Page Options

	Print This Page
	Email This Page

Jeff Sigmund
Communications Manager
(571) 366-1088
Jeff.Sigmund@naa.org

May 13, 2008

Arlington, Va. – The Newspaper Association of America Foundation has selected the recipients of the 2008 NAA Foundation Teen Fellowships, giving eight young journalists the opportunity to provide insight on how newspapers can improve efforts to reach a younger audience and encourage lifelong readership. The fellows, chosen for outstanding contributions to the teen sections of their local newspapers, will travel to Phoenix to participate in the NAA Foundation’s 2008 Young Reader Seminar, held from May 15-18 at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa.

The fellows will arrive as the Foundation prepares to formally release “High School Journalism Matters,” a study that offers evidence that participating in high school journalism programs has a positive impact on standardized test performance, as well as high school and college GPAs.

“With the latest Foundation research demonstrating the academic benefits that come with high school journalism programs, encouraging young journalists who want to expand the reach of newspapers has taken on unprecedented importance,” said Margaret Vassilikos, senior vice president and treasurer of the NAA Foundation. “The recipients of this year’s teen fellowships will provide critical insight for those in attendance seeking to reach younger audiences.”

This is the 12th year that the NAA Foundation will award fellowships to exceptional writers, photographers and illustrators who regularly contribute to their newspaper’s youth content. The conference, to be held as the Foundation celebrates its 48th year supporting programs to enhance student achievement, will provide participants with a truly interactive learning experience. On May 15, Richard Weiss, founder of WeissWrite LLC and an award-winning journalist with three decades of experience at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and other U.S. newspapers, will lead an all-day educational seminar for the fellows. On May 17, the fellows will share their thoughts with adult conference attendees on how youth sections, Newspaper in Education (NIE) programs and newspapers as a whole can improve on continuing efforts to reach younger readers.

The 2008 NAA Foundation Teen Fellowship recipients are:

• Elliot Butay, Tulsa World
• Gwendolyn Collier, Reading (Pa.) Eagle
• Amy Friedman, The Roanoke (Va.) Times
• Mercedes Machado, South Florida Sun-Sentinel, Fort Lauderdale
• Lily Reed, The Evening Sun, Hanover, Pa.
• Jackie Slack, Tribune Chronicle, Warren, Ohio
• Katlin Stinespring, The Charleston (W.Va.) Gazette
• Conor Wigert, The Spokesman-Review, Spokane

Sponsors of the 2008 NAA Foundation Teen Fellows are: Bruce Bradley, chairman, NAA Foundation Board of Trustees and president/publishing group, Landmark Communications Inc.; Hearst Newspapers; McClatchy Interactive; Scripps; Scripps Howard Foundation

The NAA Foundation strives to develop engaged and literate citizens in our diverse society through investment in and support of programs designed to enhance student achievement through newspaper readership and appreciation of the First Amendment. Information about the Foundation and its programs may be found at www.naafoundation.org.