Deadline: 10 December 2023
The Center for Health Journalism is accepting submissions for the California Health Equity Fellowship to support reporters in the Golden State pursuing ambitious, enterprising projects on overlooked health and health equity issues.
You decide what stories need to be told in your community to improve health outcomes and they work to support you.
Themes
- They embrace a broad view of health, which doesn’t just happen at doctors’ offices and hospitals. Health is shaped by the environment — the schools, the neighborhoods and the communities. They strive to admit Fellows whose work reflects that.
- Here are a few broad reporting themes they support in Fellowship proposals:
- Systemic racism and the root causes of health inequities;
- How food insecurity, economic stability and meeting basic needs can influence health and well-being for families or communities;
- How well justice systems, schools or health systems serve families or communities – and who is left out or disproportionately harmed;
- Housing insecurity in California – the scope of the problem and potential solutions;
- Accountability journalism on whether healthcare and social welfare systems are serving populations in need.
Fellowship Details
- Fellows join them for a busy week of in-person training and discussion on the USC Annenberg campus, where they learn from nationally renowned health experts, policy analysts and community health leaders, from top journalists in the field, and from each other. That’s followed by ongoing mentoring and virtual meetings to support Fellows across the finish line.
- The program places strong emphasis on the ways in which environmental and community conditions can influence how long and how well everyone live. The program helps fellows craft projects that engage communities from the start, and shares hard-won insights on how to land big projects that deliver maximum impact on the health and well-being of communities.
- The Fellowship training institutes are week-long programs that they spend a lot of time and energy planning so that they are valuable to the Fellows. The sessions run about six to eight hours daily with breaks. To fully absorb and appreciate this professional development opportunity, they expect participants to be free of assignments and focused on the Fellowship program.
Funding Information
- Admitted Fellows receive:
- A $2,000-$10,000 grant to help with reporting costs.
- A week of in-person intensive training.
- Five months of professional mentorship.
- Fellows also are eligible to apply for five months of professional mentorship in engaged journalism and $1,000-$2,000 to support those creative efforts.
Eligibility Criteria
- The Fellowships are open to professional journalists. Students are not eligible to apply.
- Freelancers are welcome to apply, but they must have a confirmed assignment with an outlet to be considered for acceptance.
- They welcome journalists from newsrooms both large and small.
- For most Fellowships, they prefer for candidates to have a minimum of three years of professional experience.
For more information, visit Center for Health Journalism.
