Chaffey Journalism Program Expands in CIM, Breeze to Cover Mental Health

Chaffey College journalism students in the California Institution for Men will soon publish their own newspaper called “Rising Voices,” with a podcast and potential expansion into the California Institution for Women also on the horizon.

Journalists at Chaffey’s Rancho Cucamonga campus also have big plans for the academic year after receiving a $7,500 grant from the Solutions Journalism Network to focus on issues facing justice-impacted students such as mental health and financial barriers.

Chaffey College Professor of English and Journalism Ian Jones said the goal with CIM is to give students the skills and resources to operate the newspaper even when journalism classes aren’t in session at the prison.

“We’re trying to build a culture of journalism at CIM,” Jones said. “San Quentin has had a journalism program for 20-30 years and they have a media center. Our hope is to build something that is sustainable and can live outside of the classroom.”

Chaffey introduced journalism at CIM last fall, with inmates already writing stories that have been published in Local News Pasadena. Reporters from The Breeze worked with inmates to edit the stories, and publish their own work about incarcerated students.

Breeze Editor-in-Chief Miranda Morgan, who hopes to complete her journalism degree at the end of fall, featured Chaffey College Rising Scholars alumnus James Menefield, sharing a first-hand account of interviewing him and learning how Chaffey improved his life.

“As young journalists, we were challenged to step outside our comfort zones, increasing our confidence in exploring new territories. In such tumultuous times for journalism, this is a critical skill that will set us apart,” she wrote.

Morgan says she is excited for the Youth Mental Health Fellowship and offering continued support for CIM journalism students.

Chaffey has purchased podcast equipment with the goal of launching a podcast at CIM in the spring.

The CIM program has become so popular that Chaffey hopes to offer it to more students next fall. And there are also plans to bring journalism to the California Institution for Women.

CIW already publishes a newspaper called “The Razor Wire” with the help of The Pollen Initiative, but Jones said Chaffey could offer inmates credentials for their work.

And the Chaffey Review — a collection of creative writing, poetry, visual art and more  — has received a $16,000 grant from the California Teachers’ Association to publish a collaborative edition with journalism students based at the Rancho Cucamonga campus and journalism students in CIM.

The literary journal is expected to publish in the spring.