Top news at Minnesota colleges, from two student reporters
Students and staff walk through a steady snowfall at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis, Minn. Tuesday, Feb. 10, 2015; here's what student journalists have to say about current events on two of the campuses.
Jeffrey Thompson / MPR News
We love talking with young journalists on Minnesota college campuses. They are doing great work covering their college communities.
Today, host Cathy Wurzer talks with Maya Marshall Hoff and Isabelle Hopewell. Maya is the administrative reporter for the Minnesota Daily at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. And Isabelle Hopewell is managing editor of the Bark at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
INTERVIEWER: I love talking to young journalists on Minnesota college campuses. I think they do great work covering their college communities. It's not easy.
Today, I'm talking with Maya Marchel Hoff and Isabelle Hopewell. Maya is the administrative reporter for The Minnesota Daily at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus. Isabelle Hopewell is the managing editor of The Bark at the University of Minnesota Duluth. I'm so happy you're both with us. Maya and Isabelle, happy new year.
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Happy new year.
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Hello.
INTERVIEWER: Thanks for being with us. Congratulations, you've both been doing a lot of good work. So, Isabelle, I'm going to start with you. Tell me about a recent big story.
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Well, there were two. One was the Teamsters Union 320 strike that was covered throughout the Minnesota system campuses. I covered two stories for that.
And one was kind of a more immediate story, when they first got-- some information came out about the strike. And then one was more of a "what you need to know" type of article. And that one was really interesting because it was coming out in our print edition.
So we didn't really have any information about [CHUCKLES] what was going to happen in the weeks following the conversations with the University system. So I kind of had to write what I knew and make it timely. But I think it still worked. And then another story was just about our new interim chancellor.
INTERVIEWER: That's right. And for folks who are not familiar with that story, that was a big one on your campus. Who is he? And what happened?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: David McMillan. So after an unsuccessful search for a new chancellor at the University of Minnesota Duluth, McMillan came in. And he's been doing a great job, in my opinion. And I interviewed him and did a little feature article on him.
INTERVIEWER: Maya, I'm assuming that the strike, which is-- now, of course, there's an agreement. There was a new contract agreement. That must have been the big story, too, on campus.
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah. That was one of the big stories. I didn't do a lot of reporting on that subject. But I mean, it's been a pretty [CHUCKLES] newsworthy year on campus. And that definitely was a big thing, including the Board of Regents voting on that contract.
INTERVIEWER: Right. What were some of the big stories you covered?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah, so I covered the Board of Regents. And so one of my biggest stories was involving the Regents' selection process at the Minnesota legislature and PAC involvement in that. And then I also did some reporting on Regent Sviggum and how his comments at a Board of Regents meeting impacted the University system and the University community in general.
INTERVIEWER: What did you hear about that story from any feedback that you got from staff and students?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah, so I haven't received any direct feedback. But going to the PAC story, I have received feedback either from just community members [CHUCKLES] who actually pay attention to what's going on in the Board of Regents' process and the election process, just because it is not a super well-known process. It's kind of complicated and long.
And so I've heard more people talking about the selection process than I think usually happens, which is nice. Because I think a lot of eyes have been on the Board this semester, especially after Sviggum's comments and, recently, President Gabel's position on the Securian board of directors.
INTERVIEWER: Right. As a matter of fact, we just had the chance to talk to DFL Senator John Marty on MPR this morning about a letter he sent to President Gabel, asking her to step down from the Securian financial board of directors. Not sure what will happen with that.
But he did mention that there could be legislative action around that. That's another big story. What are you both seeing here in your crystal balls, [CHUCKLES] Isabelle, when it comes to maybe some of the big stories you might be covering on campus this spring semester?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: I think that, yeah, a lot of the turnover in terms of some faculty members from different departments, that's-- a lot of people are retiring, and how the University is dealing with that. I think that's going to be a big story. But yeah, I guess I'm not too sure about it just yet.
INTERVIEWER: Really? So you're anticipating, or at least the school's anticipating, a lot of retirements. Will that be an issue going forward with classes?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: At least in the Theater Department, I know that there's a few retirements. And yeah, that will probably affect a lot of classes. So we'll see how that goes.
INTERVIEWER: OK. Maya, what do you think might be making big news?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Well, I mean, hopefully people will [CHUCKLES] be able to pay attention to the regent elections because there's four seats up. And one of them is the current chair, Regent Powell. I think a lot of eyes will be on that.
A lot of things have happened in terms of pay on campus, whether it was student wages or union raises. And I think that has been a topic that has been in-- all eyes have been on that for a while.
I think that a bunch of other groups on campus are also going to fight for more wage increases, including grad students, who I did some reporting on that, where they are looking for a better pay rate-- a pay raise. And especially other faculty members that aren't officially faculty, like P&A staff. So that will be interesting, as well.
