A reflection on my time as a UF journalism student

I still remember my first tour of UF. My preview staffer had been a journalism student. As we walked past Weimer Hall, she said "If you are planning on majoring in journalism then you'd better get used to this place. It's going to be your new home away from home." I remember looking around the unfamiliar new place and wondering if that could ever be true.

Now, three years later, I am at Weimer hall daily. The majority of my classes are there and in addition to that, I have spent so much of my time in the INC, or Innovation News Center at the University of Florida. The INC is UF's newsroom.

It has been my home for the past few years and I know it like the back of my hand. I have spent countless hours there recording and re-recording my projects. I have spent long nights editing packages on the computer and trying to finalize my work into the perfect product. I have also done shifts in the newsroom for radio and TV. On my shifts, I have gotten a chance to gain hands-on experience writing scripts, editing packages, conducting interviews, and appearing live on the 5 o'clock news. Everything that we produce in the INC goes on Channel 3, a PBS affiliated NPR station that broadcasts throughout Alachua County.

I have gained some truly great experience through WUFT News and my work in the INC. As a UF student I have been able to utilize all of our incredible programs. I feel very blessed to be a part of such a great journalism program. The CMIR, or Center for Media Innovation and Research is constantly coming up with new projects and ideas in the world of journalism.

I frequently use the CMIR facilities. I use the newsroom every week during my TV 2 shifts. I also use the AHA lab often, it is the best place to work on group projects or get some quick work done in between classes! As I reflect on my time as a journalism student at UF, I would like to include some pictures from this past semester as a TV 2 Reporter. I included photos from two of the stories that I covered this year. One story was about a retired police K9 named Justice who apprehended a criminal on his last night of service for Gainesville Police Department. The other was about home buyer trends in Alachua county and what buyers are looking for when purchasing a new home.