The Senior Semester capstone journalism is an immersive five-day-a-week experience designed to provide students with “real world” newsroom experience. Inside the converged newsroom and television studio, students report, produce and direct two daily news shows (Carolina News), write and edit stories for the Senior Semester lab web publication (this website), produce stories, photographs and informational graphics for the print publication (The Carolina Reporter) and engage in social media through Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other platforms.
The program is taught by instructors with extensive experience in television, newspapers, graphics, photography and digital journalism.
Greg Brannon
The newest member of the Senior Semester team, Greg Brannon brings decades of experience in television news and sports entertainment. He joined the faculty in 2017 after nearly 20 years as the Carolina Panthers television and digital media executive producer, and is a go-to expert for Senior Semester students headed for careers in sports news, sports commentating and sports play-by-play.
Contact him: jgbranno@mailbox.sc.edu
Carolyn Click
Carolyn Click has three decades of experience in covering news, politics and features for United Press International, The Roanoke Time & World-News and The State. She came to Senior Semester full-time in 2016 as a multimedia instructor, working with students to report on Statehouse issues, breaking news and features for the Senior Semester website. She works with broadcast and multimedia students on editing and grammar as well.
Contact her: clickmc@mailbox.sc.edu
Scott Farrand
After 20 years working for The State newspaper in Columbia as its designer editor and visual journalist, Scott Farrand now brings his expertise in photography, data visualization and publication design to the Senior Semester. For the last 17 years, he has guided Senior Semester students in devising new ways to tell a story through informational graphics, arresting photos and innovative multimedia techniques.
Contact him: farrand@mailbox.sc.edu
Rick Peterson
Rick Peterson is a veteran of 30 years in the television news business and has taught in USC’s broadcast Senior Semester for two decades. He continues to work as a story producer for the national news desk at NBC News in Charlotte, selecting nationally breaking stories for use around the country. Students know he understands how a newsroom works and what a national news story looks like.
Contact him: rspeter@mailbox.sc.edu
Bertram Rantin
Bertram Rantin’s mass communications experience includes three decades as a reporter, editor and columnist for The State newspaper. He currently is a communications specialist with Palmetto Health-USC Medical Group and the public relations coordinator for the South Carolina State Fair. Rantin joins the Senior Semester team this fall as a writing coach after teaching mass communications writing, reporting and editing the past 18 years.
Contact him: rantin@mailbox.sc.edu