Spring ‘22 NYCJ students learn what it takes to make it in New York, studying and interning in the city as the pandemic eases

Students taking part in the NYC Semester in Journalism program have spent the past two months covering important local and national news stories as the world slowly emerges from COVID-19. 

This semester’s students followed in the footsteps of past NYCJ classes by participating in the unique semester-long, off-campus study program operated by the McCandlish Phillips Journalism Institute at The King’s College in NYC.

After two years when internships were remote, many are now hybrid while classes at King’s are back in person. 

“I would absolutely recommend NYCJ to anybody who thinks journalism may be a career they pursue seriously,” said Banks Halvorson, who hails from Covenant College in Georgia and is currently interning at the Brooklyn Paper.

“The experience of working with newspapers in the media capital of America is priceless, and the classes you take and people you meet are incredible. I was excited about this program, but it has blown all my expectations out of the water.”  

Students taking part in the 14th NYCJ cohort that chose to make New York their home this semester. The students are enrolled in classes, including History of Journalism and New York City with Prof. Clemente Lisi and Entrepreneurial Journalism with Prof. Paul Glader. Under Glader’s guidance, the students work 20 hours per week in a New York newsroom, earning six academic credits and pursuing bylines.

Paige Taylor, a student from Abilene Christian University in Texas, is currently an intern at Bold TV. She said her internship and courses — in addition to living in New York City — has made this semester a unique experience.  

“Living and working in New York is much more fast paced than I anticipated,” she added, “but I adapted very quickly and have actually grown to love the hustle and bustle.” 

Esther Wickham, a King’s student who is taking part in NYCJ this spring, said her internship at amNewYork and living in the city has given her a chance to gain valuable experience needed for her to get a job once she graduates. 

“I would definitely recommend the program! It grants you the opportunity that the current college you attend can't give you,” she said. “Living in New York City during your college years while pursuing a career in journalism with highly skilled and talented professors that have been in the journalism field for decades is a dream many have.” 

Camila da Silva, a student who attends the Sao Paulo-based Mackenzie Presbyterian University in Brazil, is spending the semester as an intern with Religion Unplugged. She said her favorite class was History of Journalism, a course that looks at coverage of various events in U.S. history, including the 9/11 attacks, and the beliefs, values and character that goes with working in a New York newsroom.

“It brings together what we can learn from the past and perspectives for building modern journalism,” she said. 

Both Taylor and Wickham are taking Religion Reporting this semester, giving students yet another chance to get bylines since the advanced reporting class works closely with ReligionUnplugged.com. The non-profit religion news website, which has offices at TKC, is part of The Media Project. 

“We have gone really in depth on reporting and getting outside of our comfort zone when it comes to reporting on topics we are not very familiar with,” Taylor said. “I have learned so much about reporting.” 

The New York City Semester program partners with more than 41 universities and colleges across the U.S. and the world. Students can apply to join the program for a future semester by clicking here. 

The McCandlish Phillips Journalism Institute welcomes the NYCJ class of Fall 2021

NEW YORK — The 13th class of the NYC Semester in Journalism arrived in late August from across the United States and one from Brazil. The class of 13 students represent nine colleges and universities. 

The students will participate in a unique semester-long, off-campus study program operated by the McCandlish Phillips Journalism Institute at The King’s College in New York. They will spend the semester living in student housing at King’s, where they will engage in a journalism-intensive semester, including taking classes such as Entrepreneurial Journalism with Prof. Paul Glader, a former reporter at The Wall Street Journal and founder of VettNews.com.   

Under the guidance of both Glader and Prof. Clemente Lisi, a former editor at the New York Post, students will earn six academic credits pursuing at least one byline or video credit per week for their portfolios. 

The New York City Semester program partners with 41 colleges and universities across the nation and globe. Apply to become a partner school by contacting Paul Glader at pglader@tkc.edu. Apply to join us as a student for a future semester by clicking here. 

