Solutions Journalism Lab

What is the New Hampshire Solutions Journalism Lab?

Black and white logo with the words 'Solutions Journalism Network' in bold, uppercase letters.

The Loeb School s is the New Hampshire partner to the Solutions Journalism Network. We partner with local media organizations to tackle major problems facing our state. The goal is to offer solutions by comparing and contrasting local approaches with outcomes being achieved elsewhere in the state and nation. 

Generous donations that support each project allow the news outlet to hire a reporter exclusively to cover each issue. The participating news outlets then share their stories, at no charge, with other news outlets around that state.

Current Solutions Journalism Project

The Concord Monitor’s Education Initiative 

New Hampshire's schools face a critical time. They are caught in political debates over funding, curriculum, and alternatives like charter schools. Rural towns, where schools serve as community hubs, feel these issues most deeply. Rural reporting is also vital; small communities often lack news coverage, leading to less accountability and lower voter turnout. The Concord Monitor, supported by funding from The Barr Foundation, hired a dedicated reporter to focus on rural education and reporting.

Previous Projects

  • The Monadnock Region Health Reporting Lab at the Keene Sentinel - This is an innovative approach to news coverage of healthcare in Cheshire County and beyond its borders. The Keene Sentinel committed a full-time reporter, dedicated editing resources, training, travel and technology to explore the challenges of healthcare access in the Monadnock Region. 

  • Youth Voices at the Laconia Daily Sun - The Laconia Daily Sun’s VOICES project explored issues of health and well-being facing local youth by investigating mental health, the effects of social media and technology, the importance of stable, trusting relationships with adults and spaces.

  • Nashua Digital - Nashua Digital’s coverage focused on homelessness, the drug epidemic, civic engagement, underrepresented communities, local businesses, at-risk youth, mental health challenges, sports, finance, education, and feature stories.

  • Making the Grade: Exploring Solutions to NH’s Education in the Union Leader - This reporting effort covered education in New Hampshire, with a special emphasis on the city of Manchester and the challenges students face in the state’s largest school district.

  • Workforce Development: What’s Working - For nearly three years, the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News offered coverage on New Hampshire’s workforce development issues and continued beyond its anticipated conclusion by pivoting to news about the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on businesses.

  • Community Health and Civic Engagement: The Sunshine Project - The mission for The Sunshine Project at the Laconia Sun was to report on issues of civic discourse and social determinants of community health. 

  • Beyond the Stigma - This one-year project by the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News explored solutions to the state’s addiction and mental health challenges. 

  • Silver Linings - This one-year project of the New Hampshire Union Leader and Sunday News offered in-depth coverage of aging, raise public awareness of and community engagement about promising approaches that create age-friendly communities in New Hampshire.

Solutions Journalism Funders and Partners

The Laconia Sun

The Union Leader/NH Sunday News

The Barr Foundation

Cheshire Medical Center

Clark-Mortenson

Dartmouth-Hitchcock/Dartmouth Health

Endowment for Health

Eric Herr

Eversource

Fenton Family Dealerships

Fidelity Investments

Granite State News Collaborative

The Keene Sentinel

NH Charitable Foundation 

NH Coalition for Business and Education

NH College and University Council

Northeast Delta Dental

James and Judy Putnam

The Putnam Foundation 

The Richards Group

Woodrow Wilson Scholars