AAAS MAKES PLANS FOR MINORITY UNDERGRAD INTERNSHIPS

by Jeffrey Mervis

President Bill Clinton used to talk about the importance of an administration “that looks like America” to better address the needs of the entire country. The science writing community, for all its strengths, doesn’t come close to fitting that description. And we’re probably missing important stories because of it.

With that goal in mind, AAAS is launching a summer internship program in 2005 for minority undergraduates who want to become science writers. The idea is to give them a taste of the real thing by spending a summer at Science (and eventually other science publications and media outlets in town, too). It’ll be a paid internship in which they’ll be mentored and encouraged to do as much as they can handle. We’ll start small and expand as circumstances permit. The hope is that the interns will return to their campuses - or go out into the world - infected with the science-writing “bug” and become productive members of the profession.

For that to happen, however, we’ll need the best possible candidates. By the fall we should have a Web site (www.aaas.org/mswi) up that describes the program and contains an application with a deadline of Feb. 1, 2005. We’ll be looking for minority undergraduates, ideally rising juniors and seniors, who have demonstrated a commitment to journalism but who have not been exposed to science writing.

If you know someone who might be a good fit, let them know about the program (and let me know about them). We’re also looking for NASW members willing to make 1-2 day visits to minority-serving institutions with solid journalism programs. It’s an opportunity to share your knowledge and spread the word about science writing. AAAS would pick up the tab. The number of visits would depend on the funds available.

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Jeffrey Mervis is a deputy news editor at Science. He can be reached at jmervis@aaas.org.