As doom and gloom abound, I try to keep my spirits high

Reality is setting in.

I'm starting to come to grips with the prospect of not finding a journalism job before May. It's so difficult right now and print is taking a big hit.

Despite my persistent checking of every job board imaginable, I've only come up with a handful of prospects – most of which are unpaid internships. I have no qualms working for free and I'm lucky to have a supportive father who will let me stay at home and pay for things if that is the case. It's tough though because many of these internships don't accept students who aren't enrolled in classes.

What is a smart, driven, talented journalism graduate to do in today's economy? I honestly do not have the answer. I'm keeping my spirits high and hoping the stars align. But I'm not expecting anything to fall in my lap.

I know it all boils down to my determination. I'm willing to go just about anywhere, although it would be difficult to leave the state where I've lived for 22 years.

The AJC announced this morning that it would be cutting its full-time news staff by 30 percent – that's 230 positions – and reducing its circulation area by 2 percent. It is the paper in Georgia and one of the largest in the Southeast, and it is struggling to stay afloat in the economy's choppy waters.

And it leaves me wondering, what's next?

Furloughs for Georgia professors?

The AJC reported today that University System of Georgia Chancellor Erroll B. Davis told a House budget panel that furloughs may happen for University System employees if drastic spending cuts have to be made quickly. This comes after Davis' statement in January that he was "philosophically opposed" to furloughs.

I found this interesting because in a Jan. 30 article I wrote for The Red & Black, I referenced that very comment and even asked UGA President Michael Adams what he thought of furloughs. At the end of the article, I wrote:

The Board of Regents has no intentions of furloughing higher education employees in the state, Chancellor Erroll B. Davis said to the Georgia General Assembly Appropriations Committee last week. Furloughs place employees on a temporary non-pay and non-duty status during times of low funding.

"It's pretty difficult to furlough professors," Adams said. "We basically have a contract with [students] to teach whatever four or five classes [they] have registered for. We have hired faculty on contract to teach those courses."

"Those are things that unless the Regents were to declare a financial exigency, we have no option but to honor," he said.

© Copyright 2009 The Red and Black

I'm interested to see where this goes. I don't think it's enough to call for a follow-up story, but if more cuts are made soon and the prospect of furloughs grows, then I will suggest running one. I believe the state legislature ends its session next month, so the next budget - and its cuts - should be finalized around then.

I really like working the administration beat. Even though crime was interesting in a voyeuristic kind of way, nothing beats covering pertinent topics that a lot of readers care about.

HOPE book money not in immediate jeopardy

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Wednesday that HOPE scholars' book money may be in jeopardy because state officials predicted that HOPE and pre-K programs might exceed lottery revenues for the fiscal 2010 year. HOPE is funded by the Georgia lottery and many students at UGA depend on it to pay for their tuition and to help with the cost of textbooks.

University President Michael Adams spoke to the media in a briefing the next day and answered questions about the possibility of students losing their HOPE book allowance. But during the briefing the Georgia House of Representatives passed legislation that will allow students to continue to receive their book allowance, at least for now.

Click here to continue reading and find out what else President Adams had to say on issues pertinent to UGA.