Journalists can apply by Dec. 7 to attend program on "Saving Local News: A Practical Guide"

Kiplinger Fellows 
(Photo from Kiplinger website)

Journalists can apply for a 2026 Kiplinger Fellowship by Dec. 7 to join journalists from across the United States and around the world for a week of learning with top industry leaders and professionals.

The focus of the Kiplinger Fellowship will be on "Saving Local News: A Practical Guide" and will be held at the Scripps College of Communication on the Ohio University campus in Athens, Ohio, May 11-14, 2026.

The Kiplinger Fellowship is a program that trains journalists to tackle critical issues that impact the industry. Fellowships provide lodging, most meals, free training and include a travel stipend.

The Institute for Rural Journalism at the University of Kentucky and the Local News Initiative at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism will be helping with the program as well. 

Application instructions are found here. Click here to apply.

A high school public health care boarding school is planned in Alabama; part of its mission is to serve rural counties

Alabama will launch a high school focused on health
care. (Adobe Stock photo)

Amid national health care provider shortages, Alabama is investing in a high school public health care boarding school "to address [the state's] health care staffing crisis, particularly in rural parts of the state, by training students for roles across the medical field," reports Alander Rocha of the Alabama Reflector. The board "overseeing the creation laid the groundwork to select a leader and prepare a curriculum."

With planning under way, the school "is scheduled to enroll its inaugural ninth-grade class in 2026," Rocha writes. "Rob Pearson, interim president of the Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences Foundation, said that the school will offer 'certification levels beyond what’s currently available in Alabama high schools for those looking to become health care professionals.'"

Health disparities between the state's rural and urban populations, which are particularly dire along the Black Belt, motivated health care leaders and stakeholders to work creatively to increase health care access in rural areas. Rocha reports, "The Black Belt experiences some of the state’s worst health outcomes, and Alabama already ranks among the lowest nationally. Life expectancy in every Black Belt county is below the state average of nearly 75 years."

Demopolis is in Marengo
County, Ala. (Wikipedia)

True to its rural service mission, the new Alabama School of Healthcare Sciences will be built in Demopolis, a small town with roughly 7,000 residents in west-central Alabama. State Superintendent Eric Mackey "said the school’s recruitment strategy will focus on drawing students from across the state to build a workforce pipeline beyond those wanting to attend medical school, like nursing," Rocha reports. The school "will join a network of specialized boarding schools, including the Alabama School of Cyber Technology and Engineering."

Through their initiative to establish high schools focused on health care, Bloomberg Philanthropies "is providing $26 million of the estimated $80 million needed," Rocha adds. "A groundbreaking expected by mid-2025. . . . The school is the only rural residential school funded by Bloomberg."

States work to entice younger people back to rural communities and also attract new residents to live there

Stay Work Play NH's Policy and Pints series at Post and
Beam Brewing. (The Daily Yonder photo)

Some states are using new ways to get younger people to return to or join rural communities and put down roots. "States like Kansas, Nebraska, and New Hampshire are working hard to attract and retain younger generations," reports Caroline Tremblay for The Daily Yonder. The goal of each state's plan is to get previous rural residents to return and to attract new residents. To entice both groups, planners and policymakers have created platforms for conversations where younger people's ideas and voices are valued and used by decision makers.

In rural Kansas, the Kansas Sampler Foundation implemented a "PowerUp" identifier for younger residents "between the ages of 21 and 39ish," Tremblay explains. "A PowerUp is someone who is rural by choice. . . . Many PowerUps KSF has interviewed express wanting a sense of community, especially when it comes to raising kids, and a number have voiced entrepreneurial aspirations."

Nebraska's approach to gaining younger residents is to invite those who left to come home and add their valued gifts to their hometown communities. State activist Megan Helberg "is one of many spreading the message that young Nebraskans should go explore but then bring their greatness back," Tremblay reports. "In 2024, Helberg's senior class had six graduates, all of whom are heading off to college. But 75% are committed to coming back to help with an existing business or start one of their own."

New Hampshire has its own twist on helping younger people look at the state's rural places in a new way called Stay Work Play. The non-profit hosted conversational sessions that took place across the state's colorful brewery scene where state policymakers and planners could hear what younger residents needed to enjoy and stay in New Hampshire. "Unsurprisingly, housing and childcare were high on the list," Tremblay writes. "Stay Work Play is supporting greater investments in the state’s workforce housing fund and advocating for the ability to build smaller units on smaller lot sizes."

Rural journalists among Editor & Publisher's annual '25 under 35' to watch and to learn from

Some rural journalists are included in Editor & Publisher magazine's annual "25 under 35," newspaper executives under 35 who have "business acumen to lead through trying times and vision to implement bold, new strategies to move their newspapers forward." They are:

Sara Konrad Baranowski, 34, editor, Times Citizen, Iowa Falls, Iowa: "As a crossover reporter with the paper’s in-house radio station and now as editor, she has led the convergence effort within the company and has published a book focusing on the topic of newspaper evolution and the different business models being pursued. Her advice for peers: "Be ambitious. When you have the opportunity to learn a new skill, take it."

Danielle Gordon-Broome, 28, editor, Swan Valley Star and Times, Swan River, Manitoba, "has encouraged the use of social media in the newsroom and increased traffic to the paper’s website. In addition, she directed a massive update and redesign of the newspaper layout that had not been done in more than 15 years." Her advice for peers: "It’s not your background or education that makes you a good journalist. It’s your dedication, your passion, your creativity and the vision you put behind every piece."

Tommy Felts, 31, managing editor, The Ottawa Herald, Ottawa, Kansas: "he literally wears his pride for the newspaper on his personally-purchased company polo shirts daily though he knows wearing it often may invite as many critiques as it does praise from the public," says Editor-Piblisher Jeanny Sharp. Felts's advice for peers: "Don’t ignore journalism industry trends, but don’t follow them blindly either."

Adam Silverman, 35, associate editor for news and audience development, Burlington Free Press, Vermont: "Silverman was elevated to associate editor last year due in part to his leadership, dedication and work in helping the Free Press shift from a broadsheet to a compact tabloid." His advice for peers: "Be tenacious, fearless and flexible. We have a great public trust as journalists, and it’s incumbent upon us to take that seriously. . . . Vigorously pursue your watchdog role."

Eric Lane Stearley, 24, editor, The Paper of Wabash County, Wabash, Indiana: "Stearley strives to bring his audience of 16,000 the most current, relevant, and meaningful news stories, paired with stunning images in an updated layout." His advice for peers: "Don’t underestimate your community. Great journalism doesn’t have to come from a big city publication, and it doesn’t have to have a global focus." (Read more)