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SPECIAL SECTION: State Conference 2008 CONFIRMED SPEAKERS Investigative reporting Mark Greenblatt KHOU-TV 11News investigative reporter Mark Greenblatt specializes in exposing injustices and telling stories that prompt positive change. Mark has received five Edward R. Murrow Awards for his investigative reports, including the 2006 national Edward R. Murrow Award for the best investigative report in America - a story which uncovered hundreds of Harris County schools that had never had a fire code inspection. He recently won the 2008 National Headliner Award for the best consumer investigation in America - one which prompted multiple national recalls of unsafe toys. Freelancing 101 Cynthia Greenwood Greenwood is an editor, critic, and performing arts journalist based in Houston. She is the author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Shakespeare's Plays, released this month by Penguin/Alpha Books. Since 1998, she has published in-depth arts reports, profiles, and reviews for such publications as The New York Times, Playbill, San Francisco Chronicle, Andante, Houston Chronicle, Houston Press, Dallas Morning News, Dallas Observer, Opera Cues, San Antonio Express-News, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Cite (a quarterly architecture and design journal), ArtsHouston and others. She writes about theatre, books, opera, and stagecraft. She also produces a government-sponsored online magazine for a Houston-based engineering society. She is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors. Immigration on Every Beat Monica Rhor Rhor covers immigration/ethnic affairs in the Houston bureau of the Associated Press. Before joining AP in October 2006, she worked as an investigative reporter for the Orange County Register, covering criminal justice issues. She also covered immigration at the Boston Globe and criminal justice at the Miami Herald. Monica spent 10 years at the Philadelphia Inquirer, where her beats included Immigration/Ethnic Affairs, Urban Neighborhoods and Education. She is bilingual. (She was born in Riobamba, Ecuador and came to the United States with her family when she was three). She was raised in New Jersey and graduated from New York University with a BA in journalism. Monica is a member of NAHJ, NABJ and IRE, and has worked as an editor/mentor on student newspaper projects at NAHJ, NABJ and UNITY conventions. Councilman Gordon J. Quan Quan has devoted his practice to the area of Immigration and Nationality Law. Quan has provided testimony and advice on immigration legislation to Congress and the White House. He has successfully argued cases before the Board of Immigration Appeals and the Board of Alien Labor Certification Appeals. Quan is a frequent speaker on immigration matters and has been quoted by the New York Times, The Christian Science Monitor, the Houston Chronicle and many others. Quan was elected to the Houston City Council and was instrumental in creating the Mayor's Office for Immigration and Refugee Affairs as well as a series of day-labor sites around the city. Mizanur Rahman Rahman grew up in Detroit and graduated from the Journalism Institute for Minorities at Wayne State University in Detroit. He worked as a reporter for the Oakland Press, a suburban Detroit daily, then worked for The Virginian-Pilot as an assistant city editor starting in 1998. He took a job at the Dallas Morning News in 2003 as a Metro editor. He moved to Houston in May 2007 to work as the immigration editor at the Houston Chronicle. He served as an Ethics Fellow at Poynter in 2002. Broadcast Storytelling Greg Groogan Groogan has been honored with more than 70 journalism awards, including 10 Lone Star Emmys. A regional winner of the Edward R. Murrow award for writing, he is also a recipient of the Casey Medal for Meritiorious Journalism for his coverage of children with special needs. As FOX 26's Special Projects Reporter, Groogan's primary focus has turned to inspiring stories of the human spirit. It is the kind of work he loves best. In addition to his Emmys, Greg has garnered 16 Associated Press Awards and other honors. WHAT TO DO WHILE YOU'RE IN HOUSTON Here are some things to check out while you're in town, compliments of Houston member Angie Joe... Korean Art and Culture Initiative, Museum of Fine Arts 1001 Bissonnet www.mfah.org 713-639-7300 The long-term agreement between the MFAH and the National Museum of Korea includes the loan of Korean National Treasures and serves as the foundation of the Korean Art and Culture Initiative, at the heart of which is the establishment of a larger, permanent MFAH gallery for Korean art of the highest aesthetic and cultural significance. International Festival Downtown Houston www.ifest.org 713-654-8808 The 37th annual festival brings the history and traditions of Africa to downtown Houston. The outdoor event is held the weekends of April 19-20 and April 26-27, 2008. Hours are: Sat 12 p.m. - 10 p.m.; Sun 12 p.m. - 8 p.m. Early bird tickets for $8.50 may be purchased via the web site until April 16. The Gershwins' An American in Paris (World Premiere), Alley Theatre 615 Texas www.alleytheatre.org 713-228-8421 An all-singing, all-dancing, all-comedy musical that gives a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the legendary movie musical of the 1950s. When the crazy but loveable French music hall star Michel Gerard fails to show up for filming of the movie, comic hysteria results as the Hollywood crew collides with their Parisian colleagues in a musical filled with glamour, laughter and romance. Billy Budd, Houston Grand Opera at Wortham Center 501 Texas www.houstongrandopera.org 713-228-OPERA Accusations of mutiny and an accidental death leave sailor Billy Budd in danger of hanging for murder. In English with English surtitles. 