Every year, print and electronic news majors have labored through this boot camp of journalistic drills that rewarded those who had curiosity, self discipline, and a grasp of the English language and punished those who didn't.

One in five students repeated the course, and less than 7 percent of the more than 2,100 students who passed through its portals made an A.

Now, after 32 years, the era of Price's copyediting course has come to an end. Another faculty member will begin teaching the subject this fall so that Price, who will retire in 2002, can focus full attention on his final year of service as interim dean of the College of Journalism and Mass Communications. Price

"I know the course is a beast--it's designed to be," Price said. "But it has to be rigorous because that's the way the news business works. It's a grind, and there are constant deadlines and demands for accuracy."

Besides, Price said, few people truly extend themselves. "If you set the standards high, students will rise to it, and if you set them low, they won't go any further. I want to push the students to the point where they think they can't go any further, and they find that they can."

Prizing such excellence is part of a deeper passion for the profession of journalism, he said. "I know this sounds corny, but what these students want to do is an extremely important calling, like being a teacher or a preacher or a policeman," Price said. "Journalists provide information people need to make decisions, and that information must be well edited."

So will he miss teaching the course? "I won't miss grading the labs--I calculated the other day that I have graded more than 40,000 of them since I first began," he said.

And will students miss Price's copyediting course? Well, those who think it will be easier with a new instructor should delete the thought. Doug Fisher, an instructor with 25 years of professional background in radio, TV, and print news, shares Price's passion for rigor.

Said Price: "I can't think of another person I'd rather see teaching this thing." Quite an endorsement from the man who taught copyediting for 32 years.