University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications Joins Nationwide Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) Network
The growing program now includes five journalism schools across five states, expanding support for early-career journalists committed to local news.
The University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications (UFCJC) is joining Columbia Journalism School’s Loan Repayment Assistance Program (LRAP) network as its fifth participating school.
Through LRAP, eligible UFCJC graduates working in local news organizations may receive up to $10,000 a year to help repay their student loans. Those loans may be forgiven, making it easier for journalists to remain in the communities they cover.
Reaching five schools marks an important milestone for the program. Since launching as a pilot at Columbia Journalism School in 2023, LRAP has evolved into a national collaboration that broadens access to careers in local journalism and helps newsrooms attract and retain emerging talent.
“The growth of this network shows what journalism schools can accomplish together for the future of local news,” said Jelani Cobb, Dean and Henry R. Luce Professor of Journalism at Columbia Journalism School. “We are proud to welcome the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications as our fifth participating school and build on that momentum.”
To date, LRAP has distributed more than 100 awards totaling more than $1 million in assistance to journalists working in newsrooms across the country. The partnership adds a new form of support for eligible recent graduates within UFCJC’s community of more than 30,000 alumni.
"The University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications is proud to join this important initiative because we believe the best journalists should choose their careers based on passion and purpose, not student debt,” said Hub Brown, Dean of the University of Florida’s College of Journalism and Communications. “By supporting graduates as they enter local newsrooms, we are investing in stronger journalism, better-informed communities and a stronger future for local news.”
UFCJC joins a growing coalition committed to making journalism careers more accessible, alongside Columbia Journalism School; Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism; Media, Integrated Marketing Communications; Morgan State University's School of Global Journalism and Communication; and Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication.
Together, the participating institutions are extending a model pioneered at Columbia Journalism School to serve more journalists, newsrooms and communities.
Learn more about LRAP and the CJS2030 Access Initiative.
About Columbia Journalism School
For more than a century, Columbia Journalism School has been preparing journalists in programs that stress academic rigor, ethics, journalistic inquiry and professional practice. Founded with a gift from Joseph Pulitzer, the school opened its doors in 1912 and offers a Master of Science, Master of Arts, a joint Master of Science degree in Computer Science and Journalism and Doctor of Philosophy in Communications. It houses the Columbia Journalism Review, the Brown Institute for Media Innovation and the Tow Center for Digital Journalism. The school also administers many of the leading journalism awards, including the Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards, the Maria Moors Cabot Prizes, the John Chancellor Award, the John B. Oakes Award, the J. Anthony Lukas Prize Project, Paul Tobenkin Memorial Award and the Meyer “Mike” Berger Award.
About the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications
The University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications is preparing the next generation of communication leaders through innovation, research and experiential learning. Consistently recognized among the nation's leading communication schools, CJC offers undergraduate, graduate and online degree programs across advertising, journalism, media production, public relations and communication studies. Students gain hands-on experience through the Innovation News Center, one of the nation's premier multimedia teaching newsrooms; The Agency, an integrated strategic communication and consumer research agency; and award-winning broadcast and digital media properties. The college is also home to the Joseph L. Brechner Freedom of Information Project, the internationally recognized Center for Public Interest Communications and the nation's only STEM Translational Communication Center.