COLLEGE PARK, Md. — January 10, 2005 — Growth in immigration and in the number of public preschool initiatives are reshaping U.S. classrooms and communities. What are the implications? A Journalism Fellowship in Child and Family Policy will better equip your newsroom to cover these and related issues.
Apply by March 5 for our competitive fellowships, based at the University of Maryland. Up to 14 fellows will take part in two expenses-paid seminars near Washington, D.C. — and get a $500 stipend. Select fellows will receive another $7,000 to support independent projects.
Cross-training will encompass three primary areas:
– The education of young children. What forces are pushing public preschool initiatives in at least 40 states? Why? At what cost? To find out, fellows will meet with experts on human development, school readiness, curricula, public and private investment, and policymaking.
– Children of immigrants. This is the fastest-growing segment of the country’s under-18 population, with one in five kids claiming a foreign-born parent. Briefings will explore changing demographics, including their impact on families, communities, public services, business, governance and more.
– Measures of child and family well-being. An assortment of data — on vital statistics, health education, economics, housing — can give journalists insights into living conditions and life prospects. What’s measured? What’s missing? What effects do such data have on public opinion and policy?
Two intensive seminars — Sept. 28-Oct. 1 and Dec. 4-7 — will connect fellows with the best data, programs and practices in these focus areas. Fellows also will have some time for independent research.
Who should apply? Journalists who cover early childhood, education and/or minority populations are prime candidates. So are those who report on or oversee family, health and social services beats. But child/family issues merit attention from throughout the newsroom. Shifts in demographics, housing and land use touch metro, suburban and state desks. Youth athletics, academics and health intersect on the sports beat. Marketing practices, health coverage and family leave involve business. And all of these issues are fair game for features and opinion writers.
Details about our fellowship program — supported by the Foundation for Child Development, a private philanthropy in New York — appear on our Web site at www.child-family.umd.edu. Or, contact director Carol Guensburg at 301/405-7200 or cguensburg@jmail.umd.edu.
Journalism Fellowships in Child and Family Policy
University of Maryland’s Philip Merrill College of Journalism
1117 Journalism Building
College Park, Md. 20742-7111
301/405-7200
www.child-family.umd.edu
