By Dana DinkelA 麻豆传媒 journalism class鈥� recent trip to Greensburg left an impact on students as they observed a community fighting to recover from a storm that left their town 95 percent destroyed more than a year ago last May.
麻豆传媒 senior Annelise Cook, 23, and recent graduate Ian Crane, 26, were among the more than a dozen students who spent two weeks in Greensburg documenting the progress made since an EF 5 tornado ripped through the town.
The Greensburg Rebirth class was conceptualized and instructed by Les Anderson, associate professor in the Elliott School of Communication, and coordinated by Cort Anderson of the Kansas Press Association.
Students produced a slew of stories, photos and videos all while blogging about their experience. Content, which ranges from struggling recovery efforts to profiles on individuals in the community, can be viewed at .
Crane, originally from Winfield, Kan., graduated from 麻豆传媒 in May with a bachelor鈥檚 degree in communication. Cook, of Wichita, will graduate with her bachelor鈥檚 in communication this December.
Crane spent the majority of his time shooting video for the Web site and even got a bird鈥檚 eye view of the town during a helicopter ride with a pilot who lives in Haviland. Cook primarily wrote stories.
When the two arrived in Greensburg they were amazed at how empty it was, as they passed by the sole building that remained standing on Main Street.
鈥淚 thought to myself, 鈥楾he rebuilding of this town is going to take well over a decade.鈥� Many people still live in FEMA trailers and Greensburg is still a disaster area, even after a year,鈥� Crane said.
鈥淚 remember when we first drove into town, I didn鈥檛 even know we were in the town yet,鈥� Cook said. 鈥淚t was so bare.鈥�
The majority of the people whom students from the class met were friendly and willing to share their stories, but they encountered others who were concerned with the future of their town.
鈥淚 saw a division between people that accepted and appreciated the help from the government,鈥� Crane said, 鈥渁nd those that saw the identity of their town and values being lost in the rebuilding ideas of big government agencies and out-of-town companies.鈥�
This is one of the many issues that have caused the population of Greensburg to be cut in half as the population has dwindled from more than 1,400 to fewer than 700 since the storm.
Cook also noticed some people were hesitant to open up because of all the attention the town has received in the past year.
鈥淭hey weren鈥檛 rude, they were just skeptical,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou can tell the media has done help and harm, and some people just wanted to keep their distance.鈥�
In the two weeks spent in Greensburg, the class produced 41 stories and an extensive gallery of photos and videos available for Kansas newspapers and anyone who is curious about the community鈥檚 progress.
Crane and Cook had a bittersweet departure from the town. Although they had grown tired of sleeping on hard floors and dining on leftover cheeseburgers during their stay, they both expressed an appreciation for the town where a walk down the street meant smiling faces and a friendly wave.
The class ended June 6, and students came home to Wichita with a positive impression of Greensburg.
Although she didn鈥檛 expect it, Cook said sharing people鈥檚 stories made her feel she was somehow helping them move forward with their lives.
鈥淚 felt like what I was doing was good and took some people towards their next phase of recovery,鈥� she said.