Apply by April 1, 2024

Fellowships

Got an idea for an ambitious reporting or writing project?

EWA provides financial awards to qualified journalists.

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About the Fellowships

The Education Writers Association’s fellowships provide financial awards to journalists to undertake ambitious reporting projects.

View the Application Directions

Through a competitive application process, EWA offers journalists opportunities to apply, typically in the fall and spring. Additional rounds may also be offered. To learn more, check out our FAQs below.

01
  • The fellowship is limited to EWA journalist members. (You can find out more about joining EWA here. Membership is free for journalists!)
  • To qualify for the fellowship, you must submit a letter from your editor or newsroom supervisor supporting your participation in the program and providing a commitment to publish/air your work upon completion in front of a paywall, if any. 
  • Freelancers are eligible but must submit a letter from the appropriate editor at an independent news outlet confirming that their work will be published/aired upon completion in front of a paywall, if any.
02
  • Ineligible applicants include employees of professional organizations, educational institutions, think tanks, alumni periodicals, advocates — or groups focused on research, advocacy or lobbying. 
  • Officers and members of the EWA Board of Directors are not eligible to apply.
03
  • EWA will provide awards of up to $5,000 each to winning proposals
  • Recipients have significant flexibility when using the funds. Examples of appropriate uses include, but are not limited to: relief from regular newsroom responsibilities; travel for reporting; attending workshops to build knowledge and expertise; and contracting with a data journalist, photographer or writing coach.  
  • EWA expects to award approximately eight fellowships in this round.
  • Fellows will also have access to coaching from a veteran reporter if they choose. 
  • The EWA Reporting Fellowship program is supported in part by grants from Ascendium Education Group and the Wallace Foundation.
04
  • Projects must be published by Oct. 31, 2024. 
  • Fellows are required to submit final deliverables by Nov. 30, 2024. This includes story metrics captured one month after the work is published, a personal narrative explaining the reach and impact of the project, and a budget detailing line-item expenditure of fellowship funds. This information is necessary to consider the fellowship project complete.

Project Topics:

  • Efforts to remove structural barriers for low-income students in postsecondary settings.
  • Efforts to help students navigate key transitions in their postsecondary journey, whether through workforce training, transferring between institutions, or entering or reentering the workforce. 
  • Postsecondary education in prison and pathways to sustainable careers with a living wage.
  • Efforts to improve and expand postsecondary access and success in rural areas, including through training and connecting students to good jobs. 
  • Sector-based training and pathways for community college students in particular.
  • Examining programs that give students greater flexibility in accruing credits toward workforce-relevant credentials, including counting validated learning experiences outside of the traditional classroom.
  • Efforts to strengthen and diversify leadership in public K-12 schools, focusing on their impact on student learning and educator effectiveness.
  • Efforts that investigate the principal pipeline and the professional development of future school leaders.
  • Efforts to provide development and enrichment for children and teens during after-school hours, weekends and school breaks (including the summer).
  • Efforts that highlight the impact of high-quality after-school and summer programs on academic achievement, life skills and career readiness.
  • Efforts to improve the accessibility of high-quality arts education for all young people, particularly with an equity-centered lens. 
  • Efforts to investigate the role that public schools, community organizations, private funders, and government agencies play in providing youth with rich opportunities for growth, learning, and fun.
  • Efforts to foster effective social-emotional learning for children, especially those in underserved communities.
05
  • EWA will consider a number of factors, such as whether the applicant is approaching the topic from a fresh journalistic angle or using innovative tools to help tell the story. Examples include multimedia components or data analysis, and whether the proposed project will bring heightened attention to a critical issue in a compelling and insightful way.  EWA seeks to support and elevate solutions-oriented journalism. We hope the project will be the first of many stories that reporters will pursue long after the fellowship is over.
  • Finalists for an EWA Reporting Fellowship may be asked for further information before a decision is made on their applications.
06
  • We strongly encourage you to first preview the application questions and then prepare your responses and materials for submission to our online system. The link to the application is at the bottom of the preview page. 
  • Please note: Once you start your application, you cannot save your progress and continue later. After you submit your application, you cannot change your answers. 
07
  • Once you start your application, you cannot save your progress and continue later. After you submit your application, you cannot change your answers.
  • You can apply here.
  • The deadline to apply is 8:59 p.m. Eastern on Monday, April 1.
08

