William Jenkins

I am currently a full-time student at the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, with a focus on documentary filmmaking. I also work as a video tutor providing one-on-one technical assistance to graduate students and guidance on how to operate video equipment and software. I have taken every opportunity to broaden and expand my knowledge and skills while a student at Berkeley. I have completed an additional 17 credit hours above the required 36 credit hours required to graduate, all while maintaining a 4.0 GPA as maintaining my Berkeley Academic Scholarship. In December 2022, I was awarded the Marlon T. Riggs Fellowship in Documentary Filmmaking. The fellowship is named in honor of Marlon T. Riggs (‘81), a former professor at Berkeley. Riggs' work challenged audiences in matters of race, poverty, sexuality, and power. Receiving the fellowship has empowered me with the responsibility to produce films that spark discussions amongst viewers. As a documentary filmmaker, my short documentary, 'The Oakland Coliseum: Past, Present and Future' was selected to screen at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco as part of the Bay Area Media Maker Summit. Being selected for this screening was not an opportunity afforded to many. The short focused on the response from Oakland residents’ to the Oakland A’s baseball team moving from the Oakland Coliseum. It highlighted the avarice nature of sport associations, the imbalance of power, and sports franchises’ disregard for the detrimental economic impact their decisions have on Black and Brown communities when moving franchises from these communities. Driven by my professional and personal interests, I am an active member of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ). As a Black bilingual scholar, I am able to lend my talents to both associations by advocating, supporting and helping to elevate diverse voices and stories.