For immediate release
Sept. 1, 1998
NPR Receives Major Diversity Grant from Kellogg Foundation


Washington, DC - National Public Radio® (NPR®) has received its largest ever training and recruiting grant, an $800,000 grant over a two-year period, effective immediately, from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The grant is designed to develop the skills and career opportunities of early to mid-level public radio journalists, especially those who are people of color.

"We're committed to fostering an atmosphere that values diversity throughout the public radio system and expands the excellence of the programming we create," said NPR Vice President, Human Resources Kathleen Jackson. "This grant from the Kellogg Foundation enables us to recruit candidates from diverse backgrounds and provide career development for journalists at NPR and our member stations."

The grant will expand public radio's recruiting visibility, including job candidates who are people of color. It also provides for three separate professional development initiatives, each of which provides significant opportunities for journalists from diverse backgrounds:

• The Mentoring Initiative is meant to foster the skills of people of color at early stages in their media careers. It will provide ten months of intensive on-the-job training and one-on-one mentoring to six public radio journalists.
• The Mid-Career Fellowship Program will augment the talents of twelve journalists already working in public radio. Participants will spend two months working at NPR under the guidance of seasoned NPR editors and producers, honing their reporting, editing and production skills.
• The NPR Residency Program will enable twelve current NPR journalists to broaden their experience by participating in three-month residencies in an area of the News division that is different from their usual assignment.

Journalists who are interested in applying for one of these programs may contact Cathy Raines at craines@npr.org or 202-414-2913.

The W.K. Kellogg Foundation was established in 1930 to "help people help themselves through the practical application of knowledge and resources to improve their quality of life and that of future generations." Its programming activities center around the common visions of a world in which each person has a sense of worth; accepts responsibility for self, family, community and societal well-being; and has the capacity to be productive, help create nurturing families, responsive institutions and healthy communities.

Renowned for its journalistic excellence and providing standard-setting news, information and cultural programming, NPR serves a growing audience of 13 million Americans each week on 600 member stations. NPR also distributes programs to radio, satellite and cable listeners in Europe, Asia and Africa via NPR Worldwide, to military installations overseas via American Forces Network, and throughout Japan via the USEN 440 cable service.