JCI Malolos partners with DepEd City of Baliwag student pub advisers for JOURN4ALL Project

JCI Malolos

2–4 minutes

**JOURN4ALL.** Teachers from Hinukay Elementary School were actively engaged during the hybrid session of the virtual campus journalism caravan sponsored by JCI Malolos through its *JOURN4ALL* project. The project was launched to promote the importance of citizen journalism and the role of individuals in effectively crafting the stories that reflect the local community.

Aiming to promote citizen journalism as a tool for community empowerment and inspiring individuals to become active and responsible storytellers of local narratives, Junior Chamber International (JCI) Malolos conducted the first leg of its JOURN4ALL project in collaboration with the Department of Education-Schools Division of the City of Baliwag and the City of Baliwag Secondary and Elementary School Paper Advisers’ Association (CBSESPAA) yesterday, January 3, 2025.

The project was launched during CBSESPAA’s inaugural Hasaan: Campus Journalism Training Workshop, which gathered approximately 60 school publication advisers. The training focused on enhancing the technical and creative skills of advisers to improve the quality and impact of school publications in the city.

“This HASAAN and JOURN4ALL training helped me grow as an elementary teacher by expanding my skills in creating school paper publications,” said Ceddi Garcia, Vice President for Elementary Schools of CBSESPAA.

He also added that the project helped him in learning the technical aspects of student publication layouting.

**UNDERSTANDING DESIGN PRINCIPLES.** Ms. Cathlyn Keshel De Raya, a senior Journalism student at the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, shares the key principles and theories in designing a student publication. In her lecture to the school paper advisers of the City of Baliwag, she emphasized the importance of having a compelling publication design to capture the interest of readers. She also highlighted how effective design can enhance storytelling and make it more impactful.

“Through this training, I’ve learned the significance of technical aspects of layouting as well as various tools and techniques for graphic design. Indeed, this project of JCI Malolos has empowered me to incorporate new and innovative methods into my task as an SPA,” he added.

On the other hand, JCI Malolos President, Reggie Rey C. Fajardo highlighted the organization’s dedication to supporting educators and advancing journalism education.

“The goal with JOURN4ALL is not just to provide training but to create opportunities for educators to inspire their students and transform school publications into platforms for meaningful storytelling and community engagement,” he shared.

The training sessions covered essential topics such as layout design principles, graphic tools, and publication management.

The first JOURN4ALL project’s training was conducted in a hybrid setup, offering participants both virtual and in-person learning opportunities.

Ms. Cathlyn Keshel De Raya, a senior Journalism student from the Polytechnic University of the Philippines, led a comprehensive virtual discussion on design principles for student publications. She also conducted demonstrations on how to use Adobe InDesign, a software tool for newspaper layout design.

In addition to the virtual session, teachers from various schools had the chance to experience hands-on training in using newspaper design software.

This practical session allowed school publication advisers to explore design tools and techniques that could be directly applied to their own publications.

JOURN4ALL AND THE UNSDG

The JOURN4ALL project aligns with UNSDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions by promoting transparency, access to information, and active community participation through citizen journalism, empowering individuals to amplify local voices and foster accountability.

Simultaneously, it supports UNSDG 4: Quality Education by providing training that enhances critical thinking, media literacy, and communication skills, equipping educators and students with tools for lifelong learning and responsible storytelling. Together, these goals highlight the project’s dual impact on fostering inclusive education and building informed, participatory societies.