Chips Watch: All the Summer news that’s fit to post

Special to chipsquinn.org

Posted: July 18, 2003

Well folks, here we are again -- this time with your official July 2003 update on the whereabouts of your Chipster colleagues. Without further ado, here’s the news on those in news …

Those wacky Summer Scholars … Leezel Tanglao, checking in from Salt Lake City, where six Chipsters are working at The Salt Lake Tribune, says: “I just finished my big feature article on the warrior arts of the Philippines. I worked it out so that Ken (Pagano) was the page designer. We went to a photo shoot of a kali class, and we were totally feeling how great this story will be. Even the photographer was into it. I guess I've sparked people's interest. Now everyone -- especially Ken and I -- can't wait to see the end result. Talk about bringing a new perspective! Diversity in the works.” Great teamwork.

Stephanie Conduff, checking in from the Muskogee, Okla., newsroom, says she received her first fan mail. An interview subject wrote: “You really made me look so much better than I am. It was very neat, well-written article, and I appreciate it so much.” The Special Olympian from Muskogee whom Steph profiled won a gold medal in a competition in Dublin, Ireland, and Stephanie lauded her victory in a Page One story. Wow!

Melissa Navas attended the Native American Journalists Association convention in a partnership with the Asian American Journalists Association. She worked on the convention newspaper. She says she learned a lot about Native culture. She also found out that she won a $10,000 Newhouse scholarship -- and will work as an intern at a Newhouse newspaper next Summer.

Among others attending the NAJA convention: Nancy Kelsey (Summer 2003), Michale Kosechequetah (Summer 2003), Kaeleen McGuire (Summer 2003) and Jerome Nakagawa (Spring 2003), who worked on the convention newspaper Native Voice; and Geneva Horse Chief (Spring 2003), who contributed to the radio project.

Keep the Summer 2003 news coming!

Congrats to our much-heralded Chipsters …

Karla Gachet (Summer 2002) and Willie Allen Jr. (Spring 2002) were runners-up in the Hearst Journalism Awards Program/Photojournalism Championship. Each received a $1,500 scholarship. Karla also received an award and $1,000 for best picture story/series.

Brandi Jade Thomas (Summer 2001), an ASNE/APME Fellow at The News-Star in Monroe, La., was a runner-up in Gannett's quarterly Well Done contest. The award was for spot-news images from a crime scene where authorities searched for and found a missing woman's body.

This year’s NAJA award winners include: Peta Tinda (Summer 2001), second place and honorable mention for best picture; and Tara McLain (Summer 2000), honorable mention for best news writing-monthly. Great going!

Maria T. Garcia (Summer 1996) has won an award from the Inland Empire chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists for coverage of a teacher scandal that made national news last year.

Thanks for making our day.

The babies are coming, the babies are coming … The aforementioned Maria Garcia has byline news: Andrew Matthew Stephens was born in December. Maria has been back at work at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, Calif., since baby Andrew was a month old.

Not to be out-edited … Lina Hashem (Summer 1999) and husband, Ali, welcomed their second child in 18 months! Aydin Ismail Gokce was born in April, and mom Lina is thinking about going back to copy editing part time at The News Journal in Wilmington, Del. -- that is, if Aydin and big sister Delia will let her.

Twofer tots … Jamesetta Miller Mangroo Walker (Summer 1993) and husband, Maurice, welcomed twins earlier this year -- Perrin Kelsey Miller Walker and Kylei Alyssa Miller Walker. The babies join sister Kassydi, and she is excited. Jamesetta has returned to her assistant metro editor position at The Clarion-Ledger in Jackson, Miss.

Westward ho … Olivia Nesbit (Summer 2001) has taken a two-year internship with The Oregonian in Portland. “This means I will be joining The Oregonian after I finish my internship with the AP in Boston,” Olivia says. “I will be starting in Portland toward the beginning of October. I am excited to get back into the mountains. I didn't realize how much I missed mountains.”

Northward … Xiao Zhang (Fall 2001) has been named the regional reporter at her newspaper, the Grand Forks (N.D.) Herald. What does it mean? How about looking for stories in the 10 counties in North Dakota and the 10 in Minnesota?

