The Scripps Howard Foundation has announced the inaugural cohort for its postgraduate journalism fellowships.

Launched in partnership with ProPublica, the Scripps News Washington Bureau, and Newsy, Scripps' next-generation national news network, the intensive yearlong program is aimed at developing a diverse pool of talented young journalists with the foundational skills for future leadership. Four journalists were selected from more than five hundred and forty applicants to work with reporters and editors in the newsrooms of Scripps News Washington Bureau/Newsy or ProPublica and will also participate in off-site sessions focused on leadership development, project management, and entrepreneurial skills.

The inaugural Howard Scripps Journalism Fellows are Aysha Bagchi, a graduate of Harvard Law School and a Rhodes Scholar who wrote for the Stanford Daily as an undergraduate (Scripps Washington Bureau and Newsy); Barbara Marcolini, an associate video producer at the New York Times and a graduate of the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism who holds certificates in data journalism and entrepreneurial journalism (ProPublica); Kenny Jacoby, an award-winning investigative reporter who has written for Sports Illustrated, the Washington Post, NBC, and the Chronicle of Higher Education (Scripps Washington Bureau/Newsy); and Sophie Chou, a data journalist at Public Radio International with degrees in media arts and sciences as well as computer science who previously served as a researcher for the Pew Research Center on a Google fellowship (ProPublica).

"Since our founding, the Scripps Howard Foundation has made it our mission to develop the next generation of leaders in journalism," said Scripps Howard Foundation president and CEO Liz Carter. "We believe this program will help these journalists continue to develop the skills needed to uncover the stories that shape our communities as well as the qualities needed to lead effectively."

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