NEWSPAPER STORIES
Here is a sample of the stories I've written in newspapers over the years.
PROFILES
NPR HOST TERRY GROSS BREATHES FRESH AIR INTO TALK RADIO
My profile of Terry Gross, host of NPR's "Fresh Air." Gross is a purveyor of the thinking person's coverage of culture. She is loved for asking the question everyone was thinking, or wish they had thought of.
My profile won 2nd place for personality profiles for the Keystone Press Awards, a statewide competition of the best media writing in Pennsylvania.
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESIDENT RICHARD ATKINSON SET TO STEP DOWN FROM THE HELM
My profile of Richard Atkinson, who was then the leader of one of the most widely respected public university systems in the world. Atkinson is the rare combination of a grandfatherly type, absentminded and lowkey, and an adroit politician, brilliant and charming.
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA REGENTS CHAIRMAN JOHN MOORES GETS FLAK AND PRAISE FOR HIS CRITICISM OF THE ADMISSIONS SYSTEM
John Moores was often in the spotlight because of his role as an entrepreneur and owner of the San Diego Padres. My profile highlighted his lesser known position at the time as chairman of the University of California regents, and his crusade to change UC admissions.
FEATURE STORIES
NAMELESS IN DEATH, ALIVE IN THEIR HEARTS
Anatomy class pays respects to cadaver
This is a feature I wrote about the tenderness with which community college students treated their "first patient," a cadaver that had been donated for education. It's part of a growing trend of college students holding cadaver memorials to teach professionalism and compassion.
INVESTIGATIONS
HEYDAY TO MAYDAY
People of modest means hitched their hopes on Little Lake Street
Along with a team of data analysts, I helped pinpoint a street in southern San Diego that had more foreclosures than any other in the county. I tracked down many of the original owners and mortgage brokers to help illustrate what went wrong during the housing crisis.
This piece won first place for business writing for the Associated Press California/Nevada Newswriting and Photo Contest. It also won first place for a series from the San Diego Press Club, as well as second place for best investigative series by the National Association of Real Estate Editors Contest.
WATCHDOG REPORT: SD MARATHON RUNS INTO CONTROVERSY
Company that stages event profits from city subsidy, charity payouts
My investigation showed that the organizers of the San Diego Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon had created a bogus charity to help host the race, and benefit from hundreds of thousands of dollars of discounted police services.
This piece won the Media Watchdog Award by the San Diego County Taxpayers Association. My reporting ultimately prompted the race organizers to return $340,000 in city funds.
SCHOOL LUNCHES MISSING THE MARK FOR NUTRITION STANDARDS
More than half of lunches served at schools that were reviewed by the state were fattening, salty and nutritionally deficient.
My analysis of five years' worth of California school lunch data showed 60 percent of school districts were failing to meet at least one federal nutritional requirement. About 30 percent of districts exceeded the saturated fat limit. And four out of five districts exceeded recommended sodium limits.