1.0The News Journalhttps://qa.thenewsjournal.netrich600338<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="TQKHyiQTwQ"><a href="https://qa.thenewsjournal.net/from-kipa-to-kpa/">From KIPA to KPA</a></blockquote><iframe sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" src="https://qa.thenewsjournal.net/from-kipa-to-kpa/embed/#?secret=TQKHyiQTwQ" width="600" height="338" title="“From KIPA to KPA” — The News Journal" data-secret="TQKHyiQTwQ" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" class="wp-embedded-content"></iframe><script type="text/javascript"> /* <![CDATA[ */ /*! This file is auto-generated */ !function(d,l){"use strict";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&"undefined"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!/[^a-zA-Z0-9]/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),c=new RegExp("^https?:$","i"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display="none";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute("style"),"height"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):"link"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute("src")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener("message",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll("iframe.wp-embedded-content"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute("data-secret"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+="#?secret="+t,e.setAttribute("data-secret",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:"ready",secret:t},"*")},!1)))}(window,document); /* ]]> */ </script> https://qa.thenewsjournal.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/JenniferPerkins.jpg220220I almost never became a journalist.  The first time I attended a Kentucky Intercollegiate Press Association (KIPA) Conference was the summer before my second year at Eastern Kentucky University in 2017.  I had just been hired on as the opinion’s editor at The Eastern Progress, which is the student media outlet at EKU.  KIPA is essentially a Kentucky Press Association Conference for college students. They don’t have a fancy awards banquet at the end, but they do have sessions where you can learn about different areas or topics of interest in journalism.  I remember being completely and utterly overwhelmed after my first KIPA session.  The first session I remember attending was a man who kept talking about ‘enterprise’ stories.  I had no clue what those were. Honestly, I had no concept of what the different story types were in journalism, so it wasn’t like I could even piece together a definition using context clues.  That first KIPA conference almost did me in. I was so panicked internally that I almost backed out of a career in journalism right then and there.  For those of you who don’t know how I got into journalism, I essentially chose the career on a whim.  I had a lot of college credits from high school, and I needed to know what major I wanted before going to college since I didn’t have time to explore different paths while taking general education courses.  The summer before I left for EKU, I randomly chose journalism as my major because people had told me I was good at writing, which I guess makes sense because my mom is an English teacher.  I had scored well on advanced placement written exams in high school, so it seemed like a logical choice when I needed to decide on a college major.  That first year at EKU I HATED journalism, but alas, I decided to apply for a position at The Eastern Progress at the end of my first year.  I figured, ‘let me see what a newsroom is like, and then if I still hate it, I can at least say I gave it a shot.’ When I attended the KIPA conference, I had still not been in the newsroom working on stories or doing layout, so when I found myself lost and confused at the conference, I thought then and there, ‘Welp … this isn’t going to end well.’  I left that conference wearing a fake smile that made my cheeks hurt and dread for the impending doom that was surely to be my next semester.  You could say that I was pleasantly surprised when I finally stepped into the newsroom at The Eastern Progress and everything clicked.  I fell in love with journalism, and each semester I learned more and grew into the writer I am today.  Ironically, my first award at the professional Kentucky Press Association Conference was for Best Enterprise or Analytical story in 2018. About a year and a half after that first KIPA conference, I attended the professional conference and won an award in a category that I couldn’t even define when I first started my journey to becoming a journalist. Last Friday, I attended my third Kentucky KPA conference, and it was my first time attending as a professional journalist. I was so blessed and honored to bring home five first place awards, but I think the award that is the most special is the new first place best enterprise story plaque that I now have hanging on the wall in my office.  It has finally come full circle. From my first KIPA conference to my first professional KPA conference, I have gone from being so overwhelmed that I wanted to quit to loving it so much I can’t see myself doing anything else.