Journalism Graduate Wins Fellowship

Forrest Valdiviez of Visalia, who received his bachelor's degree from California State University, Fresno in mass communication and journalism at the May 25th Commencement ceremony, is among 50 Fellows selected by the American Society of Newspaper Editors and Associated Press Managing Editors.

The fellowship provides Valdiviez, 27, a full-time, paid job at a newspaper for two years and an additional stipend of $20,000. His newspaper site has not yet seen selected.

The Fellows program, funded through the Freedom Forum, seeks to place journalists of color at newspapers with circulations under 75,000. The goal is to help diversify small- to mid-size papers and to provide the professional experience a new reporter needs to grow and learn.
While at Fresno State, Valdiviez served as editor-in-chief of The Collegian, the campus newspaper. In spring 2001, he won awards for editorial writing and feature photography in competition sponsored by the California Intercollegiate Press Association.

Valdiviez also was a Chips Quinn Scholar and served an internship at The Dispatch
newspaper in Lexington, N.C., last fall. The Chips Quinn Scholars program offers $1,000 scholarships to students of color who are pursuing careers in print journalism, plus hands-on training in journalism and mentoring.