Hot Days, Cool Stories: SRL Summer Academy 2025 spotlights D.C.’s Go-Go and punk music scenes, inclusivity efforts in green spaces, and a time capsule of youth hopes and dreams
July 10, 2025
By: Anthony Payne
That’s a wrap! This year’s PBS News Student Reporting Labs Summer Academy just ended – here’s an inside look at this summer’s week of in-person journalism training.
From June 22-28, 20 high school students from all over the country traveled to the Washington D.C. area to learn journalism
skills and produce video stories alongside the SRL team. The Academy was hosted at George Mason University, offering the fellows a taste of dorm and dining hall life between learning sessions.
The SRL team led the students through the ins and outs of camera skills, editing best practices, and more. SRL’s Editorial Director Marie Cusick led a session all about solutions journalism – an approach to reporting that, rather than sensationalizing problems, focuses
on how people are responding to social issues. Who’s taking action? What’s working, what’s not? The fellows shaped their stories around answering these questions.
After this training, “I now have a base of technical skills with industry standard technology,” said Jayden Hall, a rising senior at Innovation Academy in Alpharetta, Georgia. “Even if I had access to the equipment, I could never have learned to fully utilize them without the help of the Academy.”
When the students weren’t inside honing their skills, they were out exploring the city and getting to know their teammates. Highlights included a boat tour in Georgetown and a trip to Burke Lake Park in Virginia. Embodying the summer camp spirit, everyone headed to the lake to enjoy some local BBQ and compete in a camp color war, which included a sack race, a heated tug of war tournament, and a water balloon fight to cool off.
In the weeks leading up to the SRL Summer Academy, the teams planned, researched, and contacted interview subjects, building anticipation for the filming day. They got a lesson in an often-overlooked part of production: planning for weather. An unexpected heatwave forced some quick pivots—but the students adapted and produced great work. All part of the process.
The fellows hunkered down for long hours editing their stories until they were ready to be screened at the WETA offices in Arlington, Virginia. At the livestreamed red carpet screening, the students reflected on their journey and answered audience questions. The experience ended with some teary goodbyes between students and mentors as everyone boarded their trains and planes home to put their new skills and connections to use.
Janie Mitchell, a sophomore at North Sanpete High School in Mount Pleasant, Utah, reflects on the SRL community as the highlight of her experience: “Something that I’m gonna remember forever,” said Janie, “was how the people treated me there, how important I felt, and the lessons that I learned with my friends and my mentors.”
We’re thankful to have hosted another great group of students at the Academy. They came eager to learn from each other and share their own unique skills and perspective, and we can’t wait to see what stories they uncover next!
This level of free hands-on media education is made possible by support for public media programs like PBS News Student Reporting Labs and local station WETA. Consider donating today. More on SRL’s place in the public media ecosystem here.
Meet the Teams:
Team 1:
The students: Diarra Gangazha, a junior at East Kentwood High School in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Alia Soliman, a junior at the Bronx High School of Science based in New York City, and Jayden Hall, a rising senior at Innovation Academy in Alpharetta, Georgia.
The mentors: Leah Clapman, SRL Executive Director, and Anurag Papolu, SRL Graphic Designer
The story: The Smithsonian is creating a time capsule of hopes, dreams, and wishes for the next 50 years
The Civic Season Pavilion inside the Smithsonian National Museum of American History features a 28-foot mural inviting visitors to add their wish for America’s future, as we approach the U.S. 250th birthday. The letters will be collected into a time capsule and stored in the Smithsonian archives to be opened in 2075.
Team 2:
The students: Alessandro De Palma, a sophomore at the Miami Senior High School in Miami, Florida, Annalise Huang, a freshman at Monte Vista High School in Danville, California, and Janey Mitchell, a sophomore at North Sanpete High School in Mount Pleasant, Utah.
The mentors: Victor Fernandez, SRL Sr. Director of Youth Media Programming, and Becky Wandell, SRL Youth Media Producer
The story: Preserving Land, Legacy & Justice: Cameron Oglesby’s fight for her family farm
Upon the 100 year anniversary of her family farm, Cameron Oglesby uses storytelling to document the resilience of Southern communities, like the one she comes from, in the face of environmental injustice.
Team 3:
The students: Julia Mayi, a rising senior at Midtown High School in Atlanta, Georgia, Henry Scott, a Junior at Bozeman High School in Bozeman, Montana, and Autumn Wynn, a junior at Park Slope Collegiate, Brooklyn New York.
The mentors: Justin Rhodes, SRL Youth Media Producer (Curriculum), and Michael Kaufman, a teacher at the Frederick V. Pankow Center in Clinton Township, Michigan
The story: Go-Go music lives on in D.C.’s Anacostia at this unique museum and café
The Go-Go Museum & Café in Washington, D.C. is not simply preserving history; it’s making sure the beat goes on. In a city where the identity of any culture is often under siege, this story documents how the next generation is reclaiming the sound of D.C., one song, one meal, and one moment at a time.
Team 4:
The students: Chaeeun Yoo, an incoming freshman at Columbia University, Kyra Svab, a junior at John Burroughs High School in Burbank, California, and Tomas Rubio, a senior at College Street Vocational Center in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
The mentors: Marie Cusick, SRL Editorial Director, and Cori Kipps, Digital Content Producer, WETA National Productions
The story: How one man is protecting Maryland’s longest river—and inspiring a new generation
Fred Tutman advocates for cleaning up Maryland’s Patuxent River and works to make environmentalism more inclusive.
Team 5:
The students: Zolton Hall, a junior at the Fredrick V. Pankow Center in Macomb County, Michigan, Marium Zahra, a junior at the Young Women’s STEAM Research and Preparatory Academy in El Paso, Texas, and Blakely Pfaff, a Junior at Rockville High School in Rockville, Maryland.
The mentors: Wyatt Mayes, SRL Associate Producer, and Ashley Porter, Video Production Teacher at DC International School
The story: This is Petrichor: A teen band fueled by family, friendship, and Rock ‘n’ Roll
Petrichor is a band of teens rocking out. After connecting at Girls Rock! DC, the group banded together to follow their dreams of being rock stars. While not being shy about using their voice to bring attention to social causes, they seek to bring their talents to even bigger stages.
Team 6:
The students: David Arowolo, a rising high school junior from Baltimore County, Maryland, Simran Gupta, a senior at Alliance Academy for Innovation in Georgia, and Nicole Lee, a junior at Independence High School in San Francisco, California.
The mentors: Anthony Payne, SRL Communications Associate, and Linda Lawson, Director of Photography, Lawsco Media
The story: DC Greens: Fighting food injustice, one healthy meal at a time
DC Greens is a health equity organization that works to end food insecurity by empowering a community to grow its own food.
And check out the BTS video for a supercut of this year’s Summer Academy highlights!
This Behind the Scenes video was put together by Macayla Ramsey, an incoming freshman at New York University from Detroit, MI, and Nuha Hussein, an upcoming college freshman based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. They were mentored by Rawan Elbaba, SRL Digital Producer, and Caroline Frentz, SRL Associate Producer, Social Media.