2 Gramblinites chosen for NY Times Institute

Two Gramblinite editors are among 30 students selected to attend The New York Times Student Journalism Institute in its fourth annual program to be held May 13-27 at Dillard University in New Orleans.Darryl Smith, Gramblinite sports editor and photographer, and Wendell Graves, Gramblinite editor in chief, will attend the institute for two weeks where they will maintain a news Web site and at the end of the program, a newspaper will be published containing the best material created at the institute.Grambling State has had participants in the Student Journalism Institute all four years that it has taken place. "It’s going to be hard for me to live up to those that came before me, but I am willing to try to continue the legacy," was Smith’s response when asked about continuing the Grambling State legacy. "It’s a blessing and a wonderful opportunity to be chosen among numerous candidates."The professional staff at the institute includes award-winning journalists from The New York Times, The Boston Globe and other New York Times-owned newspapers. The Student Journalism Institute helps shape the way future generations of newsrooms will look and operate and gives back to the HBCUs for the hard work invested in providing talent for the nation’s newspapers."The New York Times Student Journalism Institute is a unique opportunity for young journalists to showcase their work in this highly competitive residency program," said William Schmidt, assistant managing editor of The New York Times. "We are pleased to collaborate with HBCUs on the effort to diversify newsrooms across the country and delighted to welcome a new class of students to the Institute."Students from 16 HBCUs were selected to participate in this program, including Florida A&M University, Southern University and Howard University. In the few years that it has been going on, the Institute has graduated many students and has gained recognition as one of the top training opportunities for aspiring newspaper journalists. Students at the Institute hone their writing, reporting, editing and photography skills covering real news stories and working under actual newsroom pressure. The program is a collaborative venture with Black College Communications Association, an organization of faculty members at Historically Black Colleges and Universities.Students will post their work on www.nytimes-institute.com during the Institute and at the end of the two weeks will produce a newspaper.