TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- The University of Alabama journalism department has selected 15 top high school students to attend its 22nd annual Multicultural Journalism Workshop July 10-21 on campus.

The students chosen for this workshop will attend class, complete assignments, visit newspaper and broadcast newsrooms, live in UA’s Parker-Adams dorms, eat at Burke Commons and learn about college life. They will have the opportunity to practice journalism in the facilities of one of the nation’s leading communication programs in the UA College of Communication and Information Sciences. C&IS facilities include computer labs, photo and research labs, as well as broadcast studios and multimedia classrooms. More than 80 percent of past MJW attendees have attended college, and about half of those selected UA.

Students eligible for this workshop are those who will be entering the 9th grade to incoming fall 2005 college freshmen. This year’s class includes students from Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi, Washington, South Carolina and Tennessee. They will study and practice journalism under UA faculty and top journalists, learning how professionals report, write and present the news in print, online and on air.

Visiting Professionals Day is a part of the workshop designated to provide students with advice and mentoring from leading professionals in the field of journalism. Although visiting professionals are present throughout the 10-day workshop, on this day as many as two dozen professionals, contributing their time at no cost, coach the students as they prepare their stories and images for publication and presentation.

The workshop is one of the oldest of its kind in the country and is part of the College’s Multicultural Journalism Program, which includes year-round assistance with job placement, attendance at job fairs and a student interest group called the Capstone Association of Black Journalists and Mass Communicators. The department maintains a database of all MJW alums that is used by news media across the nation to find top prospects. Former workshop attendees return each summer to mentor the new group.

“More than 1,000 minority students have come through our doors and walked out a few years later to take their place as a journalist, one of the most important roles in a democratic society. This workshop was the first step for many of them,” said Dr. Ed Mullins, UA professor of journalism, who will direct this summer’s workshop. Past participants have joined the media profession with top newspaper, magazine, broadcasting, public relations, advertising and online organizations.

While the focus is on attracting minorities because of their low representation in the media, students who are not a member of a minority group are also eligible to attend, with emphasis on first-generation college-bound students.

Applicants are accepted on the basis of their interest in a journalism career and completion of an application that includes a transcript of grades, evidence of high school journalism activities and other writing, and a recommendation from a publications adviser, guidance counselor or professional journalist.

Students interested in attending the 2006 workshop can request an application form by writing the Journalism Department, University of Alabama, Box 870172, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487. They can also download a form from www.ccom.ua.edu/mjw.

All costs of the workshop, except travel to and from Tuscaloosa, are paid through grants. Students receive transportation, meals, housing and supplies. Sponsors for 2005 include the Dow Jones Newspaper Fund, Alabama Press Association, Alabama Broadcasters Association, Mobile Register, Cox Radio, Mercedes-Benz US International and The Tuscaloosa News.