Chips Watch: Promotion,
prestigious programs,
awards headline Scholar updates

Special to chipsquinn.org

Posted: March 17, 2006

Moving up…
Jodie Lau (Summer 2002) has been promoted to assistant news editor (from copy editor) at The Arizona Republic in Phoenix. Lau will attend the AAJA Executive Leadership Program in Scottsdale, Ariz., in April. She also is teaching an editing class at Arizona State University this semester.

Jodie Lau	Harold Goodridge	Hatzel Vela

Lau is one of three alums selected for this year’s Maynard Media Academy at the Nieman Foundation at Harvard University. The academy meets for one week in January and another in June. Harold Goodridge (Summer 1997), city editor, Stevens Point (Wis.) Journal, and Jannell McGrew (Summer 1999), senior writer for the Montgomery (Ala.) Advertiser, are the other two alums in this prestigious program. Says Lau, “It's been crazy, but I am having a blast. I'm learning a lot, and I appreciate all these opportunities that I have been given, including being part of Chips Quinn.”

Three other alums selected for the Maynard Media Academy at Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University will meet in March and July. They are: Kevin Abourezk (Summer 1999), assistant city editor/nights, Lincoln (Neb.) Journal Star; LaShinda Clark (Summer 1995), photo editor, The Philadelphia Inquirer; and Jamesetta Walker (Summer 1993), features editor, The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Miss.

Hatzel Vela (Summer 2003) reports that he was promoted from writer to associate producer at WSVN-Channel 7, Miami's Fox affiliate. Says Vela, “I started as a writer, working overnights and writing for the morning newscasts. Several months later, I was promoted to write for the afternoon shows and then to the evening shows. Now, I'll be once again working overnights, but as a producer of one of our four morning top-rated shows.”

Moving on…
Warisa Chulindra (Summer 2000) is now a copy editor for The San Diego Union-Tribune. Previously she was at The Tennessean in Nashville. Says Chulindra, “It's surreal to be in California after years of wanting it. It's also surreal for it to be winter but it's 60-70 degrees outside. There's a lot to do in San Diego, and I've enjoyed the month that I've been here. I hope it only gets better!”

Veronica Torrejon (Summer 2002) is now a reporter at The Morning Call in Allentown, Pa. Previously she was at the Los Angeles Times as a Metpro reporter. Torrejon joins Manuel Gamiz (Summer 1999) in The Morning Call newsroom.

Rosalio Ahumada (Summer 2003) writes that he is now a public-safety reporter for The Modesto (Calif.) Bee. Previously he was an education reporter at the Merced (Calif.) Sun-Star. Both newspapers are owned by McClatchy. Says Ahumada, “My experience in Merced was worthwhile and led to my return to Modesto, where I started my career in Summer 2004 as an intern and later a temporary full-time employee for six months.”

DeAnna Carpenter	Fulvio Cativo	Mark Cornejo

DeAnna L. Carpenter (Summer 2003) is now a copy editor at the Columbus (Ga.) Ledger-Enquirer. Previously she was at The Wausau (Wis.) Daily Herald. She joins Angelique Soenarie (Summer 2001) in the Ledger-Enquirer newsroom.

Fulvio Cativo (Summer 2003), who graduated from the University of Maryland in December, has just begun his full-time newsroom career as West Hartford Public Schools reporter for The Hartford (Conn.) Courant.

Felix Doligosa (Summer 2003) is now a reporter for the Rocky Mountain News in Denver. Doligosa is a graduate of the University of Colorado-Boulder.

Mark Cornejo (Summer 2005) graduated in December from San Jose State University and is now a sports writer for The News in Henderson, Nev. The News is a collection of community weeklies that cover the Las Vegas suburbs.

Kara Andrade	Sachi Fujimori	Angel Jennings

Kara Andrade (Spring 2005) received an East Bay Press Club Scholarship and will be an Associated Press intern in Mexico City this Summer. Andrade is a graduate student at the University of California-Berkeley.

Sachi Fujimori (Summer 2005) will be a Kaiser Media intern this Summer at The Charlotte (N.C.) Observer.

Angel Jennings (Summer 2005) has accepted a Dow Jones Newspaper Fund business-reporting internship at the Star-Tribune in Minneapolis.

Awards…
Two Chipsters were finalists in the Associated Press Sports Editors’ contest for the best writing of 2005: Sean Jensen (Summer 1996), senior sports reporter for the Saint Paul (Minn.) Pioneer Press, in the breaking-news category; and Brian Gomez (Summer 2003), sports writer for The Gazette in Colorado Springs, Colo., as part of his paper’s team in project reporting.

