Encouraging students to pursue a career in journalism, the Urban Journalism Workshop at San Antonio College, funded by Dow Jones, is celebrating its 25th year.
Since 1985, the UJW team has devoted two weeks every summer to the future of journalism by recruiting high school students from San Antonio and neighboring counties.
"We are serving San Antonio's youth," UJW director Irene Abrego said. "Our intent is to give young people an opportunity to experience the possibilities in this field."
The recruiting process is based on an interview that requires writing samples, teacher recommendations and an interest in the journalism field.
"I want bright, thinking, creative young people in this field," Abrego said. "It's so important for society, for democracy, for open government," which is why she continues to devote her summer time to the program.
When Kym Fox, instructor of journalism at Texas State University, started working with the workshop, students would visit her at the Express-News as a reporter.
After taking a teaching position at Texas State University, Fox began working at the workshop full-time every summer.
"It's been interesting to see the workshop mature," Fox said. "And it's amazing to see how well some of the students have gone on to do in their profession."
The idea of the program is for students to develop skills that will facilitate them in the future.
"Being media literate is vital to being a good citizen. So picking up the writing skills is important, understanding the media is important," Fox said. "All of that is going to help you in high school, in college and in your life after that."
Dee Dixon, reporter at the Beaumont Enterprise, and former UJW student, helped by giving students tips on how to write a story and easing their ability to get sources.
"If you don't know how to go out and get the news, there's nothing to report," Dixon said.
Dow Jones serves not only as the workshop's funding, but also awards $1,000 scholarships in a writing competition and a photo competition to a student.
Each of the 28 workshops across the nation is eligible to enter one student in each competition.
In a quarter century, UJW students have earned 10 writing competition scholarships and two photo competition scholarships.
"For me, winning the scholarship kind of gave me some confidence," former workshopper Adrian Zamarron said. "If professionals and scholarship committee people think I'm good enough for the scholarship, then I might be good enough to do this for a living."
Zamarron designs for the Austin American Statesmen and has been there since May 1992. He attended the 1989 workshop, when the program was only five years old.
"It was an eye-opener experience," Zamarron said.
The workshop demands students work at college levels, the hard curriculum preparing students for the lifestyle that will be demanded of them in the future.
"If it weren't (hard), we wouldn't be preparing people, young people, for what they face," Abrego said.
The workshop also recruits for the journalism program at San Antonio College with the advisers encouraging students to enroll.
"I hadn't planned on coming here, but it was too good a program to pass up," Zamarron said. "I wanted to just keep learning, and it seemed like the perfect place to do it."
Despite declining newspaper readership, San Antonio Express-News writer Vince Davis is optimistic about the news industry.
"I think that it will be going on for some time in the future," Davis said. "Maybe not like this, but in some way, it'll live long. It's too good to die."
Davis has been on loan from the Express to work full-time with the workshop for four years, though in previous years, the former San Antonio College student gave an afternoon or morning to work with students.
"I didn't give it a thought when they asked if I wanted to help out," Davis said. "Because they had done so much for me, so it was time for me to help others that are coming up the ranks."
Dixon thinks the skills taught at the workshop will carry through whatever happens with the newspaper industry.
"There is a heavy focus with newspapers having some sort of a strong online presence," Dixon said. "But you can't have a strong online (presence) if you don't have the skills that you need to provide people with information they're going to want."
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