Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Washington To Give Lecture In Journalism In South Africa

Lyndia Giles Washington, assistant professor of journalism and advisor of student publications at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, will spend a month lecturing in journalism in South Africa this summer.

Washington, who is originally from Prescott, will leave in mid-May to work at Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa, for the summer quarter. While there she will lecture on news writing and editing and will be co-editor of the Rhodes Journalism Review.

During the time in South Africa, Washington also plans to do research on student publications and will make presentations to various businesses in the Grahamstown and Port Elizabeth area on various issues relating to media relations. She will be the guest of the journalism department.

"I am so excited about lecturing at Rhodes," Washington said. "The language and word usage difference will be expecially challenging in teaching writing and editing, but I'm getting familiar with some of the major differences and the students and faculty there and I will learn from each other.

"I will have plenty to share with my students when I return."

Dr. Guy Berger, head of the journalism and media studies department at Rhodes, said he feels fortunate to have Washington come to the university. "I met Mrs. Washington about two years ago when we were fellows at the Poynter Institute for Media Studies," he said. "I was impressed with her knowledge of journalism and I have been working since then to get her to come to Rhodes. I feel she will be an excellent role model for all our students."

In addition to being a fellow at the Poynter Institute, Washington was a fellow last summer for the America Press Institute for Excellence in Journalism.

She has professional experience as a newspaper reporter, in goverment public relations and in television news. She is an experienced journalism educator, having taught journalism in settings ranging from middle school in a Montessori environment to the university level.

An avid traveler, she has visited more than 20 countries. She developed the Journalism Abroad program at UAPB and has guest lectured throughout the country at various universities, at professional journalism conferences and in the private sector.

Washington completed her undergraduate work at Baylor University and received a masters of fine arts in mass communication at Southern Methodist University. She has done post graduate work in educational administration at the University of North Texas and East Texas State University at Texarkana (now Texas A&M Univewrsity at Texarkana).

She and her husband, Kenneth, live in Red Oak, Texas. He is a computer information systems coordinator for the Dallas Area Rapid Transit.

She is the daughter of Helen Miller of Prescott and the late C.G. and Rachel Moncrief.