Des Moines, Iowa, is home to Meredith Corporation, three newspapers, an alt-weekly—and since 2001, an active Ed2010 chapter. Co-hostesses Renee Freeman-Mulvihill and Katie Nugent have worked hard to organize events, forge relationships with local editors and connect with college students. And in 2008, Des Moines truly stood out among Ed’s 19 chapters—in fact, they were named the first-ever Ed2010 City Chapter of the Year.
“Picking the chapter of the year was a tough decision—we had three or four top contenders,” says City Chapters Director Emily Hendricks Turnier. “But the thing that put Des Moines on top was its consistency.”
The chapter held an event an impressive nine of out 12 months in 2008. They had several happy hours, and in April, held a networking event and portfolio review in conjunction with the Drake University Ed on Campus chapter. The gathering helped students prepare to apply for internships while allowing editors to meet potential interns. Des Moines also had a unique event in October about producing videos to complement magazine editorial content. “We invited two online video producers to present, which resulted in a well-received roundtable discussion of about 15 members,” says Nugent, who came on as co-hostess in September of this year.
An average of 10 to 15 people come to each Des Moines event, but the hostesses hope to see new faces in 2009 by continuing their partnership with Drake’s chapter and hosting speakers on topics such as podcasts, working with freelancers, branding and more, Nugent says.
So if you’re in central Iowa, be sure to meet up with Ed. “It’s nice to see different faces at the book reviews, speakers, happy hours and other get-togethers,” Nugent says. To learn more about the chapter, e-mail Renee and Katie at desmoines@ed2010.com.
