First big project
It’s been months since I’ve updated my Web site, but it’s for a valid reason. A couple weeks after I started as health reporter at The News-Review, the local hospital closed its Behavioral Health Unit. This unit treated people from around the state with mental illnesses.
The closure of the unit sparked a lot of discussion around town. Our editors decided to take a deeper look into the issues surrounding mental illness in our county, and statewide, as our year-end project. Being the health reporter, I was involved in the planning process from the beginning.
This project has been time consuming from the beginning, but I feel so lucky to have been involved in such a big enterprise project only three months into my career. I have learned so much about the mental health system, the community and about individuals who struggle with mental illness daily.
After dozens of brainstorming sessions, myself and three other reporters pulled together several stories about the state of mental health in our community and state. The four-day series had seven stories, several info boxes full of statistics and a couple of editorials. We have received several comments and e-mails about the series from people around the county and the state.
Here are the links to all of the stories. The series, System in Stress, began Dec. 26 and can also be found on our Web site: www.newsreview.info.
Day 1:
-”Gaps in local care a concern,” By Marissa Harshman
-”State struggles to meet needs of mentally ill,” By Marissa Harshman
Day 2:
-”Hard Time,” By Chelsea Duncan, cops and courts reporter
-”Helping kids cope,” By Marissa Harshman
-Editorial: “Gaps in mental health“
Day 3:
-”Mental trauma, illness alter life in profound ways for local vets,” By Teresa Williams, education reporter
Day 4:
-”Fomer BHU therapists offer free counseling for uninsured,” By Chris Gray, social services reporter
-”Fowler House gives chronically ill a place to go and keep going,” By Chris Gray, social services reporter
I’m planning on doing some more blogging about the series and the obstacles we faced while working on it. Stay tuned!
Who is Marissa?
Marissa is a journalist. A hard-news girl with an eye for color.
Welcome to MarissaHarshman.com! I’m a 24-year-old recent college grad. I was born in Fort Bragg, N.C. My family moved back to Vancouver, Wash. when I was a toddler, and I lived there for 16 years until I went away to college. In June 2007, I graduated from Western Washington University, in Bellingham, Wash. I completed my Bachelor of Arts degree with a journalism major and political science minor. In July 2007 I completed a six-week journalism program at the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Fla. The fellowship taught me so much. I was introduced to new media techniques to deliver a story, such as audio, video and soundslides. I’ve learned to embrace the new technology that surrounds each of us, and I’m excited to apply what I’ve learned.
Since September 2007, I’ve worked at The News-Review in Roseburg, Ore. I cover health and fitness and the northern part of Douglas County, which includes six cities ranging in size from 200 to 7,500 people. I’ve also spent some of my time covering the Oregon National Guard’s Charlie Company based in Roseburg, which has been a great experience. I’m having a great time here and learning quite a bit myself and my profession.
In July 2009, I began covering the public safety and courts beat in addition to health and fitness. The new beat has proved to be challenging but always keeps me busy on and my toes.
I plan to use this site to display my writing and videos, and also to start a dialogue about the issues I face daily while trying to write and report. Keep checking in for updates!
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