Virginia, Richard and Julie Snowden hosted a party at their home in Newberg to honor the first class of Snowden interns.

The Snowden family and the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication hosted a 150-person party at the Snowdens' Newberg home to celebrate the first group of five students chosen for the Charles R. Snowden Memorial Internship Program in September.

The Snowdens had an extra surprise planned for the evening: Julie, Richard and Virginia Snowden announced a $100,000 challenge grant for the SOJC internship program.

With the grant, the family will provide a two-to-one match for donations made to the program, i.e. for every one dollar donated, the Snowdens will contribute two dollars.

The goal now is to raise $50,000 to which the Snowdens will match $100,000, adding $150,000 to the existing endowment.

"Matching this challenge grant is the next major step in building the future of the Snowden Internship Program," said Tim Gleason, dean of the SOJC. "We believe the Snowden Internships will become one of the premier internship programs in the United States. The Snowden family is committed to building a substantial endowment that will guarantee a strong financial foundation. The School will work very hard to ensure that both the interns and the participating newspapers benefit from this great opportunity."

"We believe the Snowden Internships will become one of the premier internship programs in the United States." -- Tim Gleason

The Snowden family and the School established the program in memory of Charles R. Snowden, a former editor of The Oregon Journal and The Oregonian, to honor his commitment to ethical journalism, good writing and a sense of history. He is remembered not only as an editor, but also as a mentor to young journalists.

The first class of Snowden interns were selected for their prior journalistic experience and their commitment to ethical journalism as well as the quality of their academic performance and their potential for career success.

The recipients for the summer of 1998 were Tricia M. Duryee at The (Bend) Bulletin; Kristina Rudinskas at The (McMinnville) News-Register; Brian M. Deka at The (Roseburg) News-Review; Shannon L. Sneed at the Albany Democrat-Herald; and Sarah Wehren at The Springfield News.

Under the program the School entered into partnerships with participating newspapers. The endowment pays half of the intern's stipend plus administrative expenses, with the paper paying the other half of the stipend. In addition, the School works closely with the papers to support a learning environment in the newsrooms.

The five students spent 10 weeks covering city hall, working the business beat, designing web pages, laying out pages and staffing copy desks. Students reported the Snowden internship program heightened their commitment to careers in journalism.

Members of the Charles R. Snowden Internship Fund Advisory Committee are Julie Snowden of Newberg, Jeb Bladine of McMinnville, Dan J. Duff of Aurora, Michael Foy of Seattle, David Hendrickson of Portland, Millie Quan of Los Angeles, Richard Snowden of Philadelphia, Linda Lynch of Philadelphia, Donald J. Sterling Sr. of Portland, Virginia Snowden of Philadelphia, Dean Tim Gleason and Assistant Dean Jennifer King.

Gifts for the Snowden challenge grant are to be made payable to UO Foundation/Journalism with a notation for Snowden Internships, and may be sent to: The School of Journalism and Communication, 1275 University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-1275.