Posted On: October 29, 2020
Paid Journalism Internship
Media Organization: Chalkbeat
Company Description
Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news organization committed to covering one of America’s most important stories: the effort to improve schools for all children, especially those who have historically lacked access to a quality education. We currently operate local bureaus in 8 cities, plus a national desk tying stories together. Local bureaus are supported by a national team of editors, data and visual producers, engagement specialists, and operational support.
Job Description
We’re looking for education journalism interns in Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Indianapolis, New York City, Memphis, and Philadelphia.
Are you a motivated undergraduate or grad student interested in telling the story of education in America? Come work with us at Chalkbeat as a summer intern. Our newsroom has bureaus in eight cities — Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Indianapolis, Memphis, Newark, New York City, and most recently, Philadelphia — plus a national team. We cover the effort to improve schools for all children, especially students in the United States who have historically lacked access to a quality education.
We offer a 10-week paid internship in each bureau from June to August 2021. You will:
Work a 40-hour week alongside some of the nation’s top education journalists.
Write daily stories on deadline, with editing from top-notch story editors.
Leave Chalkbeat with at least two strong clips.
Hone your writing skills to craft enticing ledes, effectively structure each story, and conduct fruitful interviews.
Incorporate data journalism, polls, and social engagement.
Attend weekly skill-building sessions.
Become an integral part of a dynamic, diverse newsroom. Our interns interview, report, write, and learn — they don’t make coffee or file paperwork.
Here are some of the stories our past interns filed. (links on Chalkbeat job posting at Chalkbeat.org/careers)
“Charie Gibson was homeless 17 times. Now she helps more than 1,000 homeless students in Indianapolis.” By Erica Irish (Indiana 2019)
“Many Denver schools with high asthma rates aren’t participating in a new air quality monitoring program” by Kati Weis (Colorado 2019)
“NYC children out of school for summer struggle to access free meals — as food, federal dollars go to waste” by Zipporah Osei (New York 2019)
“Meet ‘The Outsiders’: New website aims to support students of color at NYC’s elite public high schools” by Ashleigh Garrison (New York 2020)
“Teachers need training to improve pandemic learning. Many are still waiting.” by Sneha Dey (Chicago 2020)
“Indianapolis students accused their teachers of racism. Will the district’s investigation lead to change?” by Emily Isaacman (Indiana 2020)
Each intern can choose their 10-week session to accommodate their college schedule. COVID-19 safety is a priority for our staff, so if in-person attendance is too risky, the internships will become virtual.
Who are you?
Journalism is your calling. You love finding things out and explaining them.
You’re interested in public policy and social issues.
You’re eager for feedback and enjoy collaborating.
You’re flexible, a hard worker, creative, energetic, patient, and tenacious.
You know how to report accurately, write clearly and concisely, and meet your deadlines.
You have:
Clips that demonstrate strong reporting and writing skills.
Meaningful high school, college, or professional journalism experience.
A demonstrable interest in public education.
To Apply
To complete our 2021 Internship application, please visit chalkbeat.org/pages/careers.
We will begin reviewing applications starting on December 1, 2020. We anticipate filling the most competitive markets by 12/31, so we encourage you to apply by December 1. After December 1, we will review applications on a rolling basis until all positions are filled.
Chalkbeat is dedicated to equal employment opportunities for all applicants and employees. Chalkbeat encourages people of all races, colors, national origins, ancestries, creeds, religions, genders, ages, disabilities, veteran status, sexual orientations, and marital statuses to apply.
In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire.