"Thank you NASW for believing in me and helping me to make this exciting step in my career." That statement by science writer Erica Gies echoes the sentiments of 16 science writers who received NASW career development grants in 2009.
"Thank you NASW for believing in me and helping me to make this exciting step in my career."
That statement by science writer Erica Gies echoes the sentiments of 16 science writers who received NASW career development grants in 2009.
Gies has been a print freelance for five years. In an effort to maximize her adaptability to rapid changes in journalism, last year she began an internship at a local public radio station in order to push herself writing for another medium.
Gies used NASW funding to travel to Guyana to report on innovative approaches to climate change and sustainable development for NPR's "The World" and the International Herald Tribune. She interviewed Guyana's president, prime minister, and the minister of foreign affairs as well as its major indigenous leader and a host of other Guyanese.
"That experience built my confidence in all areas of my work, from pitching editors to conducting interviews with VIPs to using new technology," Gies said. "The NASW grant was critical to making this trip possible."
Barbara Moran used grant funding to hire a sound engineer who advised her on the purchase of sound-recording gear and then taught her how to properly use it.
"It has been a great boon to my reporting," she said.
Moran is now exploring an oral history project to accompany her next book.
"This new gear, and the skills to use it, makes the idea plausible," Morgan said.
A training course in Final Cut Pro allowed grant recipient David Taylor to advance from "toying with" editing software to producing his own webcasts. This new-found knowledge also formed the basis for a documentary workshop he developed for The Writer's Center, in Bethesda, Md.
Taylor also increased his knowledge base by attending the Society of Environmental Journalists conference in Madison using NASW funds. A roundtable discussion with U.S. cabinet leaders gave him starting points for a policy article on green chemistry and the context for ongoing work.
And, the remainder of Taylor's grant supported a trip to Colorado where he visited the National Renewable Energy Lab for an inside look at solar photovoltaic technology.
"I saw NREL amid renewed federal commitment to its research and a new lab where companies test commercial scale-up of solar materials and processes," he said. "That yielded an article in Environmental Health Perspectives."
In Denver, Taylor attended the New Energy Forum where energy startups hone their investment pitches before a panel of judges, a la "American Idol." Forbes Asia welcomed Taylor's pitch for a story stemming from that experience.
Freelance Nancy Lamontagne's ability to cover travel expenses to the 2009 Society for Neuroscience conference, in Chicago, made it possible for her to take on a blogging assignment at the meeting for Microscopy and Analysis magazine.
"I was glad to get more blogging experience and to spend time working with the magazine's staff at the conference," she said.
In addition, Lamontagne reconnected with individuals she'd worked with in the past and networked with potential new clients.
"I let people know about the blog I author, which has helped increase visitors," she said. "I came away from the conference with new connections and excited about the new technology I saw."
A career development grant allowed Bob Roehr to attend the 2009 National HIV Prevention Conference, in Atlanta; the CDC's premiere event in the field.
"I was able to provide news coverage for the gay and HIV communities, which are underserved by the mainstream media," he said.
Roehr also attended a first-of-its-kind meeting of "HIV controllers" and researchers, held in San Francisco. Controllers are persons whose immune systems are somehow able to hold HIV in check for extended periods of time. Understanding this is thought to be crucial to making the next breakthroughs in treating and perhaps preventing the disease. The access resulted in an article for Scientific American online that was featured on the digg home page.
"I'm working on other articles, have conducted additional interviews, and have made a long-term commitment to following this story," Roehr said.
Linda Roach acquired graphics and web-design savvy as a result of her NASW support. Not only has this helped her stretch and garner "clips," but she now feels "comfortable talking about the same old skills I used in newspapers, but with a computer-driven language."
Recently, Roach applied her DreamWeaver skills in support of the Mensa Annual Gathering, in Dearborn, Mich., as editor to the design artist who conceived logos, ads, layouts, and promotional buttons and T-shirts for the meeting.
Roach, who will co-chair publicity/marketing efforts for the 2011 Mensa Annual Gathering in Portland, Ore., is also using the knowledge of social media, gained through her new technology awareness, to work with Mensa's tech staff as they conceptualize outreach efforts for next year's meeting, such as geotagged walking maps, beer guides, bike routes.
"I never would have paid any attention to this, or acquired the knowledge to go forward with it without NASW," she said. "In short, NASW's support was just what I needed to get me started on a road that I really had avoided prior to this."
NASW continues to award career development grants to support education, training, or other activities intended to help established science writers continue or advance in today's rapidly changing media environment. The grants, which reimburse individuals up to $2,500 for proposed activities, are supported by funds that NASW receives from the Authors Coalition of America, which distributes royalties on U.S. copyrights collected overseas.
The current round of funding attracted 36 applicants with requests totaling $68,500, once again far exceeding the $25,000 available. Faced with many more worthy proposals than could be funded, awards were based on how effectively projects would meet the specific challenges facing applicants and how well they fit the applicant's background, experience, abilities, and goals.
Given the high level of member interest, NASW plans to offer a third round of career development grants. An e-mail announcement will be sent to members with proposal instructions and the application deadline date.
Congratulations to:
- Christie Aschwanden, freelance writer, $2,200 for organizing a seminar for writers on coping with the changing media environment
- Erika Beras, behavioral health reporter, WDUQ 90.5FM, $2,500 for radio equipment to facilitate freelance work
- Nancy Marie Brown, freelance writer, $1,300 to attend Chatauqua Conference on children's writing
- Christine Buckley, media relations associate, University of Connecticut, $2,088 for multimedia training
- Jennie Dusheck, freelance writer, $780 for travel to pursue development of a website on evolution
- Fred Gebhart, freelance writer, $2,500 for courses in regulatory affairs
- Mary King Hoff, freelance writer, $1,500 for online digital media courses
- Karen Hoffman, freelance writer, $200 for online course in how to pitch magazine articles
- Roxanne Khamsi, senior news editor, Nature Medicine, $1,119 for multimedia equipment
- David M. Lawrence, freelance writer, $2,495 for photography and audio equipment
- David Levine, freelance writer, $570 for grant-writing workshop
- Laura V. Lombardi, science writer, European Space Agency, $328 for online astronomy courses
- Betsy Mason, science editor, Wired.com, $1,257 for digital photography courses
- Fenella Saunders, senior editor, American Scientist, $2,490 for Knight Digital Media Center multimedia bootcamp
- Laurie J. Schmidt, freelance writer, $1,600 to attend IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society (IGARSS) symposium
- Cheryl Platzman Weinstock, freelance writer, $2,250 for "The Backpack Journalist" training at Poynter Institute
Lynne Friedmann is editor of ScienceWriters.
(NASW members can read the rest of the Summer 2010 ScienceWriters by logging into the members area.)
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