Program Expands, Adds 6th College Bureau

ABC News today announced the expansion of the ABC News on Campus program with the addition of the University of Nebraska at Lincoln as the sixth college bureau. The initiative, which launched last fall, is a partnership with top journalism schools designed to educate and mentor talented college students. The news division created the bureaus to help guide student journalists and provide opportunities for them to report on stories in their area. Each campus bureau is equipped with the latest digital newsgathering technology, including new DV cameras and laptop edit stations.

“Our program was so successful last year, we are thrilled to be able to expand it in its sophomore year,” said John Green, executive producer of special programming and development at ABC News. "We found that the first year students benefited greatly from their daily interaction with ABC News producers, and likewise, we have a long line of ABC News volunteers who want to participate as mentors in the program this year."

Paired with some of the network’s most seasoned producers, the program’s first year student journalists worked on hundreds of original stories that were featured across ABC News. 

 2009/2010 ABC News on Campus college bureau chiefs are:
• Maxine Park, student bureau chief: Arizona State University, Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication
• Nathan Bense, student bureau chief: Syracuse University, S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications
• Brittny Krause, student bureau chief: University of Florida, College of Journalism and Communications
• Emily Ingram, student bureau chief, University of Nebraska at Lincoln, College of Journalism and Mass Communication
• Bethany Tuggle, student bureau chief, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Journalism and Mass Communication
• Loren Grush, student bureau chief, University of Texas at Austin School of Journalism

ABC News’ Christina Caron has been named managing editor of the program, overseeing the day-to-day content and story development from the college journalists.  Green will continue to supervise and manage the program.

In building on the success of the program, the second year continues with its goal to create a real-world news environment for the students by providing access to Avid Media Composer systems, the same industry tools the network uses. All six university bureaus will benefit from hands-on training and access to the Avid Media Composers and ultimately become better prepared to enter the professional job market.

“We at Avid are very excited to continue to play a role in the ABC News on Campus Program – where the next-generation of newsroom professionals are being discovered each day,” said Gary Greenfield, chairman and CEO, Avid. “Our professional customers across the world continue to tell us how important it is for students to get access, training and real-world experience using Avid’s industry standard content creation tools. The aspiring journalists, producers and news executives participating in this program will develop a unique skill set and unprecedented level of experience that will undoubtedly help them succeed in the very competitive world of broadcast journalism.”

Several students from the 2008/2009 program were able to secure jobs in the industry despite the current economic challenges. Former University of Florida Bureau Chief Robert Bradfield is working at WCJB-TV, an ABC affiliate in Gainesville, Fla.; Former University of Florida staffer Marilia Brocchetto is a digital reporter at CNN; Former Arizona State  staffer Joshua Zuber  is weekend anchor/reporter at NBC affiliate  KCWY in Casper, Wyo.; former ASU staffer Ryan Calhoun, who is the first in his family to graduate from college, is currently employed at WRDW-TV, the CBS affiliate in Augusta, GA;  former Syracuse University staffer, Matt Gelb is a sportswriter at the Philadelphia Inquirer; former Syracuse University staffer Megan Lisson is a page at NBC; former University of Texas Bureau Chief Sara Story (Loeffelholz) has been hired as a reporter at KLTV-TV, an ABC affiliate in Tyler, Texas; former University of Florida staffer Dominick Tao is currently working as a desk assistant for ABC News in New York and former Arizona State staffer Jen Wahl is reporting at KBCI-TV, a CBS affiliate in Boise, Idaho.

In addition to working with its partner bureaus, ABC News on Campus also invited student journalists at accredited colleges and universities from around the world to contribute and be mentored as part of the program’s Roving Reporter initiative. Students from Anchorage, Alaska, to Washington, D.C. submitted video, photo, radio, and text stories for consideration to be featured on ABCNEWS.com. ABC News selected West Virginia University student Kasey Hott as the "Roving Reporter of the Year" because of her exemplary broadcast submissions, which included timely video packages focusing on the surprisingly strong economic climate in Morgantown, W. Va., and on the second anniversary of the Virginia Tech mass murder. ABC News hosted Ms. Hott for a two-day trip to New York to meet with top-level network executives and anchors.

The 2009/2010 student bureau chiefs and faculty liaisons will visit ABC News headquarters for on-site mentoring at the end of September. Student participants were selected by ABC News and the respective colleges through a series of interviews.  Students are supervised by a participating university-appointed faculty members and by ABC News.