2022-2023

Harm Venhuizen

Harm Venhuizen is a state government reporter with The Associated Press in Madison, Wisconsin, primarily covering elections and voting rights. Prior to this, Venhuizen interned at Military Times. He holds a bachelor’s degree in political science and philosophy from Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where he served as editor-in-chief of Chimes, the student paper. During his time at Chimes, he earned recognition for his investigative coverage of controversial personnel decisions, sexual assault and university employment policies against same-sex marriage. Venhuizen grew up on a small farm in rural Wisconsin, and spent a summer working as a wildfire firefighter with the U.S. Forest Service. His hobbies include mountain biking, combat robotics and playing the piano.

Jennifer Brookland

Jennifer Brookland reports on child welfare in Michigan for the Detroit Free Press. Prior to joining the Free Press, she reported on military and veterans’ affairs and produced a daily talk show highlighting local and statewide issues for North Carolina Public Radio. She has also spent seven years freelancing. Brookland began her career as a special agent with the U.S. Air Force, where she led felony-level criminal investigations and was deployed to the Horn of Africa in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from Columbia University, and a master’s from The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University. Brookland says that she vaguely remembers enjoying traveling, reading and theater but adds that she spends most of her time now trying to convince her three kids that she’s in charge.

Keely Brewer

Keely Brewer covers the environmental impacts on communities of color for the Daily Memphian, an online publication in Memphis, Tennessee. Brewer is a recent graduate of The University of Alabama, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in news media and served as editor-in-chief of The Crimson White. While there, Brewer launched a campus investigation into COVID-19 reporting tools in partnership with the Poynter Institute. She has covered Tuscaloosa, Alabama as an intern at the Tuscaloosa News, and has reported on the impact of faith-based diabetes programs at the Mississippi Center for Investigative Reporting.

Malak Silmi

Malak Silmi covers city and government affairs for Outlier Media, a nonprofit service journalism organization based in Detroit, Michigan. Previously, she was a digital reporter for the San Antonio Express-News in Texas, covering trends and breaking news. Silmi holds bachelor’s degrees in journalism and international studies from Wayne State University, where she was a reporter and news editor of the student paper, The South End. She has interned at Michigan public radio, and participated in The New York Times Student Journalism Institute. Shortly after graduating in 2020, Silmi reported for Outlier Media, providing updates on COVID-19 guidelines, elections and other topics, with information in both English and Arabic. For fun, she enjoys traveling, reading and enjoying the outdoors (when it’s warm).

Priscilla Totiyapungprasert

Priscilla Totiyapungprasert reports on local health issues for El Paso Matters, a nonprofit news outlet based in El Paso, Texas. Previously, she covered food culture and dining in Phoenix for The Arizona Republic, including reporting on immigrant communities, the restaurant industry, school nutrition and labor abuse. Totiyapungprasert started at The Arizona Republic as an environment fellow, analyzing the disparity in neighborhood air quality and reporting on the health impact of Phoenix air pollution. Holding a bachelor’s degree in journalism from The University of Texas at Austin, she has worked in Germany and Malta.

Sarah Michels

Sarah Michels is a general assignment reporter for the Bowling Green Daily News, a central Kentucky newspaper covering Bowling Green and outlying counties. Michels interned at the Lexington Herald-Leader and the Cincinnati Enquirer, where she found her niche as a storytelling reporter. Michels holds a dual bachelor’s degree in journalism and political science, with minors in Spanish and business from the University of Kentucky, where she worked at the Kentucky Kernel, the student paper, as the opinions editor, assistant news editor, breaking news reporter and features reporter. She ran track and cross country in college, and you can still find her competing in road races and exploring the nearest trails.

William Perkins

William T. Perkins is a data reporter for the Traverse City Record-Eagle in Michigan. Previously, he was a reporter at the Petoskey News-Review in northern Michigan, covering local government and environmental issues, including concerns surrounding the Enbridge Line 5 pipeline in the Great Lakes. A native of metro Detroit, Perkins holds a bachelor’s degree from Ohio University's E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, where he was a news editor at The Post, the student paper, and a Scripps Statehouse news bureau fellow reporting on state government for The Columbus Dispatch.

Amir Khafagy

Amir Khafagy reports for Documented, a nonprofit news site that focuses on New York City’s immigrant communities. His beat explores the intersections of labor, race, class, immigration and urban policy. Khafagy’s writing has been featured in The Guardian, Vice, The New Republic, Bloomberg and Prism, among others, and he is the recipient of numerous honors, including the Ida B. Wells Fellowship and The International Center for Journalists COVID-19 Reporting Award. Khafagy holds a master’s degree in urban affairs from Queens College. A lifelong New Yorker, he hails from Jackson Heights, Queens. As a performer, Khafagy has appeared in Ping Chong + Company's “Beyond Sacred: Voices of Muslim Identity” and in “Gun Country,” a Houses on the Moon Theatre Company production.

Caroline Beck

Caroline Beck covers K-12 education in Indianapolis, Indiana for the IndyStar, reporting on all 11 school districts in Marion County. Prior to joining the IndyStar, she covered the state legislature for Alabama Daily News, and also reported on