A letter criticizing The New School’s Journalism + Design program (J+D) was sent to over 350 Eugene Lang College of Liberal Arts faculty, including those in the J+D department, in the evening on March 31. 

The letter, published under the pseudonym “Journalismanddesignstudents” critiques the university’s undergraduate journalism program, mentioning its lack of rigor and community among other things. It specifically requests that faculty improve the required courses News, Narrative and Design I (NNDI) and II. The letter was signed “The New School J + D Students,” followed by an additional 24 signatures from unnamed “Journalism Student[s]” between the graduating classes of 2025 to 2028. The authors did not share their names with the New School Free Press. 

In an emailed statement, the anonymous group told the Free Press, “Our goal is to bring about serious change in J+D, while holding faculty accountable for making it happen. We won’t settle for anything less than journalistic excellence.” They mentioned their dedication to integrity, honesty, and the power of a quality journalism education.

The letter includes a section titled “Summary: What We Want,” which details specific demands such as consistent grading and standardized curriculum, “Hands-on learning with real-world applications,” and “Community-forward reporting and storytelling focuses in NNDI and NNDII.” 

The letter also asks for stronger internship and career preparation, emphasizing that some J+D students feel “unprepared for real-world newsroom settings and professional reporting.” The students asked for more networking opportunities, guest speaker sessions from experienced journalists and alumni, and opportunities to get in the field through newsroom field trips. 

The letter also calls for a monthly program check-in that takes the form of “a program-wide email that includes the link to a satisfaction survey.” The students mention that the survey must include all their criteria, as they believe it is necessary for a good journalism program.

“Some of the concerns are very familiar,” Blake Eskin, the chair of the J+D department, said. “But if there are this many students who feel like they’re not being heard, then we want to work harder to serve all of the students as best we can.”

Eskin emphasized that the “unspoken premise” of the letter is the need for the department to facilitate more open conversations with students. “I think we work hard to do that, to create that conversation, to listen to students, to include students’ concerns, to respond to students’ concerns,” Eskin said. He stated that the department is aware of the letter’s concerns and has been working on a program review process for the past year.

The letter ended with anonymous testimonials from program students across multiple cohorts. “Over my time here, I’ve found good courses and good professors, but the base courses absolutely need to be fixed,” one J+D class of 2027 student testimonial said. 

“I found myself struggling to find the meaning behind my work and struggling to find support within the department,” another testimonial from a class of 2027 student said.

Disclosure: Several editors and staff members on the New School Free Press, including the reporter on this story, are students in the J+D program at Lang. No editors or staff at NSFP were aware of the letter or its contents prior to its original publication on March 31.