Alcorn State University (ASU) Mass Communications student, Dasia Harris, is currently interning with The Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting (MCIR) through their Immersion Program for the Spring 2022 semester. During the internship, Harris is looking into who played a role in the wrongful conviction of Tameshia Shelton, a Mississippi native.
MCIR exposes injustices, investigates cold cases, gives a voice to the voiceless, and raises up the next generation of investigative reporters. MCIR investigator, Ann Marie Cunningham, first got in contact with ASU Mass Communications’ professor Toni Terrett in order to come and speak to Terrett’s Investigative Reporting class. After this meeting, Cunningham made it her mission to bring an ASU student in to intern with MCIR.
“I am very excited and proud that Dasia accepted the challenge of interning with this organization. The professional journalists who work there are known nationally and internationally. We (in the Mass Communications Department) are in the business of preparing students who can compete on any level and in any environment. Dasia’s experience is good for her and hopefully will inspire other students to pursue professional development opportunities such as this,” stated Professor Terrett.
Harris, a native of Belleville, Illinois, is not the only college student interning with MCIR this semester. She has been assigned a partner from Millsaps College named Yuko Nogawa to help her look into the case of Shelton. MCIR also has students from Tougaloo College and the University of Missouri who are working on various other investigative stories.
“So far this has been a great experience, I really want to thank Professor Terrett and Ms. Cunningham for giving me this opportunity. I look forward to continuing with this case and to see what this experience leads me to,” said Harris.
As the semester continues, Harris and her partner, Nogawa, will continue to look into the wrongful conviction of Shelton. They are currently in the midst of creating a profile on the prosecutor of Shelton’s case that will be featured on the MCIR website.
To check out Harris’ and other’s work with MCIR you can visit their website at mississippicir.org.
