Shirley Carswell will be retiring from her role as the executive director of the Dow Jones News Fund (DJNF), effective Oct. 2.
Carswell’s impact was vast. She served as managing editor of the Washington Post for over 20 years, lectured at Howard University for a combined seven years and started various programs and fellowships for young journalists, especially journalists of color.
During her time as the executive director of the Dow Jones News Fund, Carswell created programs that support young journalists across the country.
In 2023, Carswell kicked off the Early Career Training Fellowship. This program equips cohorts of early reporters with the necessary skills to survive newsrooms early on.
Carswell also increased the DJNF’s summer internship programs by adding the University of Maryland and American University as training locations. She also developed the NYU Ed Bradley Journalism Fellowship in partnership with the New York University Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute
Colin Royal shared with the Maroon Tiger some of his experiences during his internship through the DJNF. Royal graduated from Morehouse College in 2025 as the co-valedictorian and former editor-in-chief of MT.
“It truly felt like all of the contributors to the training program cared about the participants’ development and invested in our success,” Royal said. “The workshops conducted during both the DC and New York sessions gave me the knowledge and confidence to tackle dense financial information and turn these sources into great stories.”
He currently attends graduate school at New York University (NYU), where he serves as the editor-in-chief of Pavement Pieces, the publication for NYU’s Reporting the Nation and New York in Multimedia graduate program.
Former managing editor of the Maroon Tiger Niles Garrison was a part of the Ed Bradley Journalism Fellowship during the summer of 2024. He said the fellowship provided him with the necessary resources to pursue a career in journalism. Garrison is now also attending New York University Arthur L. Carter Journalism Institute.
“I would not be where I am without the Ed Bradley Fellowship,” Garrison said to MT while considering how far he’s come. “I was able to gain the confidence to go out and report instead of having stuff given to me or put on a platter to cover. They challenged me to find a story in the big city of New York and I was able to do that with their help.”
The fellowship aligns with the efforts of the DJNF. Dating back to 1968 their mission is to increase diversity in the newsroom. As stated in a recent press release, they have made it their goal of “ensuring that the organization’s talent pipeline more closely reflects the communities that journalists serve.”
As the DJNF searches for the next executive director, board president Eric Mandrackie offered some reflections about Carswell’s command, saying, “Since taking the helm in 2021, Carswell has been a transformative leader for the News Fund.”
Dow Jones CEO and DJNF board member Almar Latour spoke highly of her leadership with the news fund.
“Shirley’s passion for cultivating the next generation of journalists has left an indelible mark on the Dow Jones News Fund and the broader media landscape” Latour said. “Her leadership ensured that newsrooms across the country are equipped with sharp, diverse, and well-prepared young talent.”
Carswell’s journey through the DJNF began as a copy editing intern for the Hartford Courant in 1982. She would go on to serve as the first veteran of the internship program to become executive director of the news fund.
“What a privilege it has been to lead this organization that was such an important catalyst for me and thousands of others!” Carswell said, reflecting on her time with the DJNF.
For more information about the DJNF and its opportunities, click here.
