Past Foundation Fellows Grant Recipients

2022 Recipients

With the change to a quarterly grant process starting in spring of 2022, updates will be added as grants are awarded by the selection committee of the PNA Foundation Board of Trustees.

- - The Uptown Standard received $1,500 towards their My Story Fellowship for up to five African-American high school seniors from Philadelphia who aspire to become journalists and media professionals. Their goal is to develop future media professionals who can sustain a healthy media ecosystem while working to avoid a news desert or limited access to credible news and information in their community.
- - Bucks County Herald “On the Record” Column: The Bucks County Herald, Lahaska, was awarded a $1,500 grant to support their “On the Record: How Legislators Voted” project, featuring a weekly column of state and congressional legislation that has an impact on Bucks County. This coverage educates and informs Herald readers about the legislation and the voting records of area representatives. Grant monies will help fund a freelance writer who consults with the editor to report on topics of most interest to Herald readers.
  - Dillsburg Banner Website Rebuild Project: The Dillsburg Banner received a $1,500 grant to support the rebuilding of their website. Their goals focus on the modernizing of the website through a updated design, mobile responsiveness, increased security, improved reader engagement and valuable analytical tracking.
  - StateImpact Pennsylvania – Climate Solutions Deliberative Forum: Climate Solutions is a unique collaboration created to use community engagement, education and solutions-based journalism to help central Pennsylvanians toward climate literacy, resilience and adaptation. The major first-year event is a deliberative forum scheduled for October 1.Receiving $1,500 to fund honorariums for guest experts at the forum, StateImpact Pennsylvania – a collaboration among WITF, WHYY and the Allegheny Front – is a statewide public media collaboration covering energy, environment and climate in Pa., and convened the group under the Climate Solutions umbrella. Partners include the York Daily Record/Gannett central Pa. news organizations; two Spanish-language news organizations, Q’Hubo News and La Voz Latina; Franklin & Marshall College’s Center for Public Opinion Research (F&M); Shippensburg University; Sankofa African-American Theater Company; and WITF’s Education Department.
  - TheBurg Diversity Initiative: TheBurg, Harrisburg, is the recipient of a $1,500 grant to support its diversity efforts. TheBurg will be expanding their coverage and representation of Harrisburg’s diverse communities in the pages of their monthly publication. They plan to publish at least one additional feature story every two months. Grant monies will cover the cost of freelance writing/photography/design fees and incidentals.

2021 Recipients

Foundation Fellows Grants recipients were announced in late 2021. The selection committee of the PNA Foundation Board of Trustees awarded grants to four PNA members, donating $5,400 to enhance newsrooms across the state. Projects are ongoing with final reports available in late 2022.

The Centre Daily Times, State College, was awarded $1,500 to support its paid summer news internship that includes a fulltime beat of growth and development..
The City of Basketball Love, Philadelphia, received $1,500 to expand coverage of the 2021-22 high school and college basketball season with an extra emphasis on girls’ high school district and state playoffs.
PublicSource, Pittsburgh, earned a $1,500 grant to increase the stipend for paid interns which, in turn, enhances the pool and diversity of applicants with greater equity for emerging journalists.
The Daily Item. Sunbury, received $900 to pay for staffers to virtually participate in three days of IRE’s NICAR22 conference featuring a mix of panels, demos, hands-on and on-demand data training.

2020 Recipients

In 2020, the selection committee of the PNA Foundation Board of Trustees awarded grants to four PNA members.

The Centre Daily Times was awarded $1,500 to enhance their Penn State podcast, “The Lions Lair,” while expanding their audience and driving digital subscriptions. For more details, read the CDT’s final report.
The Chestnut Hill Local received $1,500 to help in the creation of a new publication focusing on the Wissahickon area reaching out to an extended audience and appealing to additional advertisers. Review the Wissahicken final report.
PublicSource earned a $1,500 grant to support reporting for the Open Campus initiative, providing targeted and in-depth coverage of higher education institutions and trends. Check out the 2020 Public Source final report.
Tioga Publishing received $1,500 to enhance their podcast “What We Hear in the Northern Tier,” improving their online presence and connections with weekly newspapers’ audience. For further information, Tioga’s final report is available.

2019 Recipients

In December 2019, the PNA Foundation announced its first-ever Foundation Fellows Grants recipients. The selection committee of the PNA Foundation Board of Trustees awarded grants to PNA members PublicSource, Pittsburgh, and Tioga Publishing Company, Wellsboro.

PublicSource earned a $1,500 grant to support a new POWER MAP project that will provide residents of Allegheny County with a searchable database of taxpayer-funded boards, authorities and commissions. A final report was submitted in 2020.
Tioga Publishing received $700 to assist in creating a podcast to stay connected with their weekly newspapers’ audiences. Read Tioga’s report.