Here is a roster of the NYCJ Fall 2021 class: 

Leocciano Callao 

A native of The Philippines, Leocciano hails from Providence Christian College in Pasadena, Calif. He is interning at the Brooklyn Paper this semester.   
 

Anna Carlson

Anna attends Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego. She previously worked for The Point Weekly, Point Loma’s student media outlet. She is interning at Newsweek.  

Julia Findley 

A digital communication and design manager, Findey is a student at William Jessup University in Rocklin, Calif. She is interning at Bold TV.  

Alyssa Flores 

Alyssa also attends William Jessup, studying marketing and communications. She is interning at Bold TV.    

Haeven Gibbons 

A journalism major and Spanish minor, Gibbons is a student at Texas Christian University in Dallas. She previously interned at The Media Project, which is based at King’s, and is currently an intern at amNewYork.  

Ashley Grams

Ashley is a broadcast journalism major at Biola University outside Los Angeles. She is interning at NBC New York.



Nyckole Holguin 

Nyckole is a student at St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas, studying broadcast journalism. She is interning at amNewYork.  

Alyse Messmer 

Alyse is a student at Cal Baptist University located near Los Angeles. She is interning at Newsweek.   

Katelyn Quisenberry

A student who attends Biola University outside Los Angeles, Katelyn is interning at Bold TV.   

Sofia Kioko Saleem Khan 

Sofia hails from Brazil and attends Mackenzie Presbyterian University in Sao Paulo. She is interning at Religion Unplugged, an Award-winning non-profit news website. 
 

Rebecca Schwind

Rebecca is a student at Biola University outside Los Angeles and has experience at The Chimes, the school’s student-run newspaper. She is interning at Newsweek.  

Jada Williamson 

Jada is a student at Lee University in Cleveland, Tenn. She is interning at the Brooklyn Paper.  

Kayla Wong

Kayla attends Point Loma Nazarene University. She is interning at the Queens Courier. 

The McCandlish Phillips Journalism Institute is a home of journalism-related programs and majors at The King’s College in NYC. In addition to its academic programs, it hosts events and provides resources to its students, alums, friends and donors. The institute is named in the honor of the legendary reporter at The New York Times who was an exemplar of standards, ethics and style in the craft of journalism and was a kind friend and mentor to those of us who knew him.

Q & A with Alumna and New York Time's Fellow Reporter Sydney Franklin

By Paul Glader

Sydney Franklin is a reporter covering design, architecture and real estate in the fellowship program at The New York Times this year. Earlier in her career, she attended Milligan College in Tennessee, which is a partner school to the NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ) program. When she was an undergraduate at Milligan, she spent a semester at the Washington Journalism Center, which closed in 2015 to merge with NYCJ and reboot in NYC. Sydney is one of the more than 300 alumni of the two programs from 41 partner schools of NYCJ, a program that helps bring students from diverse backgrounds and geographies to learn and intern for a semester in the nation's largest and most important media market. We caught up with Sydney to hear more about her journey to The Times and into her niche covering design, architecture and real estate.

Tell us about your fellowship at the NYT and what beat you are covering

I'm a reporter on the Real Estate desk. The fellowship program aligns fellows with the desks most suited to their backgrounds. For me, real estate made the most sense after spending several years in design media covering architecture and cities. I consider the beat to be the missing link in my tool kit in terms of writing about the built environment, so I’m here trying to learn as much as I can about how selling and buying real estate affects the socioeconomic landscape of the city.

Photo submitted by Sydney Franklin

There are 35 of us total in the fellowship class and we all are having wildly different experiences at The Times (think photography fellows jetting off on Air Force One vs. me calling real estate CEOs from my kitchen). We'll be here for a year then the next class will take over. Unfortunately, until there is a vaccine, I won't have the pleasure of working at The New York Times in-person… inside one of the coolest buildings in the city and of course, one designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano...my dream!

Please explain your journey to Milligan College and Syracuse and into your coverage area now at the New York Times?