7:30 p.m. APR 25 and MAY 2 and 9. 2:00 p.m. APR 27 and MAY 4. Genome: The Secret of How Life Works, Health Museum 1515 Hermann Drive www.thehealthmuseum.org 713-521-1515 Have you ever wondered what you have in common with a potato? How genes affect growth and aging, or what your future children might look like? Stop wondering and start exploring! Scientists have mapped the human genome - a person's entire set of genes. Genes are the secret codes, or recipes that make us who we are and that influence who we might become. La Boheme, Houston Grand Opera at Wortham Center 501 Texas www.houstongrandopera.org 713-228-OPERA Love and heartbreak meet on the Left Bank of Paris, as four young bohemians test the boundaries of friendship and art. In Italian with English surtitles. 7:30 p.m. APR 11, 17, 19, 23, 26 and MAY 1. 2:00 p.m. MAY 3. Worldfest Houston International Film and Video Festival, AMC Studio 30 Dunvale @ Westheimer www.worldfest.org 713-965-9955 40th Annual WorldFest will screen just 55-60 feature film premieres, with a complete and absolute emphasis on the American and International Independent feature films and with a continuing annual spotlight on an individual country and its films. Space Center Houston 1601 NASA Parkway (25 miles south of downtown) www.spacecenter.org 281-244-2100 Space Center Houston is a place where people can experience space -- from its dramatic history and exciting present to its compelling future. Space Center Houston is the only place on Earth that gives guests an out-of-this-world journey through human adventures into space. WHERE TO STAY Houston members put a list of hotels to check out while you're in town. Note: Prices change, so please reserve early. DOWNTOWN Doubletree Hotel Houston Downtown $102/night 400 Dallas 866-226-6223 The Lancaster Hotel $127/night 701 Texas St. 800-804-6835 Hilton Houston Americas $109/night 1600 Lamar St. 800-916-4614 GALLERIA AREA Courtyard by Marriott Houston by the Galleria $109/night 2900 Sage Rd. 800-804-6835 La Quinta Inn Houston Greenway Plaza $79/night 4015 Southwest Freeway 713-623-4750 Extended Stay America Houston - Galleria $80-90/night 4701 Westheimer Rd. 800-804-6835

STATE CONFERENCE FOR JOURNALISTS Network with fellow journalists, get great story ideas and talk about how to navigate change in the industry with the Texas Chapter of the Asian American Journalists Association. Who: Professional and student journalists When: Saturday, April 26 Time: 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Where: University of Houston Communications building, Houston What: AAJA Texas is teaming up to offer great workshops from Investigative Reporters and Editors and the Lone Star Emmy Group. Workshops include: Transferable Skills During Change, Investigative Journalism, the New Media Journalist's Backpack, Immigration on Every Beat, and Freelancing 101. One-on-One critiques will be available on a limited basis. Please register early to ensure a spot. State Conference 2008 Flyer State Conference 2008 Agenda Directions to UH Campus Map of UH Campus Early-bird registrations include lunch and must be postmarked by Thursday, April 24, 5 p.m. $25 for professionals ($30 on-site) $20 for AAJA members ($25 on-site) $10 for students ($15 on-site) - includes free student-networking, pizza-dinner event To register: Send registration form to AAJA-Texas treasurer Alison Cox and mail checks to Alison Cox, c/o Edelman Public Relations, 3131 Turtle Creek Blvd., Suite 500, Dallas, Texas 75219. Stay the weekend and join us for a no-host dim sum brunch Sunday, April 27, 11 a.m. at Fung's Kitchen at 7320 Southwest Freeway #115, Houston (www.fungskitchen.com). Please RSVP to Suzanne Marta. MEDIA ACCESS PANEL FOR COMMUNITY GROUPS What: A free Media Access Panel for community groups presented by the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) Texas chapter When: Saturday, April 26 Time: 9:30 a.m. to 12 noon Where: Southern News Group, 11122 Bellaire Blvd. at Wilcrest, Houston Purpose: Representatives from broadcast, print and ethnic media will offer suggestions on ways for community members to get better coverage in the media. Participants will gain an understanding of how news outlets make decisions about what to cover and will learn how to best position their organization to get the coverage it seeks. An Asian American Journalist Association produced booklet or a CD with a media access guide that walks users through everything from how to hold a news conference and how to write a press release will be distributed at the event. Panelists: Suzanne Marta (moderator), Dallas Morning News; Barry Warner, Saigon Texas News; Soofia Aleem, KHCW; Lou Keels, Interfaith Ministries; Mark Evangelista, Houston Chronicle Media Access Panel Flyer To register: The program is free and open to non-profit and community organizations who RSVP by emailing Angie Joe, or calling her at 832-275-8840.

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