JMA Youth Media

JMA Youth Media Multimedia created, produced, and hosted by students from the Journalism and Media Academy Magnet School, CPBN Learning Lab. Hartford, CT

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Youth Radio Stories

JMA Students at the Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network are truly mastering their message in their Youth Radio Apprenticeship . With instruction from UConn Journalism Graduate/Instructor Tikeyah Whittle and help from WNPR’s staff including Executive Producer Catie Talarski, Reporter Dave DesRosche, and News Director and Host of Where We Live John Dankosky students are learning to find and tell stories that not only capture their interests, but also make for compelling and relevant conversations. Keep scrolling to find out more about each student’s individual story.

Student: Janee Johnson

Angle: Is Rap Music Offensive to Women?

Junior Janee Johnson interviewed local rapper Kamal Pope about the rap industry. She aims to figure what message Kamal thinks his music sends and why music that seems to be offensive to women continues to top the Billboard charts. 

Student: Danny White

Angle: What Will Peyton Manning’s Legacy Be?

JMA Student Danny White Spoke to Fox 61 Sports Director Rich Coppola about football. With rumors about Peyton Manning’s retirement in the media, Danny likened Peyton’s life to that of Bill Cosby’s. He wants to know whether Peyton will be remembered for his Superbowl 50 victory and his many accomplishments in his nearly 20-year career; or will his accomplishments be overshadowed by recent sexual assault allegations? 

Student: Dilano Williams

Angle: Why are Concussions in the NFL on the Rise?

According to the NFL, concussions are on the rise by 58%. Not only has talk about concussions caused debate amongst parents, coaches, heath professionals, and legislators nationwide, but it’s also trickled into pop culture with movies like “Concussion” featuring Will Smith in movie theaters across the country. Dilano hopes to understand why concussions are on the rise, and whether concussions in the NFL is steering youth football players away from the sport.

Student: Leah Kardulis

Angle: With Cake Pops on the Rise, How are Cupcake Shops Competing?  

JMA student and home baker Leah Kardulis is looking at trends and techniques in the baking industry. With cake pops becoming increasingly popular, Leah wants to figure out how cupcake shops like NoRA’s Cupcakes in CT is being affected, and what they’re doing to keep up with the trends. She also hopes to uncover why cake pops are the new trend. What about these bite-sized treats make people love them so much?

Student: Dylan Donato

Angle: Why the inconsistency in NFL punishments? 

Junior Dylan Donato is confused. How could NFL players accused of the same crime be subjected to different punishments? Dylan hopes to explore the cases and Ray Rice, LeSean McCoy, and most recently Johnny Manziel to find some possible answers. 

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JMA’s Madyson Frame on the Colin McEnroe Show

JMA Junior Madyson Frame was featured on WNPR’s The Colin McEnroe show to talk about Beyonce’s new song “Formation.” The song, which features lyrics about the police force and race relations, has stirred up a lot of controversy in recent news. Madyson explains how she’s interpreted the lyrics. 

Listen to the show here: http://wnpr.org/post/nose-keeps-hot-sauce-its-wnpr-tote-bag#stream/0 

Photo Cred: Chion Wolf, WNPR

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Student Voice: Hartford Kids Need Money to Experience the World

The following post was written by Madyson Frame, a student at the CPBN Learning Lab satellite campus for the Journalism and Media Academy magnet school in Hartford, CT.

The city of Hartford has $1.25 million dollars to use; the question at hand is what to do with that money.

The money should be spent toward exposing Hartford students to different cultures, religions and places. The Hartford school district is ranked 159th of the 162 school districts in Connecticut, according to SchoolDigger.com. 

How can the capital of Connecticut, a city in one of the richest states in America, be home to some of the lowest performing schools? The capital city must represent how great the state is, by putting the money toward Hartford schools, that problem would be dramatically decreased.

A Hartford schools student myself, I know what this money could do for all of us. Schools like High School Inc., Journalism & Media Academy, the academies of Hartford High, Global Communications, and Bulkeley, attempt to educate students while short of staff and exposure to the world. 

Thousands of kids would love to experience the outside world, but lose the chance to because they can’t afford it. According to the Hartford Public Schools website, the district predicts to have a $2.6 million deficit in funds at the end of the 2015-2016 fiscal year. Hartford schools deserve a chance to journey beyond their classroom and can be just as amazing as other schools.

Being a Junior in high school, I would love to be able to go on field trips and college tours along with other students. Yet those trips cost money. I remember being in middle school and all of our field trips were only ever to New York, Massachusetts, or somewhere else in Connecticut. The monotony of these trips fatigued students like myself.  

During my sophomore year of high school, I went with some of my classmates to Europe  – London, Paris, and Rome – during spring break. I was exposed to different forms of life. Rome gave a beautiful country feel, Paris was a true city that never sleeps, and London felt perfectly close to home. I tasted real Italian pizza, buttery french bread, and authentic fish n’ chips all in one week. 

I returned with knowledge of how to protect myself from pickpockets, an appreciation for crème brulee, and I experienced what London looks like from a Ferris wheel or Paris from its tallest tower. I was educated through experience; cultured. But High School Inc. is the only school in the district that had this opportunity, mostly because the trip was funded by Travelers at the price of $1,200 per student.

It’s only fair for other schools in the district to have such experiences. Why not have students from the Journalism & Media Academy travel to California? The students of the Hartford School District need more exposure because it will allow them to be more open and conscientious to the world around them. 

In 2002, the Institute for the International Education of Students released its IES 50-year Alumni Survey to determine the lasting impacts of studying abroad. They found that of the 17,000 college students who studied abroad between 1950 and 1999, 95 percent reported studying abroad had a lasting impact on their worldview, 80 percent said studying abroad enhanced their interest in academic study, and 78 percent reported they acquired skill sets while studying abroad that influenced their career path. 

