Alumni Profile: Kate Sheppard '06

Laurie Ward, 12/2/2008  ·  0 comments

Kate Sheppard '06 reports from the Republican National Convention.

Park scholar Robyn Fiedler (a class of 2010 journalism major from Cornwall, New York) checks in with Park scholar alumna Kate Sheppard ’06.

In the thick of one of the most significant elections of the century, Park scholar alumna Kate Sheppard was reporting on environmental politics for the online magazine Grist. Not only did Kate attend both the Democratic and Republican National Conventions, but she was also able to interview key players about the issues she is passionate about.

“I got to talk to some very powerful politicians about their energy and environment plans that I would not normally be able to reach,” she said.

After graduating from Ithaca College in 2006 with degrees in both journalism and politics, Kate secured an internship with Grist—an experience that eventually resulted in her landing her current job. Without hesitation Kate credits her successes to the opportunities that the Park Scholar Award offered to her.

“I never would have gotten this job if I hadn’t been able to do the cocurricular activities that I did in college like [writing for] Buzzsaw magazine and the Ithacan. Had I not had the scholarship, I would have had to work through school, which would have really cut back on the time I could put into student journalism.”

Her summer internships and travel experiences are highlights of her college career—she visited Nicaragua, El Salvador, Ethiopia, and Russia as a college student—and Kate admits that she would not have been able to participate had she not been granted a Park Scholar Award.

At Ithaca College, Kate laid the groundwork for her subsequent career in online journalism by writing for publications such as Buzzsaw Haircut, a student-run alternative magazine, and the Ithacan, Ithaca College’s award-winning weekly newspaper. She was also a member of the Student Government Association.

The Park Scholar Award allowed Kate the flexibility to earn a double major, giving her a background in politics as well as journalism. During her internships, she developed important skills, and she recommends interning as often as possible, as it provides the best real-life experience.

“[Internships] are not only important résumé fodder, but they’re also really important for figuring out what you like and don’t like,” she said. “My first internship was at a daily paper, which I soon realized I hated.”

Now Kate resides in Washington, D.C., covering political news for Grist, an online environmental news magazine. As a political reporter for Grist, she attends committee hearings, watches floor debates, and reads environmental bills, and then translates the complicated policies for the average person to understand.

“We try to make the big, scary problems less frightening, more empowering, and we try to bring people insight and information they might not otherwise find on these subjects in the mainstream media,” said Kate.

Among the myriad topics that Kate has covered, her most recent features have been about climate and energy policy, bills to cut emissions, and rainforest protection. In fact, Kate had a lot to cover in this past election since the environmental crisis was a major talking point, and the Democratic and Republican National Conventions provided her with a wide range of timely issues to blog about.

“By being there you can get a sense of what the party establishment thinks are the most important issues, how they’re going to frame them, and what their strategies are going to be on that issue in the next years.”

While Kate’s experience at Grist.org has been invaluable, she is extremely grateful for the Park Scholar Program—the opportunities it provided and the community it created.

“The scholarship meant that I was surrounded throughout school by people who also cared about using media for social good, and who pushed me to work harder and strive for more.”