2025 Urban Student Journalism Academy

Saturday, June 21 & Saturday, June 28, 2025 
at the Urban League of Greater Kansas City
1710 the Paseo Blvd.

KCABJ is a not-for-profit corporation registered with the Secretary of State of Missouri and affiliated with the National Association of Black Journalists.

KCABJ was founded in 1981, and this year it celebrates its 44th anniversary as an organization of professional black journalists. This is the 34th KCABJ Urban Student Journalism Academy. Many graduates of the program are established in the field or are pursuing careers in journalism.   For more information about the academy or the Kansas City Association of Black Journalists call  KCABJ Academy Coordinator Glenn E. Rice at 816-234-4341 or grice@kcstar.com.

About The Urban League of Greater Kansas City
The Urban League of Greater Kansas City has been part of the national network of Urban Leagues since 1919. Its mission is to enable African Americans and other disadvantaged persons to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power and civil rights. The Urban League’s programs provide assistance to area residents to help them gain employment and build sustainable careers.  The Kansas City Association of Black Journalists is committed to working with high school and college students to prepare them for careers in print and broadcast journalism or other communications fields. This year's academy continues that tradition in the Urban League’s continuing education classroom. 
The 2025 KCABJ Urban Journalism Academy is free to students. It is a commuter program and is conveniently located on a bus line in the Urban League’s newly remodeled high-tech classroom in  the 18th & Vine Jazz Heritage District. Each student is responsible for his or her own transportation to and from the KCABJ academy each day. Class begins at 9 a.m. and ends at 3 p.m. 
This academy is unique in our area because it is taught by journalists working for newspapers, television and radio stations, in public relations and new media in Greater Kansas City. Educators will add their knowledge to the instruction. Students will be: 
— Assigned stories to report and write. 
— They will work on computers. 
— Study social media 
— Benefit from lectures from major newsmakers.
— Network with influential people. 
— Produce their own internet publication and radio and television newscasts.   Every student who attends the academy leaves with enhanced reading, writing, analytical, communication and questioning skills. Teachers and parents have said teenagers and young adults have returned from the summer program energized and far more interested and able to learn than before.

Students must be vaccinated.
To Apply 
1. Write a one-page essay on the role people of color should have in journalism. 
2. Send one sample of your writing — if possible something that has been published (e.g. an article in your school newspaper). We are seeking committed students who are not afraid of hard work and who already have a demonstrated interest in journalism. 
3. Scan and email the completed application, your essay and writing sample by Friday, May 30, 2025, to glennerice1911@yahoo.com.
Academy Application
Name_____________________________________ 
Email:____________________________________ 
Male______ Female _______ Genderqueer/non-binary ______ Prefer not to disclose ______
Birth date_________ 
Address___________________________________ 
City_________________ State/ZIP _____________ 
Phone ____________________________________ 
School Name_______________________________ 
Year in School ______________________________ 
GPA_______________________________________ 
Journalism/English/Yearbook Teacher's Name: 
___________________________________________ 
In which area are you most interested? Rank
each 1, 2, 3 or 4 with your favorite being #1. 

_____Newspaper  Television ________ 
______Radio   Public Relations _____

List journalism and/or writing experience in courses you have taken or media companies where you've worked:________________________________________________________ 
_________________________________________________________________________ 
On a separate sheet of paper list your career goals and why you want to attend this academy. 

Student signature_______________________________________ 
Signature of Parent/Legal Guardian_____________________________________________

 

 

KCABJ Urban Student Journalism Scholarships

The KCABJ-Lucile H. Bluford Scholarship. Ms. Bluford had been the longtime editor and publisher of The Call of Kansas City. She continued in that job until she died in June 2003 at age 91. Ms. Bluford used the pages of The Call to promote civil rights and helped open journalism more to people of color.

The KCABJ-Roy Wilkins Scholarship has been awarded since 1987. It is named after a former editor of The Call of Kansas City, Roy Wilkins, who also served as head of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People during the Civil Rights Movement.

The KCABJ-Laura R. Hockaday Scholarship is named after Laura Hockaday, who until she retired in 2000 was the longtime society editor of The Kansas City Star. Hockaday has received numerous awards for making her work for the newspaper inclusive of the racial, ethnic, gender and other diversity in Greater Kansas City.

The KCABJ-Nancy Diuguid Scholarship is funded by longtime KCABJ Treasurer Lewis Diuguid. The scholarship is named for his mother, who died in 1994 of Alzheimer’s disease. Nancy Diuguid had longed to be a journalist, but such career options were mostly closed to young black women in the 1950s.
 

Scholarships

Students selected for the workshop will compete for scholarships offered by KCABJ. The awards go to the best students in the class. 
The class size will be limited to 12. Many of our graduates are award-winning journalists today. 

Each scholarship award is based on the student's performance during the journalism academy.