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HistoryIn 1982, MIT established what were first named the Vannevar Bush Fellowships for mid-career science journalists, with support from the Alfred P. Sloan and Andrew W. Mellon Foundations. Victor K. McElheny, a former reporter for The Charlotte Observer, Science, The Boston Globe, and The New York Times, became the first Director. From the beginning, the Fellowships have been designed to recognize talented science journalists of high achievement. The program exists to expand their skills and sources, thereby helping to raise the standards of coverage of news about science, medicine, technology, and the environment. In the fall of 1983, the first Fellows arrived at MIT. The group included both print and broadcast journalists. The Fellows began the traditions of courses, lab visits, interviews with key researchers, twice-weekly seminars, field trips, and discussion of challenges for science journalism. The first overseas Fellows joined the program in 1984. In 1987, when the Knight Foundation pledged a seven-year operating grant and began steps toward the endowment of the program, the name changed to Knight Science Journalism Fellowships. In 1998, McElheny retired. His successor was Boyce Rensberger of The Washington Post. Rensberger established the series of intense short courses, know as Boot Camps. In 2003 Fellows traveled to Cuba for the first winter field trip to study science in another country. Since then, Fellows have traveled to Mexico, Puerto Rico and Costa Rica. In 2006 Rensberger launched Knight Science Journalism Tracker, a web site for peer-to-peer review within science journalism. In 2008, Rensberger retired after 10 years at the Fellowships. Philip J. Hilts became the new Knight director in July, 2008. Since the program began in 1983, 265 journalists have been awarded Knight Fellowships. Fellows have come from the U.S. and 29 other countries. They remain part of a growing group who share questions, ideas and information about science journalism.
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