Brandi Worley (Summer 2005) writes that she was named best features writer at the annual Historically Black Colleges & Universities (HBCU) newspaper conference last month at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro. Her story was on Hurricane Katrina survivor George Stewart, who walked from New Orleans to Baton Rouge.

Outreach…
Chipster Tonya Alanez (Spring 2004), reporter for the South Florida Sun-Sentinel in Fort Lauderdale, accompanied CQ career coach Mary Ann Hogan 200 miles across Florida's Alligator Alley to a gathering of the Association of Young Journalists at the Poynter Institute this month. The training session, which drew about 40 young journalists from South and Southwest Florida, included three other Chipsters: Ryan Hiraki (Summer 2001 and Spring 2002) and Pedro Morales (Spring 2002), reporters at The News-Press in Fort Myers; and photographer Eliza Gutierrez (Spring 2005) from The Palm Beach Post. Hogan led a session “Secrets of Structure.”

Sue Stock (Summer 2000) retail reporter at The News & Observer in Raleigh, N.C., writes about “interesting things happening in Raleigh” – and shows how a reporter can use “real life” to resonate with readers: “Awhile back, I wrote a fun consumer column about being nuts about coupons for part of a package about frugal shoppers. The reader response was huge! I heard from more people than I've heard from on any other story I've written. Ever. (Recently) we launch(ed) our new consumer section as part of our Sunday Work & Money section. It feature(s) a new consumer column, which rotates between myself and two other business reporters. It should be really awesome and it will allow me to write more about frugal shopping, watching your money and shopping in general. I'm totally excited! The other day, a local grocery store was tripling coupons, and I paid $5.66 for $43 worth of stuff. Might be the topic of my next column... :-) “

Several Chipsters from The Arizona Republic in Phoenix welcomed Spring 2006 Scholar Yvonne Pingue with dinner at Twin Peaks Brewery in Tempe. "Yvonne is great," wrote reporter Marianne Refuerzo (Summer 2005). "She fits right in here. She's a real Chipster."

Chipsters in Phoenix (from left) Yvonne Pingue (Spring 2006 intern), Michelle Woo (Spring 2004), Marianne Refuerzo (Summer 2005) and Odeen Domingo (Spring 2004).

Other news…
Tracey Johnson (Summer 1997) is writer/editor for Trans Management Systems Corp. in Washington, D.C. Previously she was a reporter at The Oakland (Calif.) Tribune.

Ethen Lieser	Chi-Chi Zhang	Nicole Pegues

Ethen Kim Lieser (Spring 2001) writes that he is an associate editor for The Junior Herald in Seoul, Korea. Previously he was a writer for Asian Week in San Francisco.

Chi-Chi Zhang (Summer 2003) writes that she is staying in Hong Kong after a Time Asia internship and is now an Asia-Pacific reporter for FX Week, Inside Market Data & Dealing With Technology.

Claire Luna (Spring 2001) is now a consultant for Jury Impact in Costa Mesa, Calif. Previously she was reporter for the Los Angeles Times.

Jordan Hernandez (Summer 2003) has left his position as night reporter with the Daily Advertiser in Lafayette, La., to help with recovery efforts in his hometown of New Orleans. Jordan works in housing assistance and is a self-described "trailer guy."

Felicia James (Summer 2003) is now a business-opportunity specialist for the Orange County Public Schools in Orlando, Fla.

Alicia Leonardi (Summer 2004) writes that she graduated from Colorado State University in December is now traveling in Southeast Asia. Says Leonardi, “I finally got to meet my father's family and connect with my Asian roots a bit more.” She will be living in Australia until June.

Nicole Pegues (Summer 2004) earned a master's degree in magazine publishing from Northwestern University in December. She is now working as a copywriter/layout artist in McMaster-Carr Supply's publishing department in Elmhurst, Ill.

Mark Jennings (Summer 2000) accepted a new position as social-action pastor at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. Previously he was executive director of the Los Angeles Ten Point Coalition. His wife Zerline (Summer 1998) joins him back in their hometown.

Baby News…
Larry Monarrez (Summer 2001) and his wife Celi are expecting their first boy. Monarrez is a communications specialist with the El Paso (Texas) Independent School District.

Keep your news coming. Send updates to Program Coordinator Michelle Hedenskoog.

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