Just don’t ask her to pick her favorite.
At The Standard – Missouri State’s student-run newspaper – she’s dug deep with articles on opioid overdoses and blood donation restrictions.
For radio, she loved covering Drury University’s Stone Chapel and its organist.
While on a missionary trip with her family in West Africa for the 2018-19 school year, she expanded her storytelling with a photo series on evangelical worship (.pdf).
It was a big change.
“(Photography) was something I was afraid of when I came to college, and I would always tell people, ‘I’m not a photographer. Bring a photographer with me,’” Teague said. “When I went to Africa, I bought a Canon (camera) and I was like, ‘Get over it.’ Now, I love (photography).”
Those are just a few of the stories she’s done as a journalism major at Missouri State.
Teague served as editor-in-chief of The Standard for the 2019-20 school year. She applied for the position via Skype while living in Africa.
Teague also did three internships while in school.
She started a fourth internship at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch days after graduating from Missouri State. Her byline appeared on the front page in less than a week.
Teague has also shown she can adapt.
A big achievement
Teague accomplished something no previous editor-in-chief at The Standard could do.
She’s helped move the award-winning publication – which began in 1912 – to a digital-first format.
This means stories are published online right away instead of waiting for the Tuesday print edition. While print still pays the bills with its ad revenue, digital gives The Standard a daily presence.
“Digital first is really based on immediacy. I think it’s a blessing,” Teague said. “Now, journalists can be so much more efficient and quick at getting news to our audiences.”
Necessity brought on the digital-first move.
Changing the coverage model
In mid-March, due to coronavirus concerns, Missouri State halted in-person classes and all events. Many students moved back home.
What does the student newspaper cover when campus becomes a ghost town?
“We had to really push enterprise (story) pitching. Pitching that’s more based on data and things you can work on remotely,” she said. “Less, ‘I have to go to this event on Wednesday.’ We moved away from that and more into, ‘This is how the coronavirus is affecting people who have to work in fast food’ and things like that.”
“We’re covering the same things other local outlets are covering and going to school at the same time while living through a pandemic.”
Over the next two months, The Standard produced daily content for its audience.
Editors and reporters did stories on MSU and the Springfield community, just like the pros.
Interviews were done by Zoom, email or phone, instead of press conferences and face-to-face.
“It taught me how strong, mentally, our staff and editors are, and how strong I am,” Teague said. “All these things were happening, and it pushed us to our limit, but we got through it. By getting through it, it taught myself that I can get through anything and it taught our (staff) that as well.”
MAJOR UPDATE FOR MSU STUDENTS: An inside source has told me President Smart met with the Faculty Senate Thursday afternoon “and told us all classes will be online only for at least the first two weeks after spring break.”
— Sarah Teague (@sarah_k_teague) March 13, 2020
Standard editors are budgeting plenty of relevant COVID-19 coverage for over spring break for the Missouri State University community. Stay informed and follow @TheStandard_MSU. We will do our best to keep you updated for university news as this virus spreads nationwide.
— Sarah Teague (@sarah_k_teague) March 13, 2020
Doing journalism at MSU
If not for a journalism class she took her senior year of high school, Teague said she would have likely focused on an English degree.
She attended Glendale High School in Springfield and wanted to save money on her college education. MSU was an easy choice.
Teague credited several faculty in the media, journalism and film department for helping her learn journalism’s craft.
Faculty like Jack Dimond and Dr. Mary Jane Pardue offered support and advice.
Others, like Leonard Horton and Dr. Andy Cline, showed her the dynamics of broadcast- and documentary-style journalism.
Said Teague: “I’m really thankful for all of those people who helped me along the way.”