WASHINGTON, D.C. — Gabriella Donovan, a junior from Presque Isle High School, was one of three students from Maine who attended the Washington Journalism and Media Conference July 12-17.
The WJMC is an event hosted by George Mason University, partnered with the Newseum, and is held at the George Mason University campus. It is held for outstanding high school students from all around the country who are future journalists and aspiring leaders.
Donovan and Marcie Young, an English teacher at Presque Isle High School, recently discussed the experience. The six-day event is very formal and sophisticated, Donovan explained, and she had to wear dresses every day, except for the day that the students went sightseeing.
When Young received the invitation to nominate a student to attend the Washington Journalism and Media Conference, Donovan was the first person who came to her mind.
“I’ve worked with Gabriella for two years on the yearbook — she sells ads for us. I know that she’s a go-getting student who would love this opportunity. I wanted Washington D.C. to see her,” Young said.
Three students from Maine attended WJMC. The other two students were from Mattanawcook Academy. Gabriella was the only student from Aroostook County to attend. Both Gabriella and Mrs. Young could not recall a student from Presque Isle High School ever attending the Washington conference before. In all, 300 students were at the event.
Donovan said when the three students got to Washington, D.C., they were greeted by U.S. Senator Susan Collins, which was very exciting for Donovan. She said her favorite part of attending WJMC was visiting the Newseum, a museum in the capital. that is dedicated to news and journalism. The museum has 250,000 square feet full of history, galleries and beautiful exhibits.
When asked what the hardest part of attending the conference was, Donovan jokingly replied, “Meeting the 299 other people that were there.”
During their six days, the students attending had the opportunity to listen to some guest speakers who are very well known in the journalism and news world. Nicole Livas, an anchor on WAVY news, delivered the keynote speech. Also there were Susan Goldberg, the first woman to be editor in chief of the National Geographic and News; Carol Guzey, a photojournalist who is one of the four people to receive four Pulitzer Prizes; and Sonya Ross, the first race and ethnicity editor for Associated Press, who was also one of the few journalists who were able to go with George W. Bush to safety after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001.
Guzey is Donovan’s favorite guest speaker of all time. On her blog dedicated to her conference experiences, Donovan posted:
“She shared the story and photos of tragic events that took place in Haiti, 9/11 and ethnicity wars in Africa. Her images were powerful and truly spoke 1,000 words.”
While listening to these speakers, Donovan learned something very important: Keep pushing for what you want. Each guest speaker was told ‘No’ at some point, and now they are some of the most successful people in their field.
Donovan is interested in the organization of journalism: deciding what does and does not get released into the press. Attending WJMC helped Gabriella decide to pursue journalism after high school; she had never really thought about pursuing journalism before attending the conference.
She received a college credit issued by George Mason University for attending this event. She will also receive an application fee waiver if she applies there, along with a scholarship worth $2,000 each year.
Donovan is the daughter of Darren and Maranda Donovan of Mapleton.
