They arrived on June 8. They came from as far away as Lima, Peru and as close as St. Petersburg itself. There are 25 of them: 10 writers, five photographers, five designers and five copy editor/producers.

They’re all journalists. Young ones. Most of them are fresh out of college.

For the next five weeks, they will take part in a program at the Poynter Institute that some past participants have likened to boot camp or a finishing school. In addition to taking classes, they’re working in teams of five, fanning out across St. Petersburg and reporting on geographic beats. The week of June 16, 2008 they began publishing their stories.

And remember, come mid-July, 2008, most of these talented young journalists will be looking for work.