On April 22, the American Association for the Advancement of Science announced its 2022 cohort of Mass Media Fellows: “28 young scientists who will be placed in newsrooms around the country for a summer of hands-on immersion in science journalism,” AAAS’s Project Director Elana Kimbrell wrote online.

The Mass Media Fellows are current or recent undergraduates, or graduate science students seeking to include either public writing in their scientific careers, shift entirely to science communication or use the fellowship to help them decide what is next.

The 2022 Mass Media Fellows include: Gabe Barnard who will be joining The St. Louis Post-Dispatch, Max Barnhart who will set up at NPR, and Anuraag Bukkuri who will be joining The Miami Herald.

To view the full list of Fellows, visit aaas.org/news/2022-aaas-mass-media-fellows-bring-science-their-identities-and-their-experiences-newsrooms.

Among the 28 selected Fellows is Kaveri Curlin, a 2015 Claremont High School graduate and current medical student at University of California, Irvine School of Medicine.

Curlin, who will be placed at the Philadelphia Inquirer, said in a statement to AAAS, “Medical practitioners are first-hand witnesses to the rapidly disappearing safety net in this country. Doctors see people in crisis, often with little social support, who are forced to make decisions when presented with all bad options. I think that more medical professionals should learn how to communicate what they’re observing in clinics with the greater American public.”

“I want to use my degree and expertise to continue to work towards leveling the playing field and giving everyone a fair chance.” Curlin said.

Before joining their respective newsrooms, the 28 selected fellows will travel to the AAAS Headquarters in Washington D.C. for their first in-person orientation since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. “The orientation provides fellows with a baseline of science journalism best practices to start the fellows off on the right foot,” Kimbrell wrote. Their trip is scheduled for June.

“After two years of virtual orientation, I’m really looking forward to seeing our fellows in-person again,” Kristin Lewis, project director for the fellowship, said. “The in-person experience really helps our fellows connect with each other and form a support network for their upcoming summer.”

AAAS also recently added a mentorship component to the program which pairs fellows with either MMF, The Open Notebook alumni, or host-site editors for six months following the summer fellowship.

For more information about AAAS, visit aaas.org.