EWA Fellows Class 12
EWA Announces Summer 2021 Class of Reporting Fellows
The Education Writers Association is pleased to announce its 12th class of EWA Reporting Fellows, part of the organization’s drive to support enterprising journalism that informs the public about consequential issues in education.
EWA selected 12 projects in this round. Each EWA Reporting Fellowship provides up to $8,000 to help cover reporting costs, plus other assistance.
“For education reporters, getting the time and resources they need to tell stories that make a difference is often much harder than it should be,” said Caroline Hendrie, EWA’s executive director. “We hope that this fresh round of support will move our members a step closer to reaching their own ambitious goals.”
The newest class of EWA Reporting Fellows represents a diverse mix of news outlets, with most projects to be published during the 2021-22 academic year.
The EWA Reporting Fellowship program is supported in part by grants from the Ascendium Education Group, Carnegie Corporation of New York, Funders for Adolescent Science Translation (FAST), Kresge Foundation, Lumina Foundation, Pritzker Children’s Initiative, and Walton Family Foundation.
Meet the Fellows:
How Anti-muslim Bias On Campus Harms Students’ Education
For Amna Omar, who recently graduated from San Diego State University, the worst moment came in her freshman year, when a classroom discussion about religion turned to Islam. One student singled out Omar, telling her she was “oppressed” because of her jilbab, or full-body covering. Far from being concerned about her oppression, the student told Omar, she said, to “go back home” because her attire was not mainstream.
Sasha Aslanian
APM Reports
Tweet to @sashaaslanian
A collaboration with Native American college students as they narrate their own stories about their college journeys.
Eder Campuzano
The Oregonian
Tweet to @edercampuzano
Portland schools have long stated their intent to heavily invest in Black students to boost test scores, graduation rates and college readiness. What strides have been made, and what does success look like?
Trisha Crain
Alabama Education Lab at AL.com
Tweet to @Trish_Crain
Using data to identify high-fliers and schools on the edge of measurable success, this project will dig into those outcomes and identify best practices to help others succeed.
Amy Feiereisel
North Country Public Radio
Tweet to @amy_feier
As K-12 kids return to in-person schooling in summer and fall 2021, what are the gaps that educators and students will have to make up in rural upstate New York?
Krista Johnson
The Montgomery Advertiser
Tweet to @KristaJ1993
How large is the funding gap between Alabama’s predominantly white schools and those primarily serving Black students, and how is the gap impacting students, families and communities?
Blake Jones
Idaho Education News
Tweet to @jonesblakej
This watchdog project will track and contextualize the spending of federal coronavirus relief funds carved out for Idaho’s K-12 public schools, especially in the state’s lowest-income districts.
Tasmiha Khan
Religion News Service
Tweet to @CraftOurStory
How are different faith groups trying to improve racial equity for students in higher education? And what are some of the barriers faced by religiously observant students, especially those who are Muslim?
Matthew Kish
Portland Business Journal
Tweet to @matthewkish
This project will focus on collegiate apparel deals and the new market for the names, images and likenesses of student athletes.
Anna Pogarcic
EducationNC
Tweet to @ampogarcic
Thousands of students have essentially gone missing from school districts in North Carolina during the pandemic. Who are these students, and how are districts trying to solve the problem?
Samantha Shapiro
The New York Times Magazine
Tweet to @Ms_SamShapiro
A close look at the fast-growing population of rural homeless students, who are often undercounted in federal surveys and whose circumstances differ from those of their urban counterparts.
Linda K Wertheimer
The Boston Globe Magazine
Tweet to @Lindakwert
This project will address the question of whether the addition of ethnic studies classes can be the recipe for success that many educators and policymakers want it to be, especially for Black and Latino students.
Samantha West
USA Today Network
Tweet to @BySamanthaWest
Before COVID-19, over half of Wisconsin’s population lived in an area considered a child care desert. How has the pandemic exacerbated the problem and how could that impact Wisconsin’s future generations?