NPA Mentor Network program kicks off serving 150 mentees

More than 300 applicants representing nearly 50 countries applied to the NPA’s first mentorship program.

The NPA Mentor Network, a program created by the News Product Alliance with the support of the Google News Initiative, officially launched and is underway. The program connects 150 emerging news product thinkers with 50 industry-leading news product mentors. 

Over the six months of the program, mentees will work on a professional challenge they face related to landing their first product role, change management, and leadership development among other topics. Mentees will gain knowledge and increase their understanding of news products, receive personalized guidance, and become part of a global network of support and practice pushing towards a more equitable media landscape.

During the application period between September 13th to September 26th, we received 310 applications from nearly 50 countries. Among the applicants were employees of media such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, BBC, CNN,  Aos Fatos, AJ+, Infobae, Euronews, The Telegraph, Africa Uncensored, The Times Of India, as well as other organizations of all sizes from around the globe.

The applicants also have different roles and years of experience as well as challenges they seek to accomplish during the program.

Mentees were matched with our stellar group of 50 mentors, coming from North America, Latin America, Europe, Africa, and Asia. They work for tech companies, newsrooms, and journalism support organizations such as The New York Times, Netflix, Vox, CNN, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism (RISJ), and others.

The vetted group of 50 mentors has vast experience and knowledge in the product field. We held five separate training sessions across different time zones to make sure that everyone in our global cohort of 50 mentors could fully participate. During the training, we went through a general program overview and Upasna Gautam, the Lead Mentor Trainer for NPA, shared some tips and resources on how to make the most of the mentorship experience created with support from Emma Carew Grovum.

Mentees have been matched with the mentors according to their challenges, goals, time zones, and languages, among other criteria that were considered during the process by a model we prepared for this program, alongside the NPA human review.

During the program, the 150 mentees will define the mentorship goal and challenge; co-create an Action Plan, and create an artifact to showcase the mentee’s product journey.

The Mentor Network will run from October 2022 until April 2023. This week we will have a welcome session for all mentees where we’ll share the program guidelines and resources. They will also receive a one-hour training session led by Mentee Coach, Shannan Bowen.

You can read all the information about the program on our website.  

Below is a list of the 150 Mentees who are participating in the Mentor Network program:

• Abby Blachman

• Adam Nekola

• Aditi Mukund

• Adrienne Michalski

• Aija Krutaine

• Alejandra Margffoy Tuay

• Alessandro Alviani

• Alexandru Enășescu

• Alicia Cohn

• Amanda Roth

• Amelia McGuinness

• Amethyst Holmes 

• Ana Paula Valacco

• andres Snitcofsky

• Ankita Mukhopadhyay

• Anna Jay

• Anthony Bottan

• Areeba Falak

• Ariam Alula

• Ashlee Edwards

• Asraa Mustufa

• Aviva Loeb

• Beatrix  Lockwood

• Ben Eagle

• Bianca Flowers

• Blair  Mhone

• Blake Stoner

• Bridget O'Toole

• Brooke Brown

• Camila Gadelha

• Candela Martin

• Carla Nudel

• Carol Cavaleiro

• Catherine Cusick

• Catherine Muema

• Cecilia Bazán

• Cecilia Tentle

• Cintia Baio

• Cley Medeiros

• Coburn Dukehart

• Corinne Podger

• Cortlynn Stark

• Courtney Sherwood

• Dana Filek-Gibson

• Daniel Salgado de Abreu

• Daniel Shannon

• David Yoder

• Deepak  Adhikari

• Delaney McCaffrey

• Diogo  Rodriguez

• Dulamkhorloo Baatar

• Everic White

• Farah Chabchoub

• Faustina Bartaburu

• FêCris Vasconcellos

• Folaranmi Folayan

• Francisco Navas

• Franz Strasser-Galvis

• Gabriela Ramirez

• Gerald Holubowicz

• Gerardo Cárdenas

• Grace  Moon 

• Gülsin Harman

• Heitor  Lannes

• Hilary Moss

• Innocent Eteng

• Ivory Sherman

• Jakob Halm

• James Tyner

• Jane O'Donoghue

• Jatin Gandhi

• Jeff Poirier

• Jessie Willms

• Jillian Lucas

• Jose Nieves

• Joseph  Hernandez

• Kaite Welsh

• Kate Abbey-Lambertz

• Katie Riley

• Katrina Aman

• Kim Nguyen

• Kime De Cuadro

• Kristen East

• Larissa Pontes

• Laura Blasey

• Laura Daicz

• Laura Krantz

• Lekan  Otufodunrin 

• Leo Xavier

• Lily  Medosch

• Lindsay Deutsch

• Luiza Barros

• Lyng-Hou Ramirez

• Mac Blair

• Madison Karas

• Malena Johansson Finguerut

• Marga Deona

• Maria Fernanda Lauret

• Maria Macia

• María Paula  Murcia Huertas

• Mariana Villamizar

• Martina Nasso

• Mary-Katharine Phillips

• Maryam Shah

• Matt Taylor

• Mel Grau

• Meredith Gallo

• Mia Zuckerkandel

• Michelle Brister

• Miriam Hymer

• Muralikrishnan Chinnadurai

• Natalia Lujan Maciel

• Natalia Piza

• Nathalia Restrepo Hernandez

• Nelle Dunlap

• Nelly Kalu

• Nica Rhiana Hanopol

• Nora Revenaugh

• Omar Mostafa

• Onyinye Dike

• Oriol Salvador Vilella

• Pablo Hamada

• Peter Hernández

• Pilar Piana

• Quentin Aries

• Reese Oxner

• Renata Hill

• Rocio Hernandez

• Rocío Pilar Caro Pacello

• Ruby Dhingra

• Ryan Restivo

• Sara Atske

• Sara Campos

• Sara Cooper

• Sasha Levine

• Shahan Shahid Nawaz

• Shwanika Narayan

• Sofia Delgado

• Stephanie Drucker

• Sudhakar G

• Sumit  Kumar

• Swapneel Mehta

• Teresa Mondría Terol

• Thomas Seymat

• Tobias Adler

• Undral Amarsaikhan

• Valerie Osier

• Vanessa Gregorchik

• Vrinda Aggarwal

• Yunita Ong

What if I applied but wasn’t selected for the program?

All applicants who were not selected for this opportunity received an email from us. (Please check your spam folder if you can’t find it). Although many applicants were not selected due to limited availability, there are other ways to engage with our community of news product professionals – and even find a mentor within the community!

If you were not selected to participate in this opportunity, here are some great ways to get engaged in the NPA community, and maybe even find a mentor.

Step 1: Introduce yourself in our NPA Slack Community in the #intros channel. 

Explain where you are in your news product journey and what you’re hoping to give and receive from the community.

Step 2: Join the #Ask-Give channel to share requests of the community (e.g. I need a mentor) or ways you can contribute as well!

It happens every day, and showing initiative to reach out to the NPA community members goes a long way! 

Step 3: Join the #00-announcements channel to be sure not to miss any of our regular Zoom community events, Slack-based AMAs and other great events!

Step 4: Join us for the 2023 NPA Summit from April 26th - 28th! 

Have any questions regarding the NPA Mentor Network program? Contact to sam@newsproduct.org If you have any questions regarding our Slack community, please reach out to peter@newsproduct.org