Now in its 27th year, AAJA Voices is a student program that provides aspiring journalists with career-ready skills to succeed in the continually-evolving media landscape. By nurturing relationships between students and professional volunteers, Voices also gives students the opportunity to tap into mentors’ networks and begin their own while also providing AAJA journalists leadership and management opportunities. 

Live from Atlanta 2019

Join us as our 2018 Voices students present their collaborative editorial projects on Friday, Aug. 2 from 3:30 – 5 p.m. at the AAJA National Convention in Atlanta in Ellington E. Not in Houston? Follow Voices on Twitter for a livestream. Following the presentation, speak with our students one-on-one in the Voices area during the Buzzfeed Student Programs Reception from 5 - 6 PM in Ellington F.

Students and faculty are hard at work finishing five collaborative editorial projects they've been working on since May.

AAJA Voices Class 2019, Students & Faculty

AAJA Voices Class 2019, Students & Faculty

A Collaborative Experience

The five projects this year are focused on: 

  • Rooting Identity: A spotlight on the next generation of young Asian American farmers

  • ‘Minority within a Minority’:
    The Making of the Southern and Midwestern Asian-American identity

  • Looking at a new generation of Asian-American chefs and their cultural inheritance

  • How America's top newsrooms recruit interns from a small circle of colleges

Souichi Terada and Alyssa Ramos practice networking skills.

Souichi Terada and Alyssa Ramos practice networking skills.

A summer of skills training

Students took part in pre-convention remote trainings, arming students with the skills to broaden their reporting repertoires at home – even with limited resources. Thanks to professionals in the AAJA network, our students participated in nine hours of remote training before arriving in Houston:

  1. International Reporting with Dolly Li, Freelancer

  2. Introduction to Interactive Mapping with Lo Bénichou, Mapbox

  3. Networking 101 with Hannah Bae, Freelancer and AAJA New York Chapter President

  4. Character Development with Michael Huang, ESPN

  5. Investigative Reporting with Caroline Chen, ProPublica

  6. Pitching & Freelancing with Karen Ho, Freelancer

  7. Economics Reporting with Kelsey Gee, WSJ

  8. Negotiating Basics with Caroline Ceniza-Levine, SixFigureStart

On-Site in Atlanta

AAJA President Michelle Ye Hee Lee and AAJA VP of Journalism Programs Frank Bi speak to Voices on Wednesday. July 31.

AAJA President Michelle Ye Hee Lee and AAJA VP of Journalism Programs Frank Bi speak to Voices on Wednesday. July 31.

Once we got to Atlanta, we hit the ground running. In addition to finishing reporting and production of their projects, students attended a variety of workshops and talks. AAJA President Michelle Lee and VP of Journalism Programs Frank Bi welcomed students to the organization. Each student had a one-on-one session with a Voices co-director to discuss their career goals. We also visited CNN and heard from an all-women panel that included Melody Taylor, Jessica Reyes, Roxanne Garcia, Holly Yan and Diane Gallagher.

As in years past, media organizations and AAJA leaders kindly sponsored breakfasts for small groups of students. These lunches give students a valuable opportunity to talk with professional journalists in a close setting. We'd like to thank our lunch sponsors:

  • ESPN and Fox News

  • Dolly Li, Freelancer

  • Matt Stevens, New York Times

  • Ted Han, AAJA VP of Finance

  • Pia Sarkar, Associated Press & VP of Civic Engagement

  • Bobby Calvan, Associated Press

  • Hannah Bae, AAJA New York Chapter President

  • Frank Bi, Vox & AAJA VP of Journalism Programs

  • Rahul Bali, Oconee Radio Group

  • Michelle Lee, Washington Post & AAJA President

  • Corinne Chin, Seattle Times

  • Elizabeth Yuan, WSJ

  • Mihir Zaveri, New York Times

  • Millie Tran, New York Times

  • Anh Do, Los Angeles TImes

  • Ash Dunn, Los Angeles Times

  • Nicole Dungca, Boston Globe

Rooting Identity: How Farming Brings the Diaspora Together

Rooting Identity: How Farming Brings the Diaspora Together

Mind the gap: Uncovering pay disparity in the newsroom

Mind the gap: Uncovering pay disparity in the newsroom