detailed approach to reviewing each application in deciding who will be named a HEED Award recipient. Our standards are high, and we look for institutions where diversity and inclusion are woven into the work being done every day across campus".

The interim Vice President of Texas A&M, as well as the associate for provost for diversity, Annie McGowan discussed her work with Texas A&M's Office of Diversity and their goals on campus. 

 “Winning a HEED Award holds the university to a higher standard of accountability by requiring us to candidly reflect on our shortcomings and identify new strategies for improvement,” she said. “Applying for the HEED Award requires Texas A&M to critically assess our diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, recognize promising, impactful strategies and determine areas in need of improvement.”

This feature news story brings a light-hearted and positive light to the usual negativity featured on campus news headlines. This feature represents the outstanding community Texas A&M University is, and their strive for a better future for their campus.