Author Archives: Barb Miller

Open call for 2024 proposals for high school journalism and environmental science collaborations

To encourage collaboration between high school journalism and environmental science classes, we invite teachers to submit proposals for innovative class projects in which journalism students will report about field research by environmental science students. Our principal goals are:

  • to help young prospective journalists better understand and explain to the public how science is done
  • to help environmental science students learn to use the media to explain their work to the public.
  • To promote environmental and science journalism.

The Knight Center intends to award 1-year grants of $2,000 to up to 3 high schools: $1,000 to the journalism program and $1,000 to the environmental science program for equipment, software or scholarships. In addition, the Knight Center will pair each school with a professional journalist to serve as a mentor to participating students and teachers.

Here are the details:

  • Your proposal must include a project description (750 words maximum), the names and contact information for a partnering journalism and environmental science teacher from the same high school; grade levels of participating classes; and the estimated number of students in the participating classes. A proposal form is attached.
  • Your projects must generate student-produced news or feature stories with visuals (photos and/or graphics) for print, online, audio and/or video that your school will disseminate. The Knight Center will also disseminate these stories to the public through our website, and some stories may be posted on Great Lakes Echo (greatlakesecho.org), the center’s award-winning online regional environmental news service.
  • Grantees must comply with MSU financial reporting procedures.
  • Grantees (students, teachers and professional mentors) will be invited to a one-day workshop at MSU in Fall 2025 or Spring 2026.
  • Application deadline: November 15, 2024. Awards will be announced by December 15, 2024. Projects should begin Spring 2025 and be completed with a progress report October 1, 2025 and a final report June 15, 2026.
  • Read about some successful past grantees at https://knightcenter.jrn.msu.edu/2019/03/06/four-high-schools-win-journalism-environmental-science-grants-from-the-knight-center/

Send along a Grant Application Cover Sheet with the following information:

  • School name and address
  • Participating journalism teacher (name, email, phone)
  • Participating environmental science teacher (name, email, phone)
  • Project description (750 words maximum): What do you intend to do (scientific research
    and journalistic coverage) and how? What are your goals for the project? How will you
    assess accomplishments?
  • Titles and grade levels of participating classes:
    • Journalism:
    • Environmental science
  • Name, title, email and phone of administrator authorizing submission of the proposal:

Submit by November 15 to Barb Miller at mille384@msu.edu

If you have questions, email Eric Freedman at freedma5@msu.edu

Knight Center to host speaker on energy and politics

David Spence

David Spence

David Spence, a professor of energy regulation at the University of Texas Austin, will speak on “The Misunderstood Politics of the U.S. Energy Transition” on Thursday, Sept. 5, from noon until 1.p.m.

Spence’s free public presentation will take place in Room 191 of the Communication Arts & Sciences Building.

He will discuss his new book, Climate of Contempt: How to Rescue the U.S. Energy Transition from Voter Partisanship (Columbia University Press).

“The problem is not that elected politicians are unresponsive to voters, but that changes in electoral competition and the information environment have made politicians more responsive to the most negatively partisan voters, who in turn drive public (mis)understanding of the clean energy transition as a political challenge,” Spence says.

Earlier in the day he will talk with students in the Environmental Reporting class.

 

Fall opportunities: Environmental journalism jobs and scholarships for MSU journalism students.

The MSU Knight Center’s initiative to diversify reporters and reporting on environmental challenges offers significant scholarships, training and jobs that benefit emerging and diverse student journalists in any field.

 One focus of the program is on building expertise with paid opportunities to cover environmental threats that particularly harm marginalized communities. We’re looking for students who contribute to diversity to report on how environmental decisions threaten social justice, civil rights, the health and values of diverse communities.

The expertise of journalists is their lived experience. When it is diverse, better reporting happens and better decisions are made about environmental threats.

The program does not require environmental experience.

Right now the program is soliciting candidates for two programs:

  • A three-credit scholarship for three MSU journalism students to enroll in an MSU environmental reporting classes  (JRN 472) in Fall 2024. These classes can meet graduation requirements. They are worth $1,800.
  • A paid job reporting for the center’s award-winning Great Lakes Echo news service. Gain reporting experience, training and a paycheck. Get published by GreatLakesEcho.org and other major news providers.

The deadline for both programs is September 10.

Interested? Before midnight September 10, 2024, send to MSU Knight Center at mille384@msu.edu:

  • a resume.
  • copies of or links to up to any three stories you’ve produced for publication or class.
  • contact information for one reference and how you know that person.
  • about 250 words on how your background and lived experience brings diversity to environmental reporting. You may be culturally or racially diverse or you may list evidence of experience or interest in diversity or suggest environmental story ideas that exhibit such interest.

These programs may help you better qualify for more opportunities in Spring 2025, including internships and conference travel. The deadlines and details will be announced after the first of the year. These opportunities include:

  • Interview for paid summer environmental reporting internships exclusively provided to MSU students who contribute to diversity. They are offered by Bridge Michigan, Detroit Public Television, Michigan Public Radio, Circle of Blue and Planet Detroit
  • At least two students contributing to diversity will receive fully funded trips to the weeklong Society of Environmental Journalists annual conference next spring in Arizona.

While not required, participation in the environmental classes or as a Great Lakes Echo reporter will better qualify you for the internships and the conference.

More about this program here. Questions: Eric Freedman at freedma5@msu.edu

 

Knight Center environmental reporting intern reflects on her experience

Jada Vasser

Jada Vasser is an MSU journalism major with a minor in documentary production and a Planet Detroit 2024 summer intern, focusing on health and environmental impacts on the Black community. Her internship is supported by the Knight Center for Environmental Journalism with a grant from the Great Lakes Integrated Sciences and Assessment/National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration at the University of Michigan.

Continue reading