Princeton University Program for High School Students

Dear School Administrator / Teacher:

If you are a teacher, we ask that you encourage your students to apply to
this all-expenses- paid program at Princeton University . If you are an
administrator, we ask that you help us spread the word by publishing an
announcement to teachers or other administrators who might know students who
would be interested in applying. See below for more information.

We are writing to inform you about an all-expenses- paid summer program for
high school student journalists from low-income backgrounds that will take
place for 10 days in August on the campus of Princeton University . The
program is entering its ninth year; since 2002, more than 165 students from
high schools across the country have been selected to participate in the
program. They were taught by journalists from The New York Times, The
Washington Post, The Philadelphia Inquirer, The Miami Herald, The New
Republic and The New Yorker; they covered Yankees, Mets, Jets and Liberty
games and held a press conference with New Jersey's secretary of state; they
met with Princeton University's president and dean of admissions; they
received counseling on their college applications from our staff, which
consists of Princeton University alumni and undergraduates; and they
published their own newspaper. We hope that you will consider nominating
some of your students to participate in this exciting program for aspiring
young journalists.

Below is a quick list of instructions and pointers for having your students
fill out the applications:

Please feel free to nominate as many students as you have who are
interested. We will happily accept several students from the same school, so
there is no need to worry about your own students competing for slots in the
program.

The application process will take place in two parts. For the first part,
students should fill out the attached application, and then email it to
sjpapplication@ gmail.com as a Microsoft
Word attachment. (If the student does not have access to Microsoft Word, the
student should just copy and paste the text of the application into an
email.) Before emailing us the application, students should name the
document using the following format: Lastname.Firstname. doc. So, if the
student's name is Mary Jones, the title of the document will be
Jones.Mary.doc. In addition, the student should type his or her name and
high school in the body of the email and put only the name of the Word
document (e.g., Jones.Mary.doc) in the subject line of the email. We must
receive the application by 11:59 p.m. ET on February 5, 2010. No extensions
will be given for any reason.

In the second round of the application process, finalists will be
interviewed by the program directors-either in person or over the phone-and
they will be asked to provide printed copies of the following items via U.S.
mail: an official transcript; the first page of the 2008 (or 2009, if
available) income-tax return form (the 1040 or 1040EZ form) of their
custodial parent(s)/guardian( s), or a signed statement by their
parent(s)/guardian( s) saying that their income is below the level at which
they would be required to file income tax returns; a recommendation letter
from a teacher; and clips from their high school newspaper or other
publication (optional).

To be eligible for the program, students must meet the following
qualifications:
- They must currently be juniors in high school.
- They must live in the continental United States .
- They must have at least an unweighted 3.5 grade point average (out of
4.0).
- They must have an interest in journalism.
- The combined income of their custodial parent(s)/guardian( s) plus child
support payments, if any, must not exceed $45,000.
Note: This program is for students from low-income backgrounds. If the
combined income of the custodial parent(s)/guardian( s) plus child support
payments, if any, exceeds $45,000 and a student still wishes to apply, he or
she may attach a letter explaining why his or her family qualifies as
financially under-resourced.

If you have questions, the best way to reach us is via email at
sjp@princeton. edu . Please note that
applications should be sent to sjpapplication@ gmail.com
, which is a GMAIL address. Questions
should be sent to sjp@princeton. edu , which is
a PRINCETON address.

All application materials-as well as additional information about the
program-are available at www.princeton. edu/sjp
/

A final word: We know that the process of applying to any selective program
can be stressful, not to mention a lot of work-for students as well as their
teachers. But, over the years, the students we have had come through our
program have told us that, ultimately, the work they put into their
application was worth it.