U.S. newspapers in the late 1960s report on protests, Vietnam War demonstrations and civil rights activism. This campus experiences a significant protest on November 21, 1968 when 94 African-American students hold a demonstration in the university president’s office. This event, remembered as “Black Thursday” as named by the Oshkosh Advance-Titan, encourages some students to pursue journalism.

The department moves again, this time to the basement of Radford Hall to share tight quarters with the Oshkosh Advance-Titan. Dr. Coll operates the photo studio and yearbook in a white house on the corner of Algoma and Woodland before it moves to the Multicultural Education Center. 

The Oshkosh Advance-Titan wins its first Pacemaker Award, sponsored by the Associated Collegiate Press. To see how the student newspaper has changed over the years, browse our A-T gallery with more than 100 years of front pages.

The last issue of the Quiver is published. The yearbook was first produced in 1897 and its last edition was 374 pages.

Journalism moves from the basement of Radford Hall to the inner section of Clow, formerly occupied by audio-visual. All faculty offices are now in one building. It includes a modern $30,000 photo facility with a darkroom and 12 enlarging stations. The Advance-Titan temporarily remains in the Radford basement. The journalism department was housed in Clow for 33 years, the longest of any location.

In 1980 the UW Oshkosh American Advertising Federation chapter is established, providing national opportunities for the advertising-public relations sequence.

The department loses its founder. Lippert passes away on May 31 following a traffic accident while driving back to Oshkosh from Gulf Shores, Ala. Coll takes over as chair of the department.

In May, the UW Oshkosh Chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America is established, overseen by Dr. Harvey Jacobson. Photography Club was created in 2004 when there was a high demand for Photo II class and limited seats available.

Ad students finish 10th in the AAF’s National Student Advertising Competition, the first team from UW Oshkosh to finish in the Top 10 nationally. Four of the five presenters would later be selected by the university as Outstanding Young Alumni: Anne (Angoli) Enright, Jeff Maki, Chuck Monn and Mike Fredrick. Regional ad wins continue over the years, with the most recent being third place in 2017. 

Paul Anger, ’72, then editor and vice president of The Des Moines Register, is the department’s first recipient of the Distinguished Alumni Award. It is the highest honor alumni can receive from the university’s Alumni Association. Since then, the department has had six alumni win the award. To learn about their accomplishments, see our award-winning alumni profiles.

Barb Schmitz Benish ’82 (MBA ’92), former Oshkosh Northwestern city editor and adjunct instructor, takes on the role of internship coordinator for the department. Working with more than 50 organizations each year, she has helped the department attain a rate of 90% of students graduating with one or more internships. Benish also serves as executive secretary for NEWSPA, the Northeastern Wisconsin Scholastic Press Association, which Coll established in 1969 to promote the field of journalism to high school students.

PRSSA wins first place in the National Organ Donor Awareness Competition (NODAC), and again in 2008. PRSSA becomes an award-winning chapter, eventually being renamed the Dr. Julie Henderson PRSSA Chapter in 2012 in honor of its dedicated public relations professor and adviser (pictured above). Among recent awards, PRSSA won a star chapter award for 2017, second place for NODAC in 2017 and an honorable mention for the Bateman Competition in 2018.

Journalism continues to add online content courses, such as New and Emerging Media and Application of New and Emerging Media. This effort leads to collaboration with the interdisciplinary Interactive Web Management program with the College of Business. The department also launches its social media presence, which includes a WordPress blog, and Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn accounts.

The journalism department is granted the Certification in Education for Public Relations by the Public Relations Society of America, becoming the first university in Wisconsin to receive this distinction.

The department rolls out the new public relations major, the first of its kind in the UW System, through the leadership of Henderson prior to her retirement. The new major is eyed as a growth opportunity due to demand in the field.

The department welcomes alumni to celebrate its 50th, planning a professional development day on Oct. 19 at Sage Hall and an evening celebration on Oct. 20 at the Alumni Welcome and Conference Center. Events will feature more than 40 alumni speakers, including Jim VandeHei of Axios and Mariah Haberman of Discover Wisconsin, who will receive this year’s Outstanding Young Alumni Award. Many special guests plan to join our alumni, including Coll, Dr. Peggy Davidson, Jacobson and Judy Schultz.