Princeton, N.J. — The Dow Jones News Fund is pleased to announce a $10,000 donation from the Good Words foundation to seed a fund for summer interns who need financial help during their internships.
Erin Schulte Collier, Good Words president and News Fund alumna, attended the Temple residency with Dr. Edward Trayes in 1997 before interning at the Traverse City (Michigan) Record-Eagle. She returned the next summer to help Dr. Trayes with the new class of interns.
Collier is a writer and editor. She was a senior editor at Fast Company and Hearst, and was a staff reporter and columnist for The Wall Street Journal and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. She’s a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and a member of the board of the Center for Public Integrity in Washington, D.C.
“I know that I would not have had the career that I did without the DJNF internship or my connections to the DJNF network; I’m convinced it helped me stand out in a crowded field early on in my career,” Collier said.
Spurred by a Temple University-based survey, which found that nearly half of all college students experience food insecurity, the News Fund recognized that some interns can have trouble making ends meet during their internships.
Collier’s support will aid students who have trouble paying for food, commuting or affordable housing during their summer internships. It will also provide support when emergencies strike.
“I want to help make sure that any student who qualifies for a DJNF internship, regardless of income, is able to take the internship. Harmful ‘traditions’ like unpaid internships have left us with newsrooms that are too homogenous to be as effective as they could be, and mean that important stories go untold and great journalists may not get the chance they deserve,” said Collier.
“We appreciate Erin’s commitment to removing financial barriers to help interns succeed and to our shared goal of promoting diversity,” said Linda Shockley, DJNF’s managing director.
The News Fund will seek additional support from alumni and friends to raise another $10,000 by March 31 to assist the Class of 2020 and beyond.
“I hope the gift will inspire others to chip in to build up this fund into a sustainable source of assistance for students who need it,” said Collier.
The Good Words foundation supports journalism-related nonprofits and advances the work of professional and student journalists, especially those doing investigative, public interest, and local journalism.
If you would like to donate to the Intern Assistance Fund or provide support for our journalism programs, click here to donate online or send a check payable to Dow Jones News Fund, P.O. Box 300, Princeton, NJ 08543
