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Here's a peek behind the curtain: I've been spying on you.

Well, not you specifically, but the output of your student newspapers.

Today I'm unveiling a new feature in this newsletter: my list of the best stories produced by student media in the previous week.

You can read more about it in today's Student Press Report. TL;DR: I vibe-coded an RSS tool and have been reading hundreds of student journalism headlines over the past several months. (Check here to see if you’re on my list — if not, email me and I can tell you how to turn on your feed.)

I have been blown away by the depth, breadth and quality of the day-to-day work of this nation’s collegiate journalists, and I'll start sharing my favorite pieces with you every week. See the first list below!

Why do this work? (Hint: It is not for the big bucks.) Because I think it's critical that burgeoning student journalists see what's possible. By showcasing the work of outstanding student writers and producers across the country, I hope to inspire students, advisers and professors with great journalism and replicable story ideas.

I’ll know I’m doing my job if you find yourself forwarding this email to your students and saying, “Look what they did at University X Paper Z!”

I hope that going forward, you enjoy this list as much as I enjoy putting it together each week.

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SNworks was built inside a real newsroom — The State News at Michigan State University — because journalists deserve tools made by people who actually get it.

We're a full-service website development and content management platform designed for the pace and ambition of modern newsrooms. Intuitive publishing tools. Modern, mobile-first design. Fast, secure, honest service from people who live and breathe student media.

Your newsroom deserves better. We deliver it. Find out more at mysnworks.com

So sweet! UCLA standout Lauren Betts realizes the student journalist questioning her during Final Four media days is a former high school classmate.

The New Tactics of TikTok Journalism: Viral Explainers, Trends and News Formats from 10 Newsrooms is a white paper from the Reynolds Journalism Institute that’s worth examining if your newsroom is thinking about its TikTok strategy.

The Daily Tar Heel at UNC apparently faced some pretty extreme backlash and apologized for its April Fool's edition. FIRE let its disapproval be known about a university investigation.

The University of Alabama launched two new magazines last week to replace those shuttered by the administration.

If you're beginning to sense a theme in this newsletter, you are right. This week's Student Press Report is a first-person column in which I outline how I used AI to research student bylines from all over the country.

I hope my new ongoing list of the best student media in the country, judged by a panel of one — me — inspires you and your students about what’s possible.

Read on!

Each week I search for great collegiate journalism by scanning the RSS feeds of student newspapers from across the country. These are my favorites from the last week — here’s the full archive. If you’ve got a great student media story, email it to me at [email protected].

'It's Something That Keeps Me Up At Night': The Burdens Undocumented Smithies Face (The Sophian, Smith College)

What are the tunnels? Exploring the world beneath Wellesley (The Wellesley News, Wellesley College)

The life of a Stanford tree (The Stanford Daily, Stanford University)

Timeline: Enforcement of BU signage policy on pride flags, protest signs (The Daily Free Press, Boston University)

Funding the future: A look into some of UT's most influential donors (The Daily Texan, the University of Texas at Austin)

Inside UTEP's Special Collections: Preserving the Stories of El Paso and the Border (The Prospector, the University of Texas at El Paso)

'Dad, I think I might have got drafted': Drew Schock and his unconventional journey to Michigan — and beyond (The Michigan Daily, University of Michigan)

Flock transparency data disappears from the Columbia Police Department (The Maneater, University of Missouri)

Legal name vs. chosen name: Queer students' fight to be called who they are at BGSU (BG Falcon Media, Bowling Green State University)

Rock Defaced After Being Painted for Transgender Visibility Day, Campus Reacts (The Albion Pleiad, Albion College)

Deadline alert! This is your last day to apply for the Scripps Howard Fund’s Student Media Sustainability Program, led by yours truly. Applications are due today before midnight!

Thanks for reading, and let me know what you think about the new Best of Student Media feature by hitting reply to this email or sending me feedback to [email protected]!

Have a great week out there — finals are just a few weeks away!