The Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education announces the eighth class of Oakland Voices and seeks to recruit six East Oakland residents and two city-wide residents interested in reporting, writing, and taking photos for its community storytelling program.
Correspondents will be trained and report on a wide range of issues highlighting the triumphs and challenges of life in Oakland. We want people who seek to serve as news and information providers on behalf of the community.
Topics will include community heroes and heroines, health and wealth disparities, and we’ll highlight the work going on in East Oakland Building Healthy Communities initiative. Topics will be assigned and correspondents will be encouraged to come up with their own ideas for stories they wish to cover.
THE PROJECT
The correspondents will produce a variety of content – including written stories, photos, videos, Tweets and Facebook updates – for OaklandVoices.us along with other publishing partners.
Oakland Voices correspondents will be expected to attend meetings throughout the nine-month program. There will be a two-day orientation at the start of the project. We will also hold regular, 2-hour newsroom meetings twice a month, as well as three full-day training sessions.
Training and meetings will be held between East Oakland’s 81st Avenue Public Library and the Maynard Institute's offices on in Emeryville.
Correspondents will receive a $1,000 stipend, distributed throughout the nine-month period.
ELIGIBILITY
This year, we are expanding the geographic eligibility. Residents from ALL OVER Oakland can apply. We are seeking six East Oakland residents and two who live ANYWHERE in the city. See our East Oakland map at
http://oaklandvoices.us/if-you-live-here-join-us/ to find out if you live in OV’s East Oakland program area.
Any Oakland resident who is a high school senior or older is eligible.
You do not need to own a smartphone to participate. Oakland Voices provides all of your reporting tools. However, we encourage those with smartphones to apply since they will be valuable reporting tools.
Journalism experience IS NOT REQUIRED. Our mission is to support emerging community voices that have little previous access to media training or publication.
Applicants should be familiar with Oakland and with their own neighborhood. People with a broad range of life experience are encouraged to apply. Those who are accepted in the program will receive training in journalistic skills such as research, writing and multimedia.
Acceptance into and completion of this program do not guarantee future employment with Robert C. Maynard Institute for Journalism Education.
This cohort of Oakland Voices will begin in fall 2020, depending on the recommendations of healthcare professionals.
Contact Oakland Voices coordinator Rasheed Shabazz with any questions.
Email:
OaklandVoices5@gmail.comPhone: 510-863-1695.
THE APPLICATION
Application deadline: Due to COVID-19, application deadline moved to midnight or post-marked by September 31, 2020.
HOW TO APPLY
•
ONLINE:
•
EMAIL: Click here:
https://docs.google.com/document/d/18iGywjFKxKAYUox9g354A-c35NaR2o76dm0PDkbQRZ0/edit?usp=sharing for an application you can copy and paste into a Word or Google document. Once completed, you can email that application document as an attachment to
OaklandVoices5@gmail.com.
•
US MAIL: You can print an application, and mail it to
•
Oakland Voices
•
c/o The Maynard Institute
•
1400 65th St. Suite 200
•
Emeryville, CA 94608
•
You can also drop your application off at Impact Hub Oakland, 2323 Broadway, Make sure to make your envelope c/o The Maynard Institute, 10am-6pm, Monday through Friday. Applications must be post-marked by September 31, 2020.