"Hometown" guidelines, for students

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Have any questions?

Reach out to our Chapter Relations email address (chapters@betterjournalism.org) for assistance regarding guidelines, requirements, and submissions.

Journalism advisers should review guidelines prior to assigning this collaboration.

PBJ is proud to announce our first collaboration effort for Fall 2016, "Hometown"! We want our chapter schools to come together and produce something highlighting each school's uniqueness and background.

Topic

Have you ever wondered what parts of your community are particularly special? When you think of your home and its surroundings, what stands out? What makes your community strong and what makes it weak? And what role do you and your classmates play in the community?

In this assignment, you’ll have the opportunity to creatively express your perspective on your hometown or community. Your submission will be displayed alongside other submissions by students all across the country—and many of them will have very different responses to the idea of “Hometown”! You’ll be able to view them on an interactive website, with many forms of expression.

The theme of this assignment is "Hometown":

• What's distinct about your community? What is its setting—geographic or urban/suburban/rural—and how has that setting contributed to its uniqueness?
• Are there specific elements to your community that make it shine—specific individuals, cultural elements, or particular diversity—or make it weak?
• In the recent context of your community, how has your community evolved in response to events, challenges, and changes?

Guidelines

You can submit anything you’d like. The only requirement is that your submission substantially relate to the theme and tell a compelling story.

You can submit anything, including but not limited to—

• Non-fiction written work (articles, profiles, personal essays, interviews, etc.)
• Creative written work (short stories, essays significantly relating to your hometown, poetry, etc.)
• Video and other motion media (documentary, artistic portrayal of your hometown, etc.)
• Photo essays or collages that tell a story
• Creative artwork (prints, paintings, etc)
• Audio work (podcast, spoken word, original music composition, etc.)

Results and awards

We'll create a digital collage and collaborative website revolving around that theme-- with many forms of expression accepted, including essays, interviews, art, poems, photos, videos, and any other media as appropriate. The submissions will be made public.

Some chapters have made submissions to the collaboration mandatory for credit or for extra credit, but all PBJ chapter schools are eligible. We'll select several pieces for awards based on merit and creativity, and also award a $50 giftcard for an especially creative piece.

FAQ

Who can participate?

Any student attending a PBJ chapter school is eligible to participate. PBJ volunteer staff members, and their close relatives, are still eligible to participate and win awards but are not eligible for the $50 giftcard prize.

When must I submit?

The deadline for submission is December 1, 2016 at 11:59pm ET. Exceptions are granted only in special circumstances.

How do I submit?

1. Fill out the submission form before the deadline.
2. Email the Collaborations mailbox with your work attached and your full name, school name, and state in the subject line.
3. If your submission cannot be attached (e.g. large video file, etc), please share with us the nature of your submission and we will follow up with special submission instructions.
4. (If your adviser/teacher has required you to complete additional steps-- like turning in your assignment to your teacher-- please follow those steps as well.)

How do I view the results?

We will release the results, award winners, and recipient of the gift card in 1-2 weeks following the December 1 submission deadline. There are no limits to how many submissions will be featured, although we do reserve the right to balance content across school chapters, geographic regions, and school backgrounds. We also reserve the right not to feature work that we do not feel is refined, finished, or substantial.