Local journalism teacher Terry Cassreino has been recognized by the Dow Jones News Fund as a 2015 Dow Jones News Fund Special Recognition Adviser.

Cassreino, a teacher at St. Joseph Catholic School in Madison, said he is one of only nine teachers to receive this award.

“That’s pretty amazing that the Dow Jones News Fund would pick a teacher from Mississippi at a relatively small school,” he said. “Now we have a nationally recognized high school journalism program. I think I’m probably the only teacher here who was recognized with only three years of teaching. I’m proud of that, but I couldn’t do it without the students, and the students buying in to what I’m doing.”

Cassreino brings years of experience to his teaching position.

“Before teaching, I spent more than 24 years as a newspaper reporter, columnist and editor at The Sun Herald, The Meridian Star, The Madison County Journal and the Hattiesburg American,” Cassreino said. “After leaving the business in 2006, I was communications director for the Mississippi Democratic Party for four years, communications director for the Housing Authority of New Orleans for about eight months and the president of my own private consulting company, Cassreino Consulting LLC.”

Through all that time, Cassreino said he knew in the back of his mind he would like to teach.

“The more I played around with that, in 2010 the timing just worked out,” he said. “I decided to enroll in the Teach Mississippi alt route. I believe teaching is a calling and I felt that calling. I’ve always wanted to help kids and work with kids.”

In addition to teaching, Cassreino is also the adviser for the student newspaper and yearbook. Cassreino said his previous work experience helps tremendously in those things.

“We’ve had some dramatic success with the number of awards my students have taken home based on the work they’ve done,” he said. “I think a lot of that is because they’re benefiting from someone who has been in the business who can help them hone their writing and photography skills. When you’re able to get someone from the real world into the classroom to help the students it benefits the students.”

Cassreino said his journalism classes do more good for students than just teaching them how to be journalists. He said they also learn important life skills.

“I tell the parents and my students, when they leave my class they’re well rounded: they can write, research, self discipline and design, interview people, think on their feet and speak in public,” he said. “It’s more than just journalism, photography, TV and radio. It’s life skills, and it’s life skills they can take with them when they go.”

Cassreino said his next plan is for his students to get into broadcast.

“Our goal is in the second quarter, after football season is over to start fledging an actual broadcast program where we do a newscast ever week,” he said. “Every year I’ve been able to add another element. It’s amazing we’ve been able to have the success we’ve had, and we’ve really built this program from the bottom up.”

Cassreino holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and radio and television from the University of Mississippi and is a currently pursuing a master’s degree from the University of Dayton.