After a hiatus of more than a year, the student journalists of Johnson County Community College (JCCC) have a student-run media center dedicated to telling stories about the campus community, sparking conversations about issues that affect students’ lives, and amplifying student voices.
Now called The Messenger, the Johnson County community can find campus news directly from JCCC students through their digital media website. The student journalists contribute new stories, videos, and other content throughout the fall and spring semesters. Student staff work in a converged newsroom and produce multimedia content, including written stories, photographs, videos, and a weekly podcast – “The Messenger Mic’d Up at JCCC.”
Hands-on learning opportunities
In addition to being an open forum for students, the website provides hands-on learning opportunities for those interested in pursuing journalism as a career. According to Michael Humphrey, Faculty Advisor for The Messenger, student-run newspapers are very similar to professional papers, and he has high expectations for their team.
“If you ask a professional journalist about their student media experience,” Humphrey says, “you will very likely hear them talk about it as one of the most important steps in their career. The really great thing is that this is also true for so many people who did not go into journalism. It’s a transformative experience for many students.”
The Messenger editors are paid student employees. The Messenger has nine student editors, including Editor-in-Chief Elizabeth Taylor, sports editor, opinion and life editor, photo editor, and podcast leader. Taylor helped to hire and select the editorial board for the Spring 2025 semester. She will also help recruit and select the next editor-in-chief for the 2025-2026 academic year later this spring.
While many of the students on The Messenger staff are communications and journalism majors, several study science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) related subjects to prepare for careers in industrial trades and beyond.
For JCCC students who are not full-time student editors, there are other opportunities to get involved with The Messenger – and get paid. Currently, they have between 20 and 25 freelance student journalists who are paid by the pieces of reporting they create.
Faculty leadership
The Messenger is overseen by Faculty Advisor Michael Humphrey, Gretchen Thum, chair of JCCC’s Journalism and Media Communications department, and a community advisory board comprised of both professors from each JCCC academic division and local journalists from the Kansas City metro region. Humphrey has a background in community journalism, previously wrote for Forbes business magazine, and most recently oversaw the student newspaper at Colorado State University – The Rocky Mountain Collegian. Humphrey joined JCCC at the start of the 2024 academic year.
With his diverse background as both a journalist and instructor, Humphrey knows how a newspaper can create a sense of belonging in a community. “As JCCC is a commuter campus, and most of the students are enrolled here for two years or less, my goal for The Messenger is to share campus news and stories that provide students with insights and information to feel both included and informed during their time here,” said Humphrey.
Keep up with The Messenger
The Messenger plans to publish new stories each day, and the site will have all new content on Wednesdays. Community members can keep up by visiting their digital site or following The Messenger on Instagram, X, and YouTube. New episodes of “The Messenger Mic’d Up” will also be available on Fridays wherever you listen to podcasts.
