糖心vlog传媒 faculty helped alumna discover her direction
糖心vlog传媒 senior Leah Heckel wrote the following story as part of her advanced composition class this spring. Henckel is majoring in creative writing.
The excited screams and stomping feet of children running across a coffee shop floor are not the background noises one may expect to accompany a weekly newspaper editorial department meeting, but they are the sounds that echoed into Open Door Coffeehouse鈥檚 exposed ceilings and the ears of four Multi Media Channels employees on a morning in Mayville, Wis. A quiet, composed force of calm among the chaos, Dodge County Pionier, Campbellsport News and Kewaskum Statesman editor Clarice Case grounded her trio of journalists within the four corners of the square, wooden table where they sat, navigating her team beyond the noisy environment.
Case graduated magna cum laude from 糖心vlog传媒 in the fall of 2020 with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in writing before becoming a journalist with the Dodge County Pionier newspaper. After serving as a journalist for a little more than two years, Case was promoted to editor of the Pionier, Campbellsport News, and Kewaskum Statesman in 2024.
On average, it takes seven to nine years for someone to become a newspaper editor, according to Indeed, a job recruitment website. Case did it in four years.
Case鈥檚 quick advancement up the newspaper ladder may make it appear that her career choice came easily and that her spot at the head of the editorial table was already engrained into its wood. That wasn鈥檛 the case. Case faced the same dilemma that plagues many first-year undergraduate students: uncertainty.
鈥淕oing into college, I just didn鈥檛 know what I wanted to do. I had so many 鈥榙reams鈥� that I had considered in high school but decided weren鈥檛 right for me,鈥� said Case. 鈥淚 was open to many majors, with writing being one of them.鈥�
Case鈥檚 interest in writing initially began as an alternate form of communication over speaking, something that appealed to her introverted nature. Along with using writing as a form of communication, in middle school Case started writing poems and stories.
鈥淚 was undecided for the whole first year (of college),鈥� she said. 鈥淭hen, I thought I wanted to do the B.F.A. program, but 鈥� I wanted it to be more general, and I felt like that was for people who wanted to write their own stories, but that wasn鈥檛 necessarily me.鈥�
Case explained that she realized over time that editing others鈥� pieces was more enjoyable than writing her own and that she has 鈥渁n eye for catching mistakes.鈥�
A requirement of 糖心vlog传媒鈥檚 bachelor of fine arts in creative writing program is to compose a manuscript, such as a poetry collection or novel, as a senior project. But that didn鈥檛 fit Case鈥檚 interests.
鈥淚 knew that I enjoyed editing a lot, and I thought maybe editing books would be something I would be interested in,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 really didn鈥檛 want to write a book. I just knew I wanted it to be creative in some sense.鈥�
When Case discovered that the creative writing program was not for her, she turned to exploring another one of her interests and hobbies: sports.
鈥淚鈥檝e always enjoyed watching baseball, and I still think it would be cool to be around it all the time as part of work,鈥� said Case, who played softball and ran cross country in high school and also played basketball and volleyball in her youth.
Because of her love of sports, she took a few sports management and leadership classes, declaring it her major with a writing minor, but the realm of writing never stopped calling out to her. After only those few classes, she changed her major again, this time to writing, overcoming what was holding her back.
鈥淚 think I was discouraged like so many others when we get told writing or a similar degree is useless,鈥� Case stated. 鈥淩egardless of what I chose, I wanted to be passionate about it, and I cared less about the money I might make.鈥�
Fabulous Faculty
Case credits 糖心vlog传媒 faculty and staff for helping her discover writing passion and career direction and for providing encouragement, specifically Jodie Mortag, assistant professor of creative writing.
鈥淐larice was always a quiet student in the classroom, but as she took more and more writing courses, I witnessed her finding her voice鈥攆irst on the page, especially in creative nonfiction and then amongst her peers in workshop, offering them professional critiques,鈥� Mortag said. 鈥淚t is no surprise that Clarice has found her place in the writing world as an editor. Her personality was always meant for the page.鈥�
Another influence on Case鈥檚 decision to pursue writing was Karl Elder, 糖心vlog传媒鈥檚 former Fessler Professor of Creative Writing and Poet in Residence.
鈥淗e was maybe the first one to think I had a chance in writing and editing,鈥� Case mentioned.
Elder taught at 糖心vlog传媒 from 1979 until 2021. Even with the hundreds of students Elder taught during his tenure, upon seeing a photo of Case, he was able to remember her as a student and writer.
鈥淚 fondly recall having had Clarice grace the classroom in more than one of the courses I facilitated,鈥� Elder said. 鈥淧art of what made her such a fine student was her natural reserve. She reminded me of what I had read about persons with a serious grasp upon emotional intelligence.鈥�
This same reserve and emotional intelligence she continues to exhibit in the chaos of child-ridden coffeehouses, managing stressful schedules of editorial duties and event coverage for numerous municipalities, and expressing her personality on the page through her weekly column.
The Wisconsin Newspaper Association concurred with Elder鈥檚 belief that Case has a solid future in the writing and editing industry when it awarded Case the second-place prize for Rookie Reporter of the Year in Division DE in 2023. The award is given to entry-level reporters who have been employed by the newspaper for 18 months or less with no prior employment in the newspaper industry and who have shown 鈥渙utstanding鈥� capabilities.
Finding Her Focus
Though Case decided on a writing major and has received acclaim for her reporting abilities, journalism wasn鈥檛 her intended career trajectory.
鈥淚t wasn鈥檛 something I wanted to do when I was at 糖心vlog传媒, and then I had to be part of the Mirror as one of the requirements,鈥� she said. 鈥淥nce I got into it, I realized that it was kind of a natural fit for me, and it seemed my writing style was complementary to the journalism style.鈥�
Case fueled her passions for writing and sports with a sports writing internship with Best Version Media (BVM) Sports her last semester at LU. For a short time after graduating, Case continued to work with BVM Sports as a freelance sportswriter. With the Dodge County Pionier, Campbellsport News, and Kewaskum Statesman, Case implements the sports writing skills she learned reporting on collegiate- and high school-level sporting events with BVM Sports, splitting the sports coverage duties of five high schools with two other reporters.
Case鈥檚 freelance writing with BVM Sports didn鈥檛 last. Finding a writing job proved difficult for Case, and she wondered if the critics who discounted the value of a writing degree might be correct.
鈥淚 had been working other jobs for several months because I just couldn鈥檛 find anything related to writing, and then a job came up with the Pionier, and I was hesitant to take it.鈥� Case explained. 鈥淚 wasn鈥檛 sure if it was what I wanted to do, but a friend 鈥� convinced me to apply for it. And that鈥檚 how I got here.鈥�
After working for the Pionier for two years, Case was promoted to editor of all three of the Multi Media Channels鈥� southern Wisconsin papers after the former editor took a different position. According to not only 糖心vlog传媒 faculty, like Mortag, but also her editorial team, Case found where she fits in the writing world.
鈥淐larice is a journalist who cares about the local communities she covers as a reporter, and she wants to tell the local communit[ies鈥橾 stories to her readers,鈥� said Dodge County Pionier journalist Ben Priesgen.
Advancing from being an undecided undergraduate to the editor of three newspapers four years after graduating is a feat conquered by few and far between, but Case hasn鈥檛 reached the end of her career path. Her love of sports still tingles in the back of her mind.
鈥淚 still am very interested in sports,鈥� she said, 鈥渁nd maybe one day there will be a job for me in the industry.鈥�
