“Citizen Journalism 101”
Last Fall, Foothills launched a journalism training project in conjunction with the Rapp Center for Education on journalism. With Andy Alexander and Bud Meyer as lecturers, the course covered the nuts and bolts of writing for publication from writing itself to identifying newsworthy topics, interview techniques and more. Class members included Michael McLeod who is working on a story about local dog sports and Ike Parrish, now a full-time reporter in Orange County.
Rappahannock County Public School (RCPS) Essay Contest
For a third year, RCPS students from the high school and middle school were invited to write essays in a contest sponsored by Foothills Forum and the Rappahannock News. A panel of six judges led by Edie Tatel, with current and retired teachers Sheila Lamb, Julie Ruth and Lilo Wolfe and writers Ann Crittenden and Tim Carrington, reviewed more than fifty submissions and chose first, second and third place winners from each school.
The winners will receive modest cash prizes from Foothills. Their essays will be published in the Rappahannock News after students meet with Julia Shanahan—a News reporter whose position is partially underwritten by Foothills as part of the national Report for America program.
NewsMatch: A Boon for Foothills
Through the great generosity of our backers, Foothills enjoyed a very successful end-of-the-year fundraising push.
NewsMatch, a program of the Institute for Nonprofit News, enables community news organizations to match gifts from individuals, up to a combined total of $14,000, with funding from national foundations. Foothills met and exceeded that target, which increases significantly our capacity to produce independent, unbiased news on our county. We thank all of our financial supporters!
Stories We’re Working On
Property Reassessments – Recent property tax reassessments spiked due to surging home values. How many reassessments were successfully challenged?
Reporter: Tim Carrington.
Emergency Services – The county’s seven volunteer Fire and Rescue companies face increasing challenges.
Reporter: Randy Rieland
Gay Rappahannock – The county’s gay population is quietly growing in size and influence.
Reporter: Andy Alexander.
Young Rappahannock – A worrisome trend: many young people leave the county. But a surprising number stay or return. Who are they? And what attracts them?
Reporter: Bob Hurley.
Childhood Cancer – The leading cause of death among kids under 19. Rappahannock and surrounding counties aren’t spared.
Reporter: Randy Rieland
Calendar – 2022
April 29: Board of Directors meeting
July 29: Board of Directors meeting
September 30: Annual Meeting
November 18: Board of Directors meeting
All meetings are open to the public.