INTERVIEWER: What's their rate of pay right now? Do you know?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: So for grad students, in a lot of departments, they're capped at 20 hours. And so I think the minimum-- this might not be a correct number. But it's somewhere around $16,000 or $17,000.
And they're technically part time. But in the hours they put in, it's full time. And it's hard for them to have other jobs. And so a lot of times, they're living off that for a year. And the wages that the unions are paying isn't up to standard with the price of living in the Cities, especially now during inflation.
INTERVIEWER: So that'll be a story moving forward. So I'm curious from where both you sit, how would you rate the health of campus media? Both of you are working for online publications. At UMD, of course, you have an actual hard copy. Is that right, Isabelle?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Yes, we do. I would say our hard copy gets a lot more traction than our online publication. We do have a newsletter. But yeah, I would say the hard copy is more effective in reaching out to student bodies. I know some people don't even know that we have an online publication. But our print does get a fair amount of traction.
INTERVIEWER: Do you feel The Bark is pretty healthy in terms of a news outlet?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: I think that we are small. And we're a small organization. So we're still trying to manage just getting bigger spaces and just more connections on campus. But we're small but mighty. I think we do really nice work.
And I'm really proud of the stories that we've covered. I think that this past semester was really successful in covering the climate of the student body, more so than in years prior when we've had maybe a little less, just, support from different places on campus.
INTERVIEWER: Maya, I know some folks were kind of disappointed when they realized that The Daily was no longer hard copy. That was done kind of quietly, I guess. I don't want to put you on the spot. But what's the health of The Minnesota Daily nowadays?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Very interesting topics. When the pandemic hit, all of The Daily's work went remote and since then, honestly, I think made The Daily--
[AUDIO OUT]
INTERVIEWER: Oh, goodness. I think you're-- oh, hang on, Maya. We're going to call you back here. It looks like you're kind of breaking up on us here, which is-- technology sometimes does not work as well as it should here.
So Maya Marchel Hoff is with us, along with Isabelle Hopewell. And both are student reporters. Maya, by the way, is with The Minnesota Daily. We were talking to her. And also, Isabelle Hopewell has been with us. She's the managing editor of The Bark at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
We're trying to get Maya back on the line here. We'll see if this actually happens. Isabelle, sorry about keeping you waiting as we're trying to get ahold of Maya here. [CHUCKLES]
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: You're fine. No worries.
INTERVIEWER: So we're still trying to dial Maya here. So, Isabelle, do you plan to make journalism your career?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Well, I am kind of in a transition right now. I'm graduating in the spring, so in May. And also, I'm a double major in the Theater Department. And actually, I finished the entirety of my journalism degree about last spring. I did an internship. Oh, I think she might be back. Do I hear--
INTERVIEWER: Maya, are you with us?
CREW: One sec, OK?
INTERVIEWER: Oh, OK. Maya, are you with us?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah, sorry about that. [INAUDIBLE].
INTERVIEWER: Hi, Maya. Sorry. No, no, no, it's our fault. It's our technology. I was just asking you about the move. You were talking about going digital, going online during the pandemic for The Daily. And we'll pick it up there. What's the story?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah, so hearing about The Bark at UMD, it's kind of interesting because we're kind of seeing the opposite at [INAUDIBLE]. So right now, we don't print like we used to, which kind of made former members of The Daily or people that were formerly in media kind of sad that we weren't printing, which, I mean, yeah, The Daily's been around for over 100 years. And that was an important part of our legacy.
But even when we print special edition copies, [CHUCKLES] people pick them up. But they kind of gather dust. And I think that our digital presence and online presence is our greatest strength because every day, a newsletter is sent out into every student and faculty inbox if they want it. And that's just a really easy way for people to engage, especially students, because obviously we're more digital and physical.
And so I think that we've seen great engagement with that. And I think that rumors about The Daily quietly kind of getting lost are pretty much just rumors. The Daily's stronger than ever.
INTERVIEWER: Maya, thank you for that. By the way, Maya, are you graduating soon?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yes, I am.
INTERVIEWER: And you will you be in journalism?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yes, I hope to be. That is the goal. [CHUCKLES]
INTERVIEWER: OK, good. We were just talking to Isabelle when we were trying to get you back on the line. And she's making a bit of a transition. Before you go, Isabelle, please tell folks what you plan to do.
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: [CHUCKLES] Well, I don't really know. I have a-- we'll see. [CHUCKLES] Things are still working out. But I'm hoping to get back to Minneapolis.
INTERVIEWER: All right. You both are great. Thank you for doing this. I appreciate your time. Both are excellent journalists. And best of luck to you moving forward.
