I am an advisor for two student newspapers at a large STEM research university. We recently applied for the Solutions Journalism Network student media challenge. We got to the semi-final round of interviews, but didn't quite make the cut for the grant.
However, I think it is an opportunity for us to implement solutions journalism principles into our reporting for both newspapers. Mental health is a major issue on our campus, as we had multiple students who died by suicide this academic year. The student journalists want to explore what the university is doing to address this issue, and to be a resource for the community as well.
I plan on doing training session with my students on solutions journalism and how it can enhance their reporting on campus community issues. Student journalists often fall into the trap of complaining about stuff, but not digging deeper into the problems and actually see what the university is doing to address the issues.
I want my students to be more thoughtful and explore those issues. Plus, it fits in with our campus culture of data-driven solutions. And if we can train the students to think this way in their reporting, I think they will be more versatile if they do go into journalism for a career.