About Us

Mission & History

AAJA Sacramento, which was founded in 1985, has about 50 members throughout the Central Valley and Northern California. AAJA is a nonprofit organization of more than 1,600 professional and student members in 20 chapters across the United States and Asia.

We share in the mission of our parent organization, which was founded in 1981 to:

  • Encourage Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to enter the ranks of journalism.
  • Work for fair and accurate coverage of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
  • Increase the number of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander journalists, including news managers, in the industry.

Membership has its privileges: Our chapter has held mixers to celebrate the holidays and Lunar New Year, organized a student workshop, attended community events and celebrations, handled the judging for national scholarships and awarded scholarships to local students. AAJA Sacramento has been recognized with several national awards, including Chapter of the Year in 2006 and 2010; Sandy Louey named Chapter Member of the Year in 2002 and Chapter President of the Year in 2013; and Pamela Wu selected as Member of the Year in 2015.

The Sacramento chapter offers the following activities and events for its members:

Grants – Each year, the chapter provides stipends to help members attend the national AAJA convention.

Internships – AAJA Sacramento partners with The Sacramento Bee for a summer internship that is open to all AAJA student members. The paper has hired many interns afterward.

Professional stipends – The chapter offers grants to help members attend training and skills development programs.

Social events – The chapter encourages members to get to know one another on an informal basis through a range of events.

Student workshops – The chapter holds student workshops in which professionals in the Sacramento region share their tips and experiences about entering the journalism field.