Before You Apply

Of 08
  • The fellowship is limited to EWA journalist members. (You can find out more about joining EWA here. Membership is free for journalists!)
  • To qualify for the fellowship, you must submit a letter from your editor or newsroom supervisor supporting your participation in the program and providing a commitment to publish/air your work upon completion in front of a paywall, if any. 
  • Freelancers are eligible but must submit a letter from the appropriate editor at an independent news outlet confirming that their work will be published/aired upon completion in front of a paywall, if any.
  • Ineligible applicants include employees of professional organizations, educational institutions, think tanks, alumni periodicals, advocates — or groups focused on research, advocacy or lobbying. 
  • Officers and members of the EWA Board of Directors are not eligible to apply.
  • EWA will provide awards of up to $5,000 each to winning proposals
  • Recipients have significant flexibility when using the funds. Examples of appropriate uses include, but are not limited to: relief from regular newsroom responsibilities; travel for reporting; attending workshops to build knowledge and expertise; and contracting with a data journalist, photographer or writing coach.  
  • EWA expects to award approximately eight fellowships in this round.
  • Fellows will also have access to coaching from a veteran reporter if they choose. 
  • The EWA Reporting Fellowship program is supported in part by grants from Ascendium Education Group and the Wallace Foundation.
  • Projects must be published by Oct. 31, 2024. 
  • Fellows are required to submit final deliverables by Nov. 30, 2024. This includes story metrics captured one month after the work is published, a personal narrative explaining the reach and impact of the project, and a budget detailing line-item expenditure of fellowship funds. This information is necessary to consider the fellowship project complete.

Project Topics:

  • Efforts to remove structural barriers for low-income students in postsecondary settings.
  • Efforts to help students navigate key transitions in their postsecondary journey, whether through workforce training, transferring between institutions, or entering or reentering the workforce. 
  • Postsecondary education in prison and pathways to sustainable careers with a living wage.
  • Efforts to improve and expand postsecondary access and success in rural areas, including through training and connecting students to good jobs. 
  • Sector-based training and pathways for community college students in particular.
  • Examining programs that give students greater flexibility in accruing credits toward workforce-relevant credentials, including counting validated learning experiences outside of the traditional classroom.
  • Efforts to strengthen and diversify leadership in public K-12 schools, focusing on their impact on student learning and educator effectiveness.
  • Efforts that investigate the principal pipeline and the professional development of future school leaders.
  • Efforts to provide development and enrichment for children and teens during after-school hours, weekends and school breaks (including the summer).
  • Efforts that highlight the impact of high-quality after-school and summer programs on academic achievement, life skills and career readiness.
  • Efforts to improve the accessibility of high-quality arts education for all young people, particularly with an equity-centered lens. 
  • Efforts to investigate the role that public schools, community organizations, private funders, and government agencies play in providing youth with rich opportunities for growth, learning, and fun.
  • Efforts to foster effective social-emotional learning for children, especially those in underserved communities.
  • EWA will consider a number of factors, such as whether the applicant is approaching the topic from a fresh journalistic angle or using innovative tools to help tell the story. Examples include multimedia components or data analysis, and whether the proposed project will bring heightened attention to a critical issue in a compelling and insightful way.  EWA seeks to support and elevate solutions-oriented journalism. We hope the project will be the first of many stories that reporters will pursue long after the fellowship is over.
  • Finalists for an EWA Reporting Fellowship may be asked for further information before a decision is made on their applications.
  • We strongly encourage you to first preview the application questions and then prepare your responses and materials for submission to our online system. The link to the application is at the bottom of the preview page. 
  • Please note: Once you start your application, you cannot save your progress and continue later. After you submit your application, you cannot change your answers. 
  • Once you start your application, you cannot save your progress and continue later. After you submit your application, you cannot change your answers.
  • You can apply here.
  • The deadline to apply is 8:59 p.m. Eastern on Monday, April 1.

Membership & Application

The fellowship is limited to journalist members of EWA. It only takes a moment to join.

Fellow Profiles

Class 17

EducationNC

Class 17

Alabama Education Lab at AL.com

Class 17

The Oregonian

Class 17

Fischr Media

Class 17

Arizona Luminaria

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The 74 Million

Class 17

The Hechinger Report

Class 17

Idaho Education News

Funders

The EWA Reporting Fellowship program is supported in part by grants from Ascendium Education Group and the Wallace Foundation.

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