StudentNation

StudentNation is a program of the Nation Fund for Independent Journalism and is made possible through generous funding from the Puffin Foundation. StudentNation focuses on first-person accounts from student activists, organizers, and journalists and has helped launch the careers of contributors to The New York TimesVoxBusiness InsiderTeen Vogue, the Guardian, and more. If you’re a student and you have an article idea, please send pitches and questions to [email protected]

Employees with Project Weber-Renew in Providence, Rhode Island.

This Overdose Prevention Center Isn’t Giving Up on Harm Reduction This Overdose Prevention Center Isn’t Giving Up on Harm Reduction

Over the past decade, overdose protections and programs like Project Weber-Renew have expanded, but with Trump back in office, this trend may be short lived.

Sep 2, 2025 / StudentNation / Fareed Salmon

Ken Martin, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, who leads a counter-resolution to Allison Minnerly’s proposal.

A DNC Member Is Calling for an Arms Embargo on Israel. Will the Party Leadership Listen? A DNC Member Is Calling for an Arms Embargo on Israel. Will the Party Leadership Listen?

Allison Minnerly speaks about her upcoming resolution urging a ceasefire, an arms embargo on Israel, and recognition of Palestine as a state.

Aug 26, 2025 / Q&A / Zoya Alam

Dan Golden watering his marijuana plants on his farm in Humboldt County, California.

California’s Small Cannabis Farmers Have Been Left High and Dry California’s Small Cannabis Farmers Have Been Left High and Dry

Humboldt County helped fuel the rise of the marijuana industry, but after the plant’s legalization, its farmers are struggling.

Aug 25, 2025 / StudentNation / Colin Warren

The Harvard Graduate Student Union–United Automobile Workers during a rally in 2021.

Trump’s War on Higher Ed Comes to the Bargaining Table Trump’s War on Higher Ed Comes to the Bargaining Table

As two of the nation’s largest private graduate student unions fight for new contracts, their members have been among the most vulnerable to the president’s attacks on universitie...

Aug 21, 2025 / StudentNation / Amann Mahajan

A student walks towards the entrance of their graduation ceremony in Los Angeles, California.

As Federal Support Wanes, States Must Reinvest in Higher Education As Federal Support Wanes, States Must Reinvest in Higher Education

Our education system faces a crisis of affordability and access only amplified by the passage of the Big, Beautiful Bill and Trump’s attempted cuts. States need to step up.

Aug 18, 2025 / StudentNation / Abhinandan Gaba

A volunteer in Greece unrolls a firehose in preparation for a wildfire.

The Volunteers Fighting Greece’s Intensifying Wildfires The Volunteers Fighting Greece’s Intensifying Wildfires

As climate change brings unprecedented levels of heat and drought, the country’s unpaid fire brigades are bracing for the worst in the absence of state support.

Aug 14, 2025 / StudentNation / Megan Cameron, Annalisa Jenkins, and Maggie Stewart

Doug Rebout’s soybean farm in Janesville, Wisconsin.

How Trump’s Tariffs Shocked Wisconsin Farmers How Trump’s Tariffs Shocked Wisconsin Farmers

The administration’s tariff policies have thrust soybean farmers into economic chaos as they navigate higher input costs and shifts in global trade.

Aug 12, 2025 / StudentNation / Ava Menkes

Young People Are Using ChatGPT for Therapy, but the Conversations Lack Privacy and Protections

Young People Are Using ChatGPT for Therapy, but the Conversations Lack Privacy and Protections Young People Are Using ChatGPT for Therapy, but the Conversations Lack Privacy and Protections

Therapy is now one of the leading uses of AI. But unlike traditional therapy notes, which are privileged, transcripts with chatbots carry no such shield.

Aug 8, 2025 / StudentNation / Chelsea Lubbe and Ray Epstein

Student workers and their supporters at Occidental College as they launch a union campaign to join SEIU Local 721 in 2024.

Under Trump, Student Labor Organizers Face New Challenges Under Trump, Student Labor Organizers Face New Challenges

Anticipating a rollback of recent NLRB precedent, some unions have withdrawn petitions for recognition, looking for other paths to continue their work.

Aug 6, 2025 / StudentNation / Lucy Tobier

The tower at the University of Texas in April 2024 in Austin.

Texas Ended In-State Tuition for Undocumented Immigrants. Students Are Already Feeling the Impact. Texas Ended In-State Tuition for Undocumented Immigrants. Students Are Already Feeling the Impact.

“The message is loud and clear: You’re good enough to pick vegetables or clean hotel rooms, but not to go to college.”

Aug 4, 2025 / StudentNation / Lajward Zahra

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