Program participants gather in front of the U.S. Capitol.
This summer, a group of high school students in Washington, D.C., participated in DC Humanities’ Soul of the City Youth Leadership program. Over six weeks, 50 students learned about every aspect of modern journalism — from reporting to writing, shooting photos to producing video. The legacy of the Pulitzer Prizes served as inspiration, and recent prize winners shared tips with participants.
On August 5, the students celebrated with friends, family and the community during a showcase of their work at the Hill Center. Read their stories at CapitalStudentNews.com. Participants hailed from schools across the District, including the School Without Walls, Phelps High School, Richard Wright PCS and Woodrow Wilson High School.
Students conduct interviews at the Smithsonian FolkLife Festival.
During the course of the program, students learned from journalists at Pulitzer-winning publications such as The Washington Post and reported from the Smithsonian FolkLife Festival on the National Mall.
“I didn’t really know what to expect when going to The Washington Post. ... But when we went in there, we got to meet Cameron Blake, senior producer [and] prototype engineer. I didn’t even know that those jobs existed in a newspaper organization,” student Aaron King said.
“I interviewed some great people,” another program participant, Donald Simon, said of the group’s reporting trip to the FolkLife Festival.
Pulitzer winner Matt Wuerker hosted the students at Politico and visited Richard Wright PCS to give workshops on editorial cartooning.
“Why [do] y’all always draw his ears big? His ears [are] not that big!” one young woman jokingly protested during a demo by Wuerker.
The young journalists gained exposure and experience with broadcasters as well as at print and online outlets. Student Jasmine Wright admired the teamwork she witnessed in a cable news studio, where everyone was “working together to achieve this one big goal at the end.”
Across the city, the students found story ideas — whether at Newseum's Pulitzer Prize Photographs gallery or during a press conference on converting a out-of-commission bridge into a park.
Students look at Pulitzer-winning photographs at the Newseum.
Kendall Parks of Richard Wright PCS described a lesson she learned from three-time Pulitzer winner Michael Williamson: "Try different angles. A shot can dramatically change when the angle is changed."
For more informatin on the Soul of the City program, visit DC Humanities.
The Pulitzer Prize Centennial Campfires Initiative is a joint venture with the Federation of State Humanities Council. The initiative seeks to focus on journalism and the humanities, to imagine their future and to inspire new generations to consider the values represented by Pulitzer Prize-winning work.
We invite you to start a campfire of your own. Many schools, libraries and other organizations — like Soul of the City — already have done so. Pulitzer provides no financial aid for such projects but will help with publicity and coverage on this site and through social media.
Want to participate? Please email [email protected] and check out Centennial Campfire Guidelines. And don't forget to use the hashtag #Pulitzer100 on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.