Seventeen high school students around the Twin Cities attended Winter News Team for five Saturdays in early 2022 at the University St. Thomas College of Arts and Sciences. Students had the task of working on profile stories, inspired by the university’s Humans of St. Thomas series.
The profile stories are center on an individual’s experience and were produced in partnership with the university’s Marketing, Insights and Communications team. Students were assigned to feature either professors or college students on campus. The conducted interviews centered around a life-changing experience in their life, tying to diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives at St. Thomas.
“[I enjoyed] working on a profile story and meeting with new people. I also loved listening to all the speakers and working with my editors,” said student Amira Ahmed.
Students were able to grow as journalists through engaging with Writing Coaches, Editors and guest speaker journalists.
“I loved working with my Writing Coach. They were very helpful and brought new things to light,” one student wrote in our survey.
Students also connected with journalists with respected credentials. These journalists included John Lauritsen from WCCO, Frederick Melo from Pioneer Press, Christine Nguyen from Star Tribune, Sharon Yoo from KARE 11, and Mike Max from WCCO.
When it came to editing their profile stories students were given feedback in areas to improve through virtual Editors.
Not only did many students find satisfaction in finishing their stories, but some also noted how their relationships with their peers strengthened in the process.
When asked what Evan Odegard liked most about the camp, he said “making new friends” was his favorite part.
The close friendships, access to networking with professionals in the journalism industry, and gaining ways to improve on their writing skills is a privilege that comes with being a student at ThreeSixty Journalism on campus.
You’ll be able to read the profile stories in the spring ThreeSixty Magazine, which will be published in early April.
This program marks the end of ThreeSixty’s school year sessions, and the team is now looking ahead to summer camps. Applications are now open with a March 31 deadline.
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