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Thank you.
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Thank you so much.
INTERVIEWER: Maya Marchel Hoff has been with us. She's with The Minnesota Daily. Isabelle Hopewell is with us, too. She's at the University of Minnesota Duluth at The Bark.
Today, I'm talking with Maya Marchel Hoff and Isabelle Hopewell. Maya is the administrative reporter for The Minnesota Daily at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus. Isabelle Hopewell is the managing editor of The Bark at the University of Minnesota Duluth. I'm so happy you're both with us. Maya and Isabelle, happy new year.
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Happy new year.
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Hello.
INTERVIEWER: Thanks for being with us. Congratulations, you've both been doing a lot of good work. So, Isabelle, I'm going to start with you. Tell me about a recent big story.
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Well, there were two. One was the Teamsters Union 320 strike that was covered throughout the Minnesota system campuses. I covered two stories for that.
And one was kind of a more immediate story, when they first got-- some information came out about the strike. And then one was more of a "what you need to know" type of article. And that one was really interesting because it was coming out in our print edition.
So we didn't really have any information about [CHUCKLES] what was going to happen in the weeks following the conversations with the University system. So I kind of had to write what I knew and make it timely. But I think it still worked. And then another story was just about our new interim chancellor.
INTERVIEWER: That's right. And for folks who are not familiar with that story, that was a big one on your campus. Who is he? And what happened?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: David McMillan. So after an unsuccessful search for a new chancellor at the University of Minnesota Duluth, McMillan came in. And he's been doing a great job, in my opinion. And I interviewed him and did a little feature article on him.
INTERVIEWER: Maya, I'm assuming that the strike, which is-- now, of course, there's an agreement. There was a new contract agreement. That must have been the big story, too, on campus.
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah. That was one of the big stories. I didn't do a lot of reporting on that subject. But I mean, it's been a pretty [CHUCKLES] newsworthy year on campus. And that definitely was a big thing, including the Board of Regents voting on that contract.
INTERVIEWER: Right. What were some of the big stories you covered?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah, so I covered the Board of Regents. And so one of my biggest stories was involving the Regents' selection process at the Minnesota legislature and PAC involvement in that. And then I also did some reporting on Regent Sviggum and how his comments at a Board of Regents meeting impacted the University system and the University community in general.
INTERVIEWER: What did you hear about that story from any feedback that you got from staff and students?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah, so I haven't received any direct feedback. But going to the PAC story, I have received feedback either from just community members [CHUCKLES] who actually pay attention to what's going on in the Board of Regents' process and the election process, just because it is not a super well-known process. It's kind of complicated and long.
And so I've heard more people talking about the selection process than I think usually happens, which is nice. Because I think a lot of eyes have been on the Board this semester, especially after Sviggum's comments and, recently, President Gabel's position on the Securian board of directors.
INTERVIEWER: Right. As a matter of fact, we just had the chance to talk to DFL Senator John Marty on MPR this morning about a letter he sent to President Gabel, asking her to step down from the Securian financial board of directors. Not sure what will happen with that.
But he did mention that there could be legislative action around that. That's another big story. What are you both seeing here in your crystal balls, [CHUCKLES] Isabelle, when it comes to maybe some of the big stories you might be covering on campus this spring semester?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: I think that, yeah, a lot of the turnover in terms of some faculty members from different departments, that's-- a lot of people are retiring, and how the University is dealing with that. I think that's going to be a big story. But yeah, I guess I'm not too sure about it just yet.
INTERVIEWER: Really? So you're anticipating, or at least the school's anticipating, a lot of retirements. Will that be an issue going forward with classes?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: At least in the Theater Department, I know that there's a few retirements. And yeah, that will probably affect a lot of classes. So we'll see how that goes.
INTERVIEWER: OK. Maya, what do you think might be making big news?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Well, I mean, hopefully people will [CHUCKLES] be able to pay attention to the regent elections because there's four seats up. And one of them is the current chair, Regent Powell. I think a lot of eyes will be on that.
A lot of things have happened in terms of pay on campus, whether it was student wages or union raises. And I think that has been a topic that has been in-- all eyes have been on that for a while.
I think that a bunch of other groups on campus are also going to fight for more wage increases, including grad students, who I did some reporting on that, where they are looking for a better pay rate-- a pay raise. And especially other faculty members that aren't officially faculty, like P&A staff. So that will be interesting, as well.
INTERVIEWER: What's their rate of pay right now? Do you know?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: So for grad students, in a lot of departments, they're capped at 20 hours. And so I think the minimum-- this might not be a correct number. But it's somewhere around $16,000 or $17,000.