Photo taken by Lauren Turner

After taking an undergraduate course on the intersection of media, the arts and religion, I decided I wanted to become an arts journalist. I knew Syracuse's Newhouse School had the first program in the country dedicated to this specialty, so I made it my mission to get in. Once there, I narrowed down my focus even further to architecture and design reporting, studying mostly in the School of Architecture to begin my education in this very dense, complicated field. My program had previously graduated alumni doing big work in New York, some of them in communications at major architecture firms and others serving as editors at the top design magazines. I followed in their footsteps in some ways but broke out into mainstream news this past year with the fellowship at NYT. I've always wanted to find my way back to newspaper reporting so I could use my depth of knowledge on cities to help tell the kinds of stories that locals need to know about the place they live...and in a pandemic where interest rates on mortgages and apartment rents have dipped to record lows, there are so many important real estate stories to share out there.

How did your semester at WJC help you in your career journey? How important was it for you to study in a major city like DC or NYC?

My semester at WJC in Washington, D.C. was the foundation for everything I'm doing today. It sparked my love of major cities and my interest in politics at the local and national levels. I interned for Street Sense Media, which reports on homelessness in D.C. and empowers people experiencing it by allowing them to take part in the organization's business model. Folks who are homeless are as much part of a city's fabric and future as anybody else and I learned how to pay attention to their stories through my beat.

What advice do you have for NYCJ students from our 41 partner schools who are spending a semester in NYC in an internship and classes?

My advice is to learn how to take micro risks. You’ve already done something big by making the decision to move to New York for this program. From here, keep building on that by making small moves every day to reach your goals, whether you want to report a certain story, meet an influential editor, or secure another internship or job. Reaching those goals will require a series of somewhat calculated and bold risks. People want to help you in this industry, so don’t be afraid to ask for what you want.

We see a challenged media industry but also an innovative one. What hope do you think exists for young people in high school or college or are considering a career in the news media today and in the future?

One of the redeeming qualities of the news industry right now is that it’s made up of people from all backgrounds, veritable experts in their own unique life experiences. You don’t have to climb the traditional ladder of journalism to get to an editorship at a major paper. Yes, you need the reporting and editing experience, but you can pursue other passions in tandem with your writing goals. One of my fellowship colleagues has a Ph.D. in immunology and is our science reporter at The Times. Let that inspire you for the future. There are some really smart people out here making the industry more innovative simply by existing in the space. There’s space for you, too.

What do you do for fun in NYC?

In pre-pandemic times, one of my favorite things to do was go to concerts. Nowadays, I'm enjoying watching the seasons change by going on longer walks in my neighborhood or even hikes outside the city. I also coach youth lacrosse in my spare time, which is something I've continued to do this fall but socially-distanced.

As someone who writes about urbanism and architecture, what are three of your favorite locations or neighborhoods in NYC?

Photo submitted by Sydney Franklin

I love this question. One of my favorite vantage points in New York is the view of FiDi from the Staten Island Ferry. I also love driving on the West Side Highway where you get a quick glimpse of all sorts of big architecture all the way from the George Washington Bridge down to Tribeca. Cycling on the Greenway works, too! My favorite building is the Bank of America Tower by Bryant Park. One time, driving home from a hike, my friend pulled out a special app that allowed us to change the colors of the antenna from our car. It was like magic.

For others who enjoy reading and thinking about urbanism, what publications - magazines, websites and newspapers - do you like to read (besides the NYT)? What related authors and thinkers do you recommend on the topic?

I highly recommend following Curbed, which now operates under New York Magazine. Justin Davidson is one of the funniest and most accessible critics out there, as well as Alexandra Lange (find her books too). I am on the advisory board of an online publication that highlights the stories of women in architecture called Madame Architect. It's so inspiring.

Paul Glader is director of the McCandlish Phillips Journalism Institute and co-director of the NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ). If you are a journalism professor or student interested in the program, email pglader@tkc.edu.

