Frank X. Moraga
By Frank X. Moraga / AmigosNAZ
For as long as I can remember, I have always been involved in educational outreach efforts as I progressed through my career in journalism.
As a young reporter I took part in panel presentations at community college journalism events, went to high school classes and talked to students about the opportunities in mass media and eventually led newspaper workshops for high school students and for at-risk youth programs.
Through this, young people developed their writing and interviewing skills and gained self-confidence by taking on the role of a news, feature or sports reporter.
Some of those students pursued a career in journalism while others applied the skills they learned to careers in law, marketing, public relations and community outreach.
I also had the opportunity to read hundreds of scholarship applications over the years and found the most successful students were those who had a good story to tell on what motivated them to pursue their particular career choice.
Besides high grade-point averages and sparkling SAT scores, the most successful scholarship applicants also had a long history of being involved in community service projects, whether they were collecting for canned food drives or taking part in programs where they helped build housing or schools in other countries.
So it became a natural fit when I applied for and was hired on earlier this year as the new Parent and Community Outreach Coordinator at the Coconino Coalition for Children & Youth.
CCC&Y — http://coconinokids.org — is an umbrella organization for the many community members, agencies and entities that are dedicated to helping children, youth and their families by alerting the community of any unmet needs and creating opportunities and resources for youth.
The skills I have gained over the years in journalism — researching, writing, interviewing — easily translate to this new role of informing parents and the community of breaking news in the education sector that impact the educational well-being of their children.
Whether it’s new legislation coming out of the state capital, new programs offered by CCC&Y partners like First Things First, upcoming child resource fairs, childcare grant opportunities and professional development and training opportunities for those in the education field, I will be busy during the coming months gathering and sharing this information on CCC&Y’s news website, http://news.coconinokids.org and at community resource meetings in Flagstaff, Tuba City, Page, Fredonia, Williams and elsewhere in Northern Arizona.
I look forward to this opportunity to meet with parents and educators, learn about exciting new programs that encourage early education opportunities for youth and take part in the ongoing discussion to promote excellence in education in this region.
Of course, I will continue on in my role as editor/publisher of AmigosNAZ, which is also dedicated to informing the local community of issues that impact their families.
While many feel that there is too much information out there — commercials blaring on the television screen, electronic billboards popping up everywhere — parents must sort through all the media clutter to find the information they need to help their children succeed in school and thereby succeed in life.
I’ll be bringing more of these educational stories to life here in AmigosNAZ as well, not as an advocate of one cause or another, but in my role as an information source for community members who should then have all the information at hand to make an informed decision on the future of their child’s education.
I look forward to serving you in these dual roles. If you have information on educational issues that you would like to pass along to CCC&Y, please send an email at frank@coconinokids.org.
— Frank X. Moraga, editor/publisher of AmigosNAZ, has served as business editor, director of diversity, city beat and environmental reporter in the newspaper industry. To submit information to AmigosNAZ, send an email to fmoraga@amigosnaz.com.