Student Journalists Report on Florida’s Home Invasion Problem

De’Qonton Davis shows off the camera he received received two years ago from the Journeys in Journalism program in St. Petersburg, Florida

De’Qonton Davis hasn’t stopped his storytelling since the NewsHour met up with him this spring in his hometown of St. Petersburg, Fla. Over the summer he took part in The W.H.Y. Project, a program that paired 15 students from the Tampa Bay area with a professional journalist to help tell stories of their communities.

De’Qonton teamed up with his friend Antwoine Reid, and the pair used an iPod Touch to shoot a story about an issue that hit close to home — home invasions.

“Two out of the three had gotten their homes broken into,” said The W.H.Y. Project’s founding director Luanne Dietz. “They worked hard to come up with questions for both victims and the police. I was so proud of them and their concern for their community.”

Watch the duo’s investigation on the growing problem of home invasions in the St. Petersburg area:

Home Invasions from The W.H.Y. Project on Vimeo.

After spending his summer working on the home invasion project, De’Qonton started his freshman year at Lakewood High School. He’s involved in journalism there, continuing his participation in the Pinellas School District’s Journeys in Journalism program, which gives elementary, middle and high school students special instruction in journalism and media.

In his spare time, De’Qonton is still taking pictures with the camera he received from the program when he was in middle school. He hopes to get a longer lens so he can continue to grow as a photographer.

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American Graduate is a public media initiative funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to help local communities across America find solutions to address the dropout crisis.