Former Director of the Journalism Program and Associate Professor of Communication Jeanne Criswell retired in May saying goodbye to decades of advising The Reflector. We on staff thank her for her guidance, knowledge and service throughout the years and wish her well in retirement.
Criswell has always been a strong advocate for student journalism, often encouraging students in and outside of the communication department to join and become staff writers. She pushed us to do our best work, grow as individuals and take on more responsibility through editor positions, and she was always there to lend a helping hand when, as journalism often goes, things got stressful. Advising The Reflector, she received the National Distinguished Adviser Award from the College Media Association in 2022. Additionally, she played a central role in helping The Reflector become the Indiana Collegiate Press Association’s Best Division II Newspaper two years in a row. She was our biggest cheerleader, often showing off our award certificates during class and sharing in our excitement. We celebrate Jeanne.
In addition to advising, she spearheaded the journalism program, and there was rarely a semester that staffers took only some of her courses. Meetings in her office, decorated top to bottom with the achievements of those she guided along with night classes, mornings and evenings in the newsroom were well spent and will be very missed — no matter how exhausting the news cycle. We on The Reflector, past and present, have been shaped into the professionals we are through her dedication to journalism and to her students, who she still affectionately calls her die-hard journalists. We are sad to see her go and hope for a happy, relaxing retirement. And, as she would often say, “Ace this puppy,” Jeanne!
