When I relaunched the NAHJ Sports Task Force this past spring, I wanted to make sure that we were active in working to make a difference for Latinos in sports journalism. That’s why I launched a mentoring program at the convention in Denver.
I initially expected handful of people to express interest. Generally, the response from NAHJ members to e-mails is anemic. But I was inundated with requests, particularly from students and young professionals seeking mentors. It was exciting, but almost overwhelming. I suddenly realized I needed to line up far more mentors than I anticipated.
That also turned out to be a great opportunity, because it allowed me to reach out to journalists who hadn’t been active in NAHJ before. It’s taken some work, but has been a wonderful experience. Every professional I’ve contacted was more than willing to serve as a mentor.
I believe mentors are a key part in helping young journalists through tough times. I’m, at least a small part, still in this business because my mentors always had my back and encouraged me. I want to give that to other journalists starting out.
This week, I learned that these efforts are already paying off. One of the students, under the direction of her mentor, executed a three-story package that ran on ESPNDeportes.com. I was asked to blog about it for NAHJ’s website, and the piece ran today.
See: NAHJ’s Sports Task Force is On!
It’s very rewarding to see this work paying off.