Bravetta Hassell said a high school journalism program sponsored by the Washington Post changed her life.

“It was good to see minorities in journalism,” she said. “It made me want to further pursue it as a career.”

Hassell, a junior at Hampton University, began her journalism career in her sophomore year at Hayfield Secondary High School when she became a staff writer for the school newspaper, The Orange Peal. She became co-news editor during her senior year.

The Alexandria,Va., native also attended a Scripps Howard journalism program that allowed her to cover Capitol Hill, elderly abuse of prescription drugs, the historical desegregation of schools, and the National Spelling Bee.

Hassell has interned at The Washington Afro American newspaper, where she covered American Idol auditions and interviewed D.C. Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton.

The print journalism major intends to minor in a foreign language. “Spanish is a marketable language. I need to know it,” Hassell said. “It makes me more versatile in my abilities to write and communicate.” Hassell said she would like to work for a mid-sized newspaper and focus on education and general assignment.

At Hampton University, Hassell has been a staff writer and lifestyle editor for the Hampton Script. She will be editor in chief for the 2005-2006 school year. She said she intends to improve the campus publication by establishing “a strong foundation of consistent writers, making the publication a better education tool, and getting Hampton out further into the community by means of the paper.”

“I want people to be proud of the Script and I want them to look forward to reading more than just one section,” Hassell said.

STACY ANDERSON