Movin’ into Motown … Candice Cunningham (Summer 2002) has taken a full-time reporting job at The Detroit News. And Tiffany L. Woods (Summer 2002) is a Summer intern at The News. Tiff can’t wait to graduate from Central Michigan University at the end of the year.

The Florida hits keep on comin’ … Paola Iuspa (Summer 2000) has come to the SoFla region to work as a reporter at the South Florida Business Journal. … Ryan Hiraki (Summer 2001, Spring 2002) has been promoted to the Bonita Springs beat at The News-Press in Fort Myers. … Yuli Wu (Summer 2000) is heading to the Florida Times-Union in Jacksonville. Yuli says, “We cover home and away Jaguar (NFL) games, Florida football and Florida State football. The place I will be renting is 10 minutes from downtown depending on traffic and 12 miles from the beach. I'm so excited.” Keep us posted, Yuli.

Together again … The Latino Reporter at the National Association of Hispanic Journalists convention was (why are you surprised?) full of Chipsters! They were: Fulvio Cativo (Summer 2003), Lys Mendez (Summer 2002), Ricardo Sanchez Jr. (Spring 2003), Ashley Surdin (Summer 2002), Blanca Torres (Summer 2001). Connie Murray Hernandez (Spring 2001) was student project coordinator/photo editor. Well done, all!

Keeping up …

• Ofelia Madrid (Summer 2002) has graduated from University of California-Berkeley's graduate school of journalism and is at The Oregonian for the Summer.

• Moin Salahuddin (Fall 2001) is off to attend medical school at Ross University on the island of Dominica. Says the future Dr. Moin: “Ultimately, I'd love to get my M.D. in sports medicine, open my own practice and delve into media, possibly as a health fitness writer/reporter. So rather than make a decision between media and medicine, I decided to pursue both!”

• Michelle J. Pinkard (Summer 1999 and Fall 1999), who had a collection of poetry published, now has a promotional Web site, www.michellejpinkard.com. La Poetess says, “Please check it out. I am looking forward to all feedback, from genius to ‘mizpelled wurds.’ As always, your opinion counts. Until then …”

• Danielle Samaniego (Summer 1999) is back at her old Chipster internship haunts working for the Brentwood News, a weekly based in East Contra Costa County in the San Francisco Bay Area. “Though I will spend most of my time out in Brentwood, I'll also be at the Antioch (Ledger-Dispatch) office from time to time as well.” Glad you’re back!

More jobs fronts …

Rick Jervis (Summer 1993) has left his foreign-correspondence stint from Prague and has landed at the Chicago Tribune. “Good paper; great town,” Rick says.

Spring 2003er Norm Narvaja has accepted a full-time job with the News Journal in Mansfield, Ohio. Norm reports he is thrilled to be less than an hour from his old life and friends in Cleveland.

Ish Tate (Summer 2002), who spent her Chipster Summer at The Greenville (S.C.) News, has taken a full-time job there. The newspaper was so impressed with her skills that it offered to keep a reporting job open for her until after her May graduation.

April Rushing (Fall 2001) was offered a Summer internship at The Morning Call in Allentown, Pa., after meeting the newspaper’s managing editor at the American Society of Newspaper Editors’ convention in New Orleans. “Before I returned home from New Orleans, I received an e-mail from Jack Tobias, the assistant metro editor at The Morning Call. He expressed interest in my work but wanted to check out my references. That entire week was a nail-biter! Mr. Tobias called me a week ago and asked me how I feel about Pennsylvania. I feel pretty great about it.”

Movin’ on … Sherry Parfait (Summer 1994) has snared clients including Constance Rhodes, author of Life Inside The “Thin” Cage, and NFL wide receiver Chris Sanders of the Tennessee Titans in her public-relations work. … Lynnette Chua (Summer 1998) has graduated from law school at the National University of Singapore with first-class honors. … Jacqueline S. Gayle (Summer 1999 and Summer 2000) has returned from a two-year stint with the Peace Corps in South Africa.

Well done, all. Find out more about your Chipster colleagues next week in Part II of the Summer Watch. ’Till then...

We want to hear from you. Send your news to Program Assistant Michelle Hedenskoog.

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