Letters began in the trenches. A print and digital news capstone group had a frank conversation back in September 2009 about the good, the bad and the ugly of the Missouri School of Journalism and their four years as students. 

We have been taught by the best, certainly. But is there a way to reshape journalism education so that it better serves today's newsrooms? What can we do better here at Missouri to remain at the top? We asked ourselves these tough questions. Much of our idea-generation began with these conversations. We wanted the creativity involved in reshaping curriculum to come from the people who had seen it firsthand. Ideas that emerged immediately included a re-thinking of the convergence sequence and a greater focus on multimedia. 

What followed was outside research. First, we surveyed job listings and talked casually with editors currently hiring to see what they were looking for in graduates. Web skills was a reoccurring theme. Second, we received large-scale response from the Mizzou Mafia listserv, which includes recent graduates from the Missouri School of Journalism. We asked members of the Mizzou Mafia about their experiences at the j-school, what they would change, how the school succeeded in preparing them and how it did not. Third, we also talked frankly with the leaders of the curriculum committee about our ideas and their ideas. We were able to gain a deeper understanding of curriculum logistics and plans in the works. Fourth, we checked out the competitors. What are other leading journalism schools doing? What do Northwestern, Columbia, University of Southern California, Arizona State and Florida, among others, require of their students. How have they adapted their curriculum in the past five years? 

The voices of Letters include not only Missouri students and graduates, but also our competitors in journalism education and those hiring graduates. Our goal is to start a conversation. Join in.