Menifee 24/7 introduces student internship program

A note from the editor:

Today Menifee 24/7 announces the creation of an internship program for local high school students, allowing them the opportunity to develop their journalism skills and display them on our website.

As editor of Menifee 24/7 and a professional journalist for 40 years, I have always enjoyed working with high school and college students who are interested in the communications field. Of course, the industry has changed considerably in recent years, with online news coming to the forefront. As a faculty member for 12 years previously at Cal Poly Pomona and now a journalism advisor at Mt. San Jacinto College, I have continued to work with young people who are preparing for the work force, helping them discover all phases of this diversified field.

Whether they end up working as a journalist or in other careers, communication skills will be crucial to their success. This student internship program is designed to give high school students a learning lab as well as a platform for their work on a professional news website. Many will receive class credit for this experience. In addition, this provides our readers with more coverage of area high schools from those who are most familiar with the events there.

The interns' work will be displayed in the appropriate section of our website, as well as our Facebook page. You can always find their stories, photos and videos in the new Schools section of menifee247.com as well. Some students will also be working behind the scenes, learning marketing and graphic design techniques.

The first school represented in our intern program is Santa Rosa Academy. Today you will find coverage of the Rangers' season-opening football victory as reported via story, photos and videos by three Santa Rosa students. You can find a link to their work here. The work of students from Heritage and Paloma Valley high schools will featured soon.

We appreciate the opportunity to work with these students. We hope you enjoy their contributions and will notice the improvement as they progress in the student internship program.

Doug Spoon