Many organizations across the U.S. host workshops for young journalists. One of the oldest workshops in the country is the annual Minority Journalism Workshop sponsored by the Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists. During the 2014 workshop held from Sept. 13 to Oct. 11, students learned basic skills, such as interviewing and storytelling, and focused on one of four areas, print/digital, broadcast/TV, public relations or photography. Students also produced content related to their interest area while working with experienced journalists.

“We pride our chapter, the Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists, on making sure students get a real experience in what it’s like to work in a newsroom,” said Aja Williams, president of the GSLABJ. “They’re writing, shooting video, doing stand-ups and going through the process like a real journalist.”

The 2014 workshop’s theme was “The New Millennial Generation: Examining health, education, environment, diversity and economics.” The theme helps to focus and unify the students’ work, which is available online.

The workshop was held on five consecutive Saturdays. The weekly schedule varied in order to expose students to a range of journalism experiences, but students always started the day with a quiz on the breaking news from the previous week. Then they might have spent the rest of the day at a discussion panel or writing and editing a story on deadline. Plans for next year’s workshop are already under way. No journalism experience is necessary to apply. For more information, email [email protected].

SchoolJournalism.org lists workshops for students and for teachers. Email information about your workshop to [email protected], and we will spread the word! Need help planning a workshop? Contact Le Anne Wiseman at [email protected].