DEADLINE: Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute Fellowships

The Donald W. Reynolds Journalism Institute is now accepting 2025-26 RJI Fellowship applications from individuals or organizations with an innovative journalism project idea that could also benefit the industry.

Chosen projects often include devising new strategies or models to solve a problem, building new tools, creating a training workshop/program or building resources for journalists. All fellowship projects are built and implemented within the span of the eight-month fellowship.

Past fellows have built a development tracker toolkit, Upward, a coaching program for journalists of color to help them ascend into leadership roles in news, the disability matters toolkit and a guide to help newsrooms produce journalism with their incarcerated communities among other amazing resources.

Whatever your idea, its creation should benefit other news organizations, journalists and the people who depend on them. You will publish regular updates to share what you’re learning for other newsrooms or journalists who want to tackle similar projects.

The final product of your fellowship must be a resource that journalists and newsrooms can utilize – whether it’s a guide, toolkit, platform, workshop or tool.

We have two types of RJI Fellowships:

1. Residential Fellowship

The residential fellowship is for an individual who wants to spend a year at RJI to create a resource to help with a current need, gap or challenge for journalists and/or newsrooms. The resource can be a platform, a tool, a workshop series; it can be digital or physical. It just needs to be free, accessible and utilizable by newsrooms across the country.

START DATE: July 1, 2025
DURATION: 12 months
FUNDING: Up to $100,000 for project expenses + a $5k monthly living stipend
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Feb 4, 2025

2. Remote: Nonresidential or Institutional

Nonresidential fellowships are a remote fellowship where the funding goes directly to an individual to let them pursue an idea outside of their day job/work. You will visit to RJI to kick off your fellowship meet your Fellow cohort, RJI leadership, faculty, students and access on-site resources. Your project will be implemented and tested in the newsroom(s) of your choice during your fellowship, before your final product is launched for journalists to utilize.

START: July 1, 2025
HOW LONG: 8 months
STIPEND: Fellows receive a $25,000 stipend + a $5000 impact bonus, payable in increments as deliverables are met for each stage of the fellowship
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Feb 7, 2025

Institutional fellowships are a remote fellowship where the funding for the fellowship goes to the company or institution, rather than an individual. RJI will collaborate with the individual assigned to lead the team/project, that individual will be named an RJI Institutional Fellow. The Institutional Fellow will visit RJI with the fellow cohort to meet RJI leadership, faculty, students and access on-site resources. The stipend for this fellowship can be used for salary relief for the fellow, or for another purpose that the company or institution determines will best ensure the success of the fellowship project. The project can be implemented and tested at the institution or in another newsroom of their choice during the fellowship.

START: July 1, 2025
HOW LONG: 8 months
STIPEND: Fellow’s institution receives a $25,000 stipend + $5000 impact bonus, payable in increments as deliverables are met for each stage of the fellowship.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Feb 4, 2025