And they're technically part time. But in the hours they put in, it's full time. And it's hard for them to have other jobs. And so a lot of times, they're living off that for a year. And the wages that the unions are paying isn't up to standard with the price of living in the Cities, especially now during inflation.
INTERVIEWER: So that'll be a story moving forward. So I'm curious from where both you sit, how would you rate the health of campus media? Both of you are working for online publications. At UMD, of course, you have an actual hard copy. Is that right, Isabelle?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Yes, we do. I would say our hard copy gets a lot more traction than our online publication. We do have a newsletter. But yeah, I would say the hard copy is more effective in reaching out to student bodies. I know some people don't even know that we have an online publication. But our print does get a fair amount of traction.
INTERVIEWER: Do you feel The Bark is pretty healthy in terms of a news outlet?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: I think that we are small. And we're a small organization. So we're still trying to manage just getting bigger spaces and just more connections on campus. But we're small but mighty. I think we do really nice work.
And I'm really proud of the stories that we've covered. I think that this past semester was really successful in covering the climate of the student body, more so than in years prior when we've had maybe a little less, just, support from different places on campus.
INTERVIEWER: Maya, I know some folks were kind of disappointed when they realized that The Daily was no longer hard copy. That was done kind of quietly, I guess. I don't want to put you on the spot. But what's the health of The Minnesota Daily nowadays?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Very interesting topics. When the pandemic hit, all of The Daily's work went remote and since then, honestly, I think made The Daily--
[AUDIO OUT]
INTERVIEWER: Oh, goodness. I think you're-- oh, hang on, Maya. We're going to call you back here. It looks like you're kind of breaking up on us here, which is-- technology sometimes does not work as well as it should here.
So Maya Marchel Hoff is with us, along with Isabelle Hopewell. And both are student reporters. Maya, by the way, is with The Minnesota Daily. We were talking to her. And also, Isabelle Hopewell has been with us. She's the managing editor of The Bark at the University of Minnesota Duluth.
We're trying to get Maya back on the line here. We'll see if this actually happens. Isabelle, sorry about keeping you waiting as we're trying to get ahold of Maya here. [CHUCKLES]
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: You're fine. No worries.
INTERVIEWER: So we're still trying to dial Maya here. So, Isabelle, do you plan to make journalism your career?
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Well, I am kind of in a transition right now. I'm graduating in the spring, so in May. And also, I'm a double major in the Theater Department. And actually, I finished the entirety of my journalism degree about last spring. I did an internship. Oh, I think she might be back. Do I hear--
INTERVIEWER: Maya, are you with us?
CREW: One sec, OK?
INTERVIEWER: Oh, OK. Maya, are you with us?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah, sorry about that. [INAUDIBLE].
INTERVIEWER: Hi, Maya. Sorry. No, no, no, it's our fault. It's our technology. I was just asking you about the move. You were talking about going digital, going online during the pandemic for The Daily. And we'll pick it up there. What's the story?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yeah, so hearing about The Bark at UMD, it's kind of interesting because we're kind of seeing the opposite at [INAUDIBLE]. So right now, we don't print like we used to, which kind of made former members of The Daily or people that were formerly in media kind of sad that we weren't printing, which, I mean, yeah, The Daily's been around for over 100 years. And that was an important part of our legacy.
But even when we print special edition copies, [CHUCKLES] people pick them up. But they kind of gather dust. And I think that our digital presence and online presence is our greatest strength because every day, a newsletter is sent out into every student and faculty inbox if they want it. And that's just a really easy way for people to engage, especially students, because obviously we're more digital and physical.
And so I think that we've seen great engagement with that. And I think that rumors about The Daily quietly kind of getting lost are pretty much just rumors. The Daily's stronger than ever.
INTERVIEWER: Maya, thank you for that. By the way, Maya, are you graduating soon?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yes, I am.
INTERVIEWER: And you will you be in journalism?
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Yes, I hope to be. That is the goal. [CHUCKLES]
INTERVIEWER: OK, good. We were just talking to Isabelle when we were trying to get you back on the line. And she's making a bit of a transition. Before you go, Isabelle, please tell folks what you plan to do.
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: [CHUCKLES] Well, I don't really know. I have a-- we'll see. [CHUCKLES] Things are still working out. But I'm hoping to get back to Minneapolis.
INTERVIEWER: All right. You both are great. Thank you for doing this. I appreciate your time. Both are excellent journalists. And best of luck to you moving forward.
ISABELLE HOPEWELL: Thank you.
MAYA MARCHEL HOFF: Thank you so much.
INTERVIEWER: Maya Marchel Hoff has been with us. She's with The Minnesota Daily. Isabelle Hopewell is with us, too. She's at the University of Minnesota Duluth at The Bark.
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