December 2005

Two student journalists earn prestigious Dow Jones internships

After filling out applications, writing essays and taking editing tests, Staci Jordan and Aaron Kidd, students from the School of Journalism and Mass Communications, learned they had been selected for two of this summer’s Dow Jones Newspaper Fund copy editing internships.

Jordan and Kidd were chosen from more than 600 candidates for two of the 114 internships.

Jordan earned a spot at the Tampa Tribune, and Kidd will work at the Portsmouth Herald in New Hampshire. They will also receive free pre-internship training and weekly salaries for a minimum of 10 weeks.

“I was in the middle of a final exam when the call came in,” said Kidd. “I couldn’t answer the phone in class, but I saw Dow Jones on the caller ID and was completely shocked. I could barely focus on my final after that.”

Jordan had a similar experience. “I got the call right as I was leaving a final, so that put me in a much better mood. I was so excited that as soon as the call ended, I called my mom and my sister,” she said.

Copy editing instructor Doug Fisher urged the students to apply for the internships. They credit professor Fisher for giving them the editing skills necessary to pass the hour-long editing test.

Jordan and Kidd are determined to advance their journalism careers after graduation. Jordan, a visual communications major, wants to be a copy editor or designer and attend graduate school. Kidd, a print journalism major, hopes to return to New York City and work as a reporter or copy editor for The New York Observer.