Published on May 28, 2021 by Sean Flynt  
Katy Beth Boyers
Katy Beth Boyers

Samford University communication and media student Katy Beth Boyers is one of only 24 student journalists in the nation selected to take part in the Society of Professional Journalists’ (SPJ) Student Leadership Institute (SLI) July 16-18 in Indianapolis, Indiana. The institute, created with the support of the Scripps Howard Foundation, is a learning laboratory designed to help collegiate student journalists build their skills and confidence for leading and contributing to a team.

Boyers is editor-in-chief of The Samford Crimson and an executive producer, reporter and anchor for Samford News Network. She earned sixth place in the College Journalist of the Year category of the Southeast Journalism Conference (SEJC) competition in March. At SLI, she will be coached and mentored by young professional journalists who are leaders in SPJ and in their workplaces. Participants also will learn to understand and apply the SPJ Code of Ethics and become more credible, ethical and values-based leaders. The students will be invited to further strengthen their skills at SPJ’s 2021 national conference in September.

"The candidates for the SLI class for 2021 are strong and already accomplished,” said Katerina Spaskova, member of the SPJ Journalism Education Committee and SLI selection committee. “The future is bright for journalism if we have these leaders in the newsroom and in SPJ."

 
Samford is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, Samford is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. Samford enrolls 5,791 students from 49 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. Samford fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks 6th nationally for its Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.