If there is a plan to help us succeed in life then this should be part of it. Some students haven’t even been to other towns in Connecticut unless they played a high school sport. That used to be me. I want all students in this district to experience the world. The classroom shouldn’t just be one location, it should be everywhere. But too many Hartford students don’t even know what’s outside their front door.

Let it be known that because we, the children of Hartford, are the future, we need to have a say in how it looks. There are approximately 20,000 people 18 and younger in Hartford, according to SuburbanStats.org; I think this is plenty to make a change. The $1.25 million should be used on educational trips and tours for Hartford students who are most in need.

(Photo credit: Lamar Belcher)

(Editor’s note: Hartford is the first city in Connecticut to offer residents 13 and older a chance to decide how to spend $1.25 million, through a process called ‘participatory budgeting’. For more info, visit HartfordDecides.org)

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Stride for Excellence

JMA students had the chance to interview local record-setting track star Mark Doyley. In this clip, find out what got Mark running and what sport he initially thought of playing before he stumbled onto the track.

All images were taken by JMA Student Liz Gomez and edited by JMA Student Dylan Donato.

Check out our Facebook page to see a clip of the interview: https://www.facebook.com/jmahartford/  

Mark Doyley laughs after being asked the question “If life were a race, where would your finish line be?” 

Martin Michael Jr., a junior at the Journalism & Media Academy Magnet School reviews his questions for Mark.  

JMA Student Janee Johnson runs camera as Multimedia Journalism Instructor Tikeyah Whittle oversees. 

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A Passion for Psychology

“...When I see other people making fun of these people with mental illnesses, who don’t even know what they’re going through...it kind of...you know,I just wanna help them so bad that, you know I don’t wanna see them go through that pain.” - Liz Gomez, Student at JMA

Liz Gomez is a junior at Journalism and Media Academy in Hartford who has gone through something that many others have also dealt with...bullying. However, instead of constantly being the victim, she looked at her experience as a guide to help others.

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The Vicarious Athlete

"It was a slant so I was lined up on the left. I ran, turned, the pass was already in the air. I jumped, I caught it and then I got blasted..." -Khamari Israel, Student at JMA

From playing sports to reporting on them, JMA Student Khamari Israel tells the story of how an injury sidelined his football-playing dreams and directed him towards a new path.

Interviewed by JMA Student Ashana Rampertab

Edited by JMA Student Liz Gomez

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Coping with Sleep Paralysis

"I knew I was sleeping because it's like you're there, you're sleeping, but you don't know that your eyes are open."- Ashana Rampertab, Student at JMA 

Ashana Rampertab discovered she had sleep paralysis when she kept having dreams about a 'blue spider lady.' Without going to a doctor or telling her mom, she figured out a way to cope with it.

Interviewed and edited by JMA Student Janee Johnson

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Like Father, Like Son

"He'll give me like the real tough training because that's what people in the pros will get. You know? They're not going to take it easy on you; especially if they know that you have the potential" - Michael Martin Jr., Student at JMA  

JMA Student Michael Martin Jr. learned the game of soccer from his dad who played semi-pro in the late 80's. Although his dad acknowledges his progress, Martin one day hopes to prove to his father in a big way that all of his coaching paid off.

Interviewed and edited by JMA Student Dylan Donato

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Photojournalism

Juniors from the Journalism & Media Academy Magnet School put their camera skills to the test in this photojournalism exercise. These young journalists learned about aperture, and the rule of thirds -which tells the photographer to keep their subject out of the middle of the frame. They’ve captured images with those two elements in mind and then color corrected them using Adobe Photoshop. Here are some examples:

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The federal reserve has calculated the amount of American student loan debt is over $1 trillion, greater than car loan and credit card debt. Lawmakers are trying to provide relief for students.

Listen to the story, reported on by JMA students.

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Video from WNPR/CPTV “Where We Teach” conversation about elementary education. JMA students asked educators what they would change about the public education system.

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Video from WNPR/CPTV “Where We Teach” conversation about elementary education. JMA students asked educators what they would change about the public education system. 

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JMA on WNPR: Let's Talk About Sex

Shyiann Johnson, Sumar Hewitt, and Floyd Watkis spoke about sex education on WNPR's Where We Live. Listen here. 

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JMA Students Join WNPR's Where We Live, On Being a Teen

JMA seniors Shamoya Hanson and Vi'Quan Herring joined a panel discussion on WNPR's Where We Live on the stresses of being a teen. 

“Teens realize that the things that they do can be easily documented and posted online for everyone to see,” Herring said. “So they can’t act the way they want to act because they’re afraid they’ll be judged by a large group of people -- people that they don’t know; people that they don’t want to associate with.”

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Hartford Student, Born in a Nepali Refugee Camp, Prepares for College

JMA student Bishnu Khatiwada recorded an essay about her experience moving from a refugee camp in Nepal to her home in Hartford, CT. 

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How Race Affects Poverty in Connecticut

Hartford has the highest poverty rate in Connecticut at 11%. But chances are if you’re African-American, you and your family are at an increased risk of being poor.

JMA student Nick Newsome talked to Wade Gibson, Director of the Fiscal Policy Center at Connecticut Voices for Children.

Produced by: Nick Newsome, Tikeyah Whittle, Catie Talarski

CPBN's MMJ program is made possible by the Nellie Mae Foundation.

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Growing Up in Foster Care

JMA student Shyianne Johnson talks to her cousin about his experience growing up in the foster system.

Produced by: Shyianne Johnson, Sumar Hendley, Keyanna Tucker, Tikeyah Whittle, and Catie Talarski

JMA/CPBN's Multimedia Journalism program is made possible by the Nellie Mae Foundation.