NABJ Announces Three Chapters as Finalists for NABJ Student Chapter of the Year

 WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 24, 2013)—The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) is proud to announce the undergraduate chapters which have been selected as finalists for 2013’s Student Chapter of the Year Award:

• Carolina Association of Black Journalists (CABJ), University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
  

• National Association of Black Journalists Syracuse University Chapter (NABJ-SU)

• Temple Association of Black Journalists (TABJ), Temple University
  

The winner will be announced at NABJ's 38th Annual Convention and Career Fair in Orlando, FL. Each student chapter has excelled in serving NABJ, their collegiate communities and their members, with unique activities and programs. Their accomplishments demonstrate strong leadership, which help set an example for other student chapters. NABJ bases its Student Chapter of the Year Award on accomplishments and activities during the eligibility period.

Carolina Association of Black Journalists Chapter (UNC-Chapel Hill)

The Carolina Association of Black Journalists (CABJ) was a finalist for this award in 2011, and CABJ President Jasmine Cogdell said winning the top honor would have been awesome, and the experience motivated the chapter to build upon its 20-plus-year history by developing minority students into emerging journalists.

"We had our annual high school journalism workshop and about 12 – 15 high school students participated. They learned graphic design, news writing, public relations, and broadcast,” Cogdell said.  

Additionally, CABJ capitalized on digital communication and extended its reach to other universities for its college media workshop.

"We not only reached out to different colleges such as North Carolina Central University and UNC-Greensboro, but we brought in students who may be affiliated with a NABJ collegiate chapter and others who are not. We tried to persuade those students who do not have a student chapter to start building for a NABJ collegiate chapter,” she explained.

Since being founded in 1991, CABJ has been nominated five times for student chapter of the year and earned the top honor twice.

Visit CABJ Chapter Website Here 

The National Association of Black Journalists, Syracuse University Chapter

The NABJ Syracuse University Chapter (NABJ-SU) celebrated its 10^th anniversary in 2012. The celebration included  chapter began the year with a celebration with some of its chapter’s founders, and the chapter dedicated this milestone year to creative and collaborative programs.

"I’m so happy. We’ve worked really hard for this honor. Being at a PWI (Predominantly White Institution) can make it hard to do things, but we did a lot.  I’m really excited and this is awesome,” said President Christina Jones, a broadcast journalism senior from New Jersey.

The NABJ-SU chapter boasts 60 local members, of which 12 are also NABJ members.  Jones said a big catch for them was securing Roland Martin—NABJ’s 2013 Journalist of the Year Honoree—as a guest lecturer.

"We had over 200 students, faculty and ambassadors come out for that event,” Jones recalled.  "He spoke about issues on immigration, gun control and literally everything that’s going on in politics and around the world today.” The chapter event was also shared via a live feed on Facebook so other students and chapters could watch.

"Gabrielle Union also came in collaboration with Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., and she spoke on how women are perceived in the media. That was another good guest lecturer,” Jones said.

Visit NABJ-SU Chapter Website Here

Temple Association of Black Journalists (Temple University)

Learn. Network. Succeed. Those three words can be viewed not only as Temple Association of Black Journalists’ brand but also its motto.

"Usually most all of our events we try to incorporate our mission Learn.Network.Succeed,” explained TABJ’s president Haniyyah Sharpe, "We aim to provide an opportunity for the students, making sure we put our members and our students next to the professionals who are already working in the industry.”

In 2012, TABJ stepped up its involvements on campus, in the community, and industry.

"We have a relationship with Chosen 300, which is a homeless ministry in Philadelphia, where we volunteer there on a consistent basis,” Sharpe says. The founder of the ministry is a Temple University alum.

"We did several networking events where we tried to make sure we collaborated with the parent chapter PABJ (Philadelphia),” she recalled of their 11 or 12 programs hosted for the entire year. Thus, the chapter from the City of Brotherly Love is elated to be a finalist.

"It is icing on the cake.  It’s a blessing.”  But Sharpe says her greatest joy as TABJ’s leader is student’s success. "A lot of the students will come back and say they learned something from one of our programs or they got an internship as a result of networking with someone from our program.”

Visit TABJ’s Chapter Website Here

NABJ's 38th Annual Convention and Career Fair will take place July 31 – August 4, 2013 at the Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center. For additional information on registration and special events, please visit NABJ’s Convention Webpage.

An advocacy group established in 1975 in Washington, D.C., NABJ is the largest organization for journalists of color in the nation, and provides career development as well as educational and other support to its members worldwide. For more information, please visit www.nabj.org.