Student and professional journalists can learn how to use Google tools in their reporting and storytelling during a special one-day training being hosted by Illinois State University’s School of Communication.

The Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) training program in partnership with Google News Lab is set for 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. September 11 at the Bone Student Center’s Old Main Room. Students from Illinois State and Illinois Wesleyan universities are invited, as are professional journalists from around Illinois.

The event is free, but registration is required.

“This training workshop is an excellent opportunity for professional staff, faculty, and students to get up to speed with the latest trends in emerging areas of journalism including working with a variety of data and multimedia storytelling,” said Steve Hunt, executive director of the School of Communication. “The School of Communication is proud to partner with WGLT and our student media outlets to bring this opportunity to the community.”

Sessions at the September 11 training will include Google News Lab Fundamentals, Data Journalism, and Multimedia Storytelling. More than 8,000 journalists have been trained by SPJ-Google News Lab at 200 locations across the U.S.

The event is hosted by the School of Communication and its NPR member-station, WGLT, a broadcast service of Illinois State University. It’s co-sponsored by student media outlets TV-10, The Vidette, and WZND radio.