Before joinging the Associated Press, Ellen Schmidt was a visual journalist, CatchLight Local fellow and Report for America corps member at MinnPost. Her career began while earning an undergraduate degree in journalism and art at the University of Minnesota, where she worked as a reporter, photographer and the multimedia editor at the Minnesota Daily student newspaper. Her roles there propelled her to internships at Minnesota Public Radio News, The Minnesota Star Tribune, The Duluth News Tribune and the Las Vegas Review-Journal. In Nevada, her success led to five years as a staff photojournalist visualizing breaking news, community stories, enterprise coverage, the environment and major sporting events.
Beat: Photojournalist
The Midwest is the home to multiple election swing states and sits at the vanguard of several major issues in the United States. This Minneapolis-based photographer will cover election-year battlegrounds, breaking news, the urban-rural divide and the impact of federal policies in Minnesota and other Midwestern states. The photographer will receive training to learn how to cover major professional and college sports.