Fall ‘20 NYCJ Students Use Internships to Cover Elections and COVID-19

NYCJ Fall 2020 students Destinee Evans and Marlena Lang having a lunch meeting with Prof. Paul Glader and Prof. Clemente Lisi

Students who are part of the NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ) program have had plenty of success in their internships this Fall, covering the recent presidential election and the ongoing pandemic for a number of news organizations.   

This semester’s students followed in the footsteps of past NYCJ classes by participating in the unique semester-long, off-campus study program operated by the McCandlish Phillips Journalism Institute at The King’s College in NYC.

“I am most proud of two articles that I wrote for my internship at Newsweek. The first was my very first article about mail-in ballot controversies around the nation,” said Marlena Lang, a Biola student who is part of the magazine’s newly-formed fact-checking team. “I was proud of this article because not only was it my first, but it is also the longest one I have completed after spending two days researching and writing it.

Lang said the other piece she is most proud was about the Pfizer vaccine “because I pitched them the idea and then completed the research and wrote the article.”

Destinee Evans and Marlena Lang in Battery Park

Destinee Evans, a student from Olivet Nazarene University, said her internship at the New York Daily News allowed her to cover COVID-19 and its impact on the Big Apple.

“During this internship, I have been able to interview families of people who may have just lost a loved one but getting to tell amazing stories about the people they love has been rewarding,” she added. “It can be a lot to take in sometimes but getting over the fear of talking to new people is something I will take with me throughout my career.”  

Students taking part in the eleventh NYCJ cohort that chose to come to New York in person this semester took advantage of TKC’s hybrid model, a mix of both online and in person classes as well as their internship. The students are enrolled in classes including Entrepreneurial Journalism with Prof. Paul Glader and a course called The City taught by Anne Hendershott. The City course – required of all NYCJ students – also serves as an elective for King’s students.

Under the guidance of Prof. Clemente Lisi, a former editor at the New York Post and New York Daily News, the students work 20 hours per week in a New York City newsroom, earning six academic credits and pursuing bylines.

Being able to live and work in New York City remains a huge appeal to students.

“Living in New York has been an amazing experience that I was worried would not happen,” Evans said. “Getting to go different places in the city with new friends has been fun. I know it’s not the same as semesters in the past but it is still something that I will cherish.”

The New York City Semester program partners with 40 universities and colleges across the nation and globe. Apply to become a partner school by contacting Paul Glader at pglader@tkc.edu. Apply to join us as a student for a future semester by clicking here.

Will New York City Survive? A Q & A with Anne Hendershott

By MPJI Staff

Anne Hendershott, writer and visiting professor at The King’s College, will be returning this semester to teach a course on “The City,” which will be a core course for every student who attends the NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ) program and an elective for students at The King’s College. Hendershott has written many books including Renewal, Status Envy, The Politics of Deviance, The Politics of Abortion, Moving for Work, and The Reluctant Caregivers.

What will a student enrolled in The City learn?/What do you most hope students learn?

The goal of the course is to help students discover exactly what it is that made New York City the vibrant and exciting place it still is today.  We take what is called in urban studies an “ecological approach” to understand how New Amsterdam — a sleepy trading post — became the thriving metropolis it is today. 

The ecological approach looks at four different variables including Population, Organization, Environment and Technology to help us understand why New York – and not Philadelphia, or New Orleans, or any one of a number of cities—became the premier city in the country.  I allow students to conclude for themselves which of the four variables they see as “most important” in helping to explain how New York became New York. Many of them choose environment as the explanatory variable because of our deep water harbor and access to the hinterlands but I would argue that it is the people of New York City – from the earliest days — that made the access to the hinterlands possible by building the Erie Canal.  And it was the people of New York that actually created the deep water harbor.  Just a few steps away from King’s College is Pearl Street – it was called Pearl Street because at one time Pearl Street was just a big oyster bed—that filled with water.  The people of New York used technology to dig and create the deep-water harbor that facilitated trade.  To me, the people and the culture they created is what makes New York City what it is today.

