Even after he retired, people from across the country would call Louis E. Ingelhart for advice on legal issues dealing with the First Amendment and student press rights, his son James Ingelhart said. He even testified in a few cases in support of freedom for student journalists.
"That was his great passion and the thing he turned every conversation to," said Earl Conn, a former Ball State journalism professor and close friend of Ingelhart.
Ingelhart died Sunday night, leaving behind his legacy of fighting for First Amendment rights of student journalists.
Gene Policinski, executive director of the First Amendment Center and one of Ingelhart's former students, said Ingelhart was outspoken against critics who said students shouldn't be given complete freedom.
"I think Lou was, in his own way, one of the most influential journalism educators of the 20th century," Policinski said.
He said Ingelhart stressed that the only way to learn about a free press is to have a free press.
Mark Popovich, Ball State professor of journalism and one of Ingelhart's former students, said he "instilled in all of us the importance of the First Amendment and how important it was to our society."
Another former student, James Yunker, said there will never be another Louis Ingelhart.
"Those of us in student publications in the '60s could always count on his support, advice and counsel during those turbulent years," Yunker wrote in an e-mail.
Ingelhart played an instrumental role in helping form the Student Press Law Center, which advocates student freedom of press rights and gives students legal assistance and information for free. He was on the board of directors for about 20 years.
Mark Goodman, executive director of the SPLC, said Ingelhart was thinking about student press freedom long before others.
As one of the organization's founding members, Ingelhart fought aggressively to make sure it had the money needed to stay alive. When the SPLC almost shut down in the 1980s because of a lack of funding, Ingelhart got investors to keep it open, Goodman said.
Goodman said Ingelhart was "more a mentor to me than anyone."
The SPLC will be creating an internship for journalism students in Ingelhart's name to honor his longtime commitment to student journalist freedom, Goodman said.
David Adams, who worked with Ingelhart in the College Media Advisers organization, said Ingelhart was respected across the country for his First Amendment work.
Because of this dedication, CMA created the Louis Ingelhart First Amendment Award for college advisers.
"No one in the history of this country has done as much to support the free press rights of student journalists as Louie Ingelhart," Goodman said.
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