ROCK HILL, SOUTH CAROLINA – Winthrop University and the Post and Courier will partner next year to build a pipeline of journalists for South Carolina.
The university will work with the Charleston-based newspaper to establish a base of operations in the growing Rock Hill and York County region. The partnership will enable Winthrop’s mass communication majors and other students a chance to work in internships with professionals in the field while remaining on campus.
The three-year pilot agreement will last from January 2025 to December 2027. It calls for a local editor, two reporters and a publisher/advertising director to be based on campus in the Barnes and Noble bookstore in the DiGiorgio Campus Center. They will work with up to six interns in the fall and spring semesters who will handle news writing, marketing and advertising duties.
Provost Sebastian van Delden said the partnership will help both groups. “Winthrop benefits by having a high caliber news organization nearby which means increased experiential learning, career and other opportunities for Winthrop students,” he said. “Winthrop’s historic Johnsonian student newspaper will be co-located with the Post and Courier in the DiGiorgio Campus Center, providing a truly optimal scenario for experiential learning and mentorship for our students.”
P.J. Browning, president and publisher of the Post and Courier, said the newspaper is excited to partner with Winthrop as it expands in Rock Hill. “We have worked with Winthrop students in the past and have found them to be among the best,” she said. “This partnership will enable our professional staff to work with students in news, marketing and advertising and help develop real world experience and be a part of a statewide news organization.”
The partnership will provide plenty of mentorship opportunities for students, said Nathaniel Frederick, professor and chair of the department. “The Department of Mass Communication is looking forward to giving our journalism and marketing students a chance to have real world experiences with one of the best newspapers in the state,” he said. “This opportunity will not only help students network in their profession, but they will get an early taste of what their future jobs could entail.”
For more information, contact Judy Longshaw, news and media services manager, at longshawj@winthrop.edu.