How does the past relate to current issues?

Throughout the course we look closely at the people and events that shaped New York as a place for business, the arts and the media. For example, we begin with the Dutch who brought the capitalist spirit — the need the develop a trading post that would rival all others. I am Dutch — my father was part of an early Dutch family in Manhattan — so I guess I give a bit more attention to the early Dutch settlers here than most others. We look closely at Peter Stuyvesant and his role in creating New Amsterdam’s governance. Then, we move on to the Revolutionary War and the pre-Revolutionary role of journalist, John Peter Zenger—an immigrant from Germany who became a printer and publisher in the City.  We maintain that Zenger singlehandedly “won” for us, the freedom of the press. Zenger did this by printing the New York Weekly Journal—an early tabloid that was used in the pre-Revolutionary times to poke fun at the English leaders of the new colony.  Zenger published irreverent cartoons of William Cosby, the royal governor of New York — depicting him as assorted farm animals — in order to protest his policies.  In response, Governor Cosby had Zenger imprisoned.  But, with the help of very smart lawyer from Philadelphia, Zenger was released and the freedom of the press was officially established.  Zenger is still a symbol for the freedom of the press—and we are still debating today how much freedom the press should have.

Throughout the course, we look at the important role that Christianity has played—and continues to play—for the City. While the Dutch did not get around to building a church in New Amsterdam for more than decade, that did not mean that they did not worship and thank God for bringing them to this beautiful island. It was just that the Dutch believed that to honor God they needed to work hard and provide for their families in this new world. Establishing a flourishing trading post enabled them to later build a church and hire a minister for their fledgling colony.

How will we respond to calls for police reform?

The Black Lives Matter movement has great resonance for us in this course.  Since we take a socio-historical perspective, we will look at other periods in our City’s history when there were similar calls for police reform. As each wave of immigrants came to the City, there were calls for police reform as each new immigrant group experienced what they perceived as discriminatory practices by those who came before them.  When the Irish immigrants arrived in large numbers, they were treated harshly by those earlier immigrants who were charged with law enforcement. The word “Paddy Wagon” came from the fact that Irish criminals were far more likely to be arrested and put into the police carriages than any other ethnic group.  The Irish came to power eventually by becoming police officers, politicians and priests — and then they were able to determine who would be arrested and incarcerated.  The Irish then were viewed as discriminating against the next ethnic group to arrive in the City — the Italians and the Eastern Europeans—who were barred from jobs with the police department and were more likely to be arrested and incarcerated than the Irish.

This demographic imbalance on the police department became a problem in July, 1863, during the New York City Draft Riots when the anger of working class New Yorkers over a new federal draft law during the Civil War sparked five days of riots in the City. African Americans were often the target of the rioters’ violence — some were lynched, many were murdered and some of the perpetrators were on the City’s police force.

Today, the NYPD demographics have changed dramatically as white police officers are in the minority.  Of the 35,783-member police force, only 47% are White, and 53% are Black, Latino or Asian American. Still, the perception remains that the NYPD does not understand inner-city concerns about what some residents view as unfair treatment of Blacks and Hispanics. We will explore the cultural contributors to that perception in the course.

Are middle class and wealthier New Yorkers fleeing NYC?

While it cannot be denied that COVID has demonstrated to us that we may not have to be physically present in an office in the City in order to get our work done, I just cannot agree with the National Review and NYTimes claims that COVID has “changed” the City forever. We have faced challenges that were even greater in the past – during the Depression of the 1930s, we had more than 25% of the New York City workforce unemployed. The 1970s flight of businesses and jobs out of the City was actually much worse than the current crisis.  I am confident that New York will be back better than ever.  New Yorkers are resilient and even though there are indeed some jobs that can be done remotely, journalists, artists, actors and writers will continue to live and work in the City.  We are still the financial capital and although many businesses may believe they can have their workers relocate elsewhere, New York will remain the heart of the business world.

Have you taken on any new interests since COVID?

I have had much more time to devote to research and writing about the cultural fallout from the COVID lock-down.  And, now during this period of protest, I have been writing and publishing articles in the secular and religious press which attempt to explain our current cultural predicament.

What are you most looking forward to at King’s?

For me, the main attraction to King’s has always been the students. They are among the most highly motivated and talented students I have ever worked with in my more than three decades of college teaching.  I am grateful for their enthusiasm and their optimism – and the many gifts they bring including their great love for God and their desire to know and serve Him. I have had the great privilege to work with several King’s students even after graduation. A few years ago, I co-authored a book with a former King’s student. This student, Christopher White, was my research assistant during his undergraduate years and we stayed in touch and ended up collaborating on several articles that were published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today and other newspapers.  Eventually, we co-authored a book that was published by Encounter Books, Renewal. Now that student, Christopher, is a talented journalist for the National Catholic Register, formerly a correspondent for Crux. 

What was your most pivotal moment?

More than 20 years ago, I made a conscious decision to begin writing for a more general audience with my books and articles. Until that time, I had written primarily for a scholarly audience but was reaching very few readers. But, once I published my Politics of Deviance book in 2002—and directly targeted my writing toward readers who wanted to be part of the conversation, it has changed everything for me. Since that time, each book I have published, and all of the hundreds of articles I have written and published in the media is always geared to an educated reader who appreciates fact-based opinion writing.

Which book is most relevant to the times?

My newest book, The Politics of Envy is in the production process and is due to be released in October—before the election. The book, which is written from a biblical perspective on the sin of Envy, argues that when toxic envy grows unchecked, it will inevitably destroy an individual, a family, a society—even a civilization.  I believe that envy today has reached a tipping point, fueling acts of anger, violence, and revenge in America’s cities and corporate boardrooms. In the book, I argue that much of the attraction to socialism is driven by a malign envy that has been nurtured by craven politicians and incited by some in the media.  There is an entire chapter on the role of social media in encouraging envy.

Go-to Advice for student journalists?

Write!  Find a faculty member who loves to write and tell him or her your ideas.  See if they are willing to let you be part of their research or editing process.  I have published several op-eds and essays with undergraduate students.  The important goal is to develop your own “voice.”  When I taught the Persuasive Writing course at King’s several years ago, I would tell students to pretend that you are sitting in your office and you are telling a friend about an event that is occurring and you want that friend to know all of the facts.  And, if you are writing an opinion piece, write like you would want your friend to know what you think of those facts. 

How Does NYC still matter?

New York will always matter for young journalists, theater students, art students or business and finance students because each of these require the kind of human interactions in dense urban environments that only NYC can provide.  While some businesses may have left the City—as they did in previous economic downturns like the 1970s—there will always be newcomers in the years to come.  The course in The City will demonstrate that these newcomers have been arriving on our shores over and over again, from across the country and the world for more than four centuries.  Some are arriving right now and right here at The King’s College.  I share their spirit of adventure and optimism—and I am grateful that they are here! Our City’s history should reassure us that after previous declines, we lifted ourselves from the depths and flourished like never before. 

NYCJ Alumna Rachel Greenland Lands Her First Post-Graduate Position

By Eloisa Gutierrez

A North Carolina native, recent college graduate and city girl at heart, 21-year-old Rachel Greenland is one of 17 students selected to be a Dow Jones News Fund business reporting intern. 

Born and raised in Greensboro, North Carolina, Greenland now has degrees in journalism and public relations from Appalachian State University and a minor in accounting. She intends to use her diverse work experience to place herself in an internship or job this summer. 

Greenland is one of a few Dow Jones News Fund interns whose original placement site rescinded its offer due to the coronavirus. Greenland took this in stride, however, applying to over a dozen internships and communications positions from home, with help from the News Fund. 

