Favorite/Funniest Memories:

He only offered Intro to News Reporting at 8 a.m. (the only 8 a.m. classes I ever took at Drake)... On the coldest morning of the year for one of those 8 a.m. classes, you would walk in, take off your coat and be greeted with his announcement that today was deadline reporting day so you had to go back into the cold and find news and file your story by 10 a.m. -Susan Stocum Senior (JO '92) Senior Communications Consultant in the Field Communications Department at the Principal Financial Group

Life Lessons:

No matter how much you know, there are always wonderfully exciting new horizons to conquer and learn from. When so many "seasoned newspaper types" scoffed at the Internet and its impact, Professor Woodward studied it, embraced it, and taught it. When others lambasted the Internet, Professor Woodward forced many to concede the Internet might actually be a rebirth of sorts for print journalism. -Jill (Lingwall) Farmer (JO'91)

I'll always remember Woodward from our senior capstone class. There were only five of us and some days we would just sit around and pick Woodward's brain. I didn't realize until I hit law school just how much I learned from those discussions. Ultimately, Woodward will always stand for my personal belief that, given the chance, an Iowa farm kid can change the world— or at least the way we learn about it. -Adrienne McFarland (JO '02)

To me, Woodward is a true "journalist's journalist" and he instilled in me - in many of us - this obligation to meet deadlines, strive for accuracy and defend the First Amendment. For eight years, I was a reporter with The AP in Des Moines, and when I'd run into Woodward, I so wanted to show off to him what I had become (mostly to make up for my barely-a-B-average performance in his classes!). So, when I left the news business for Corporate America, I kept the move a secret from Woodward until we were seated together at an alumni banquet. I thought he would jokingly chastise me for "selling out." Instead, he jokingly chastised me for being so apologetic about it and said, "Isn't it wonderful how many different paths life can take with an education?" -Susan Stocum (JO '92)

To be credible and that there will always be news. He also taught me to believe in myself and my talents. -Katy Karger (JO ’03)

All things having to do with loving words and loving writing take me back to my days as a young mother attending classes in Meredith Hall, sitting in a stark classroom, amazed by a man with unruly facial hair and a passion for his business. I will never forget him. -Amy Knapp

Office and Appearance:

It was very comforting to see Prof. Woodward in the years after graduation because he looked exactly the same as he did when I sat with him at lunch during Freshman orientation 16 years ago. His appearance has not changed (for
better or for worse) for 20 years. -Jill (Lingwall) Farmer (JO '91)

I will personally donate a plaque and piece of plexiglass to cover Woodward's office door, if need be. That is a piece of Americana deserving protection if ever I saw one. Maybe if all else fails we can turn it into a monarch sanctuary? -Adrienne McFarland (JO '02)

His office had out-of-control newspaper stacks. At my SJMC orientation, I asked then Dean Cheney which one Woodward was, and he said "The one who looks like a college professor." -Susan Stocum (JO '92)

Retirement:

When I was working as a cub TV reporter in Des Moines, I had the privilege of meeting Bob's wife. Her wonderful disposition and passion for children were evident during the handful of encounters I had with her. What a wonderful couple. I hope the Woodwards enjoy a long, meaningful life together... full of lively discussions, shared ideas and wonderful memories. -Jill (Lingwall) Farmer (JO '91)

It saddens me that others won't have the "Woodward experience." I couldn't imagine being a Drake journalism student and not having him as a professor. But, he deserves some time off for good behavior. He should sleep in a day or two as well. No more 5 a.m. mornings at Meredith. -Katy Karger (Internet News ’03)

Of course I wish him the best. I hope he leaves knowing how many lives he touched, how contagious his passion for news was, how aware he made so many of us of the role of the media in the world, and how he will always be, to me, a journalist's journalist. -Susan Stocum (JO ’02)