Position Title:
Part-time Editor in Residence
Compensation:
25000
Department:
School of Journalism & Stratgc Comm
Start Date:
12/01/2026
About this opportunity:
The School of Journalism and Strategic Communication is a supportive community of faculty, staff, and students driven to pursue knowledge and share truth that spurs progress and adds value to our world. Our faculty are expert researchers and practitioners in journalism and strategic communication dedicated to outfitting students with the expertise, confidence, and connections to lead our fields.
Cardinal Media in the School of Journalism at Ball State University seeks an experienced journalist to serve as Editor in Residence for Cardinal News Corps, a selective reporting program covering campus and Muncie Delaware County community news.
The Editor in Residence will provide the newsroom-level editorial leadership that helps student reporters develop into accurate, persistent, deadline-driven journalists. This role is designed for a working editor who can assign, edit, coach, and publish real reporting in a modern newsroom environment.
What you'll do and what you'll bring:
Position Summary
The Editor in Residence leads all editorial work for Cardinal News Corps. They set coverage priorities; assign and shape stories; edit reporting for accuracy, clarity, fairness, and news value; and mentor student reporters through the full reporting process.
Cardinal News Corps publishes news under the Cardinal Media brand, with coverage that may include governance, university administration, public safety, elections, business, development, and education. The program does not produce features, sports, brand work, or client-facing strategic communication.
The editor will work in person at Cardinal Media approximately one to two days per week and conduct additional editing, mentoring, and story development remotely.
Responsibilities
- Direct the editorial vision, standards, assignments, and story selection for Cardinal News Corps.
- Develop a focused coverage plan for campus and Muncie Delaware County news.
- Assign, coach, and edit student reporters on deadline.
- Guide students through reporting, source development, records requests, verification, interview preparation, story structure, revision, and publication.
- Edit all reporter output for accuracy, fairness, clarity, legal and ethical soundness, and news judgment.
- Build a consistent editorial workflow that reflects contemporary digital newsroom practice.
- Help student journalists develop professional habits: initiative, responsiveness, persistence, accuracy, deadline discipline, and accountability.
- Coordinate with Cardinal Media’s director on student scheduling, day-to-day management, and operational needs.
- Establish a practical coordination protocol with Ball State Daily News leadership to distinguish coverage, bylines, and workflows while respecting the Daily News’s full editorial independence.
- Help define and refine the program’s initial beats, reporting priorities, and measures of success.
- Contribute to documenting the program’s results and readiness for a potential future curricular model.
Minimum Qualifications:
- Master’s degree by date of employment
- At least 3 years of experience as a journalist, editor, or newsroom leader, with a strong record of reporting and/news editing.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Demonstrated ability to assign, edit, and improve reporting on public institutions, government, education, public safety, elections, business, development, or related community issues.
- Strong command of journalistic ethics, fact-checking, sourcing, public-records reporting, libel awareness, and corrections practices.
- Experience mentoring or teaching emerging reporters, interns, or student journalists.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to give direct, constructive editorial feedback.
- Comfort working in a hybrid, digitally mediated newsroom and managing editorial workflows remotely.
- Ability to work independently while collaborating closely with Cardinal Media leadership.
How to apply:
For inquiries, please contact: Johnny Sparks at [email protected].
Please follow upload instructions to attach all of the required supporting documents listed below: NOTE: Do not use the Autofill feature for resume:
- Resume/CV
- Cover letter optional
Applications must be received by November 28, 2026, at 12:01 AM.