Her search successfully landed her an internship role at Voice of America, under a Europe, Middle East and Latin America correspondent. 

“I just am constantly thinking like 10 years in advance,” said Greenland. 

Her future-oriented mindset is not new. Since her sophomore year of high school, Greenland had dreamed of making a difference as a business executive.  

That dream, however, changed with time. In her senior year, Greenland evaluated her skills and desires. 

“I realized ... I like really know how to write. So why don't I just combine this business idea of (being) a world changer in writing?” said Greenland. 

That realization -- combined with the discovery of The King’s College NYC Semester in Journalism (NYCJ) -- set Greenland into motion. 

She said, “My first or second month of freshman year, I started working every single thing I could to do to set that (NYC semester) up.” And she did. 

Greenland joined professor Greg Perreault’s Introduction to Journalism course her second semester, and he helped her plan her class schedule to get to New York by her senior year. Perreault and his wife Mimi are alums of NYCJ’s predecessor, Washington Journalism Center, and are active friends to NYCJ.

At ASU, Greenland reported for the campus newspaper, The Appalachian, eventually serving as its managing editor her senior year. One of her favorite articles featured a podcast studio that was inspired by ASU alumnus, Stephen Dubner, author of “Freakonomics.” 

Greenland also worked as public relations chair and webmaster for Sigma Kappa Sorority, participated in The Fund for American Studies and worked as a copy editor and reporter for Sustainable Discoveries magazine. 

Eventually, in the spring of 2019, Greenland made it to The King’s College NYC Semester. In Manhattan, Greenland studied, interned at Newsweek on the video desk and embraced a love for the city. 

There, she met Paul Glader, director of the News Fund’s business reporting program and an  associate professor at The King’s College, who is co-director of the NYCJ program. 

In Glader’s business reporting class Greenland said she really got to sink her teeth into business reporting and how a Wall Street Journal reporter approaches a business story. Her NYC semester included an internship at Newsweek, where Greenland pitched ideas for videos that she would script, edit and produce to accompany news articles. 

 “She was a pleasure to have on our team,” said Jessica Durham, video production manager at Newsweek. 

“She always had ideas at our meetings, which was great,” said Durham. “(Greenland) wasn’t afraid to ask questions.” 

Overall, Greenland said, that semester “really sparked this desire” to pursue an internship with the Dow Jones News Fund. 

The following summer of 2019, Greenland worked as The Washington Times’ foreign desk intern, where she wrote several news stories and in-depth features on crises in Sudan. 

Researching, writing and contributing to such powerful stories, said Greenland “(I) really realized the impact that I can have by being a reporter … my goal has always been just to share people’s stories.” 

Preparing for her remote training and work, Greenland considers what the current pandemic means for the News Fund’s class of 2020. 

“At the end of the day, we’re reporters and we’re supposed to be going into every situation, reaching out to people and being persevering and just trying to find things that might be difficult to find,” said Greenland. 

She believes that tenacity will be essential. 

“In this extra difficult time,” she said, “I think that’s a characteristic of ourselves that we really need to showcase.”  

Until the start of her training, Greenland looks forward to the spring ASU commencement ceremony -- especially because Stephen Dubner will be speaking, said Greenland. 

An admirer of Dubner, Greenland said, “I always wanted to go to a college where a celebrity would give my commencement speech and that never happens at my school. I don’t know if people would consider him a celebrity, but he is for me.” 

“So if this is what I get for virtually graduating,” she said with a smile, “that’s really fine with me.”  

After completing her internship with Voice of America, Greenland will head to the Charlotte, North Carolina, area for a full-time position with Boardroom Insiders as a Research Editor and Analyst. At BI, she will curate profiles of business executives across industries.

To learn more about Rachel Greenland or view some of her work, visit her website at greenlandrachel.wordpress.com.

- Edits and Updates made by MPJI staff.