This Hispanic Heritage Month, Report for America is proud to highlight three Latino corps members who, through their work, provide critical coverage for their communities, spanning issue areas from labor and immigration to politics and environment. Many Report for America corps members also reach specific Spanish-speaking audiences by providing bilingual or Spanish-language coverage. Meet some of these exemplary corps members below.


Alejandra Molina, Boyle Heights Beat, first-year corps member

Alejandra Molina reports on East L.A. community issues, with a focus on the increasing effects of immigration raids on the majority Latino community. She has covered stories about ICE raids affecting school enrollment, undocumented street vendors and ongoing immigration protests in the area.

For her story, “They’re not activists. But ICE raids have turned them into community defenders,” Molinaprofiled Los Angelans who have started volunteering to protect their undocumented neighbors. The story features an engineer, a school employee and software engineer who all joined the Boyle Heights Immigrant Rights network to patrol streets for ICE activity or canvas the community. “I felt like a call to action,” one of the participants said. “We’re dealing with an opposition that is heavily resourced, and all we have is us.”

Avery Martinez, KMOV-TV, second-year corps member 

Avery Martinez reports on water, agriculture and the environment across the Mississippi River Valley. He has covered stories about tariffs’ effect on local farmers, community reactions to continued poor water quality and impacts of increased flooding. 

When Senator Josh Hawley was campaigning for election, he promised to get the new EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin to visit and talk to the farmers directly, after they expressed concerns about the department’s future. After months of no updates and no visits, Martinez continued to follow up with the senator until he finally made good on his promise. Martinez’s story, “Farmers speak directly with EPA Admin Zeldin as he visits St. Louis area,” covers Zeldin’s visit and Q&A with farmers.

Claudia Rivera Cotto, Enlace Latino NC, third-year corps member

Claudia reports on politics and immigration in North Carolina. Claudia is a bilingual reporter who publishes stories in English and Spanish to serve her community’s growing Latino population. She covers topics including a health crisis affecting undocumented farm workers, Latino drivers being profiled while driving, and a lack of diversity in schools.

When a Latina student in her community, Gabby Aparicio, took her own life after being bullied, Claudia wrote about her life through the viewpoint of her family, friends, and community. Her story, “Gabby’s Legacy’: Durham Community Mourns Latina Teen’s Suicide Amid Bullying,” also exposed systematic issues within the local public school district, highlighting the lack of support for Latino students. Days after the article was published, the principal at Gabby’s school resigned, which was viewed by many as a sign of accountability amid growing criticism over the school’s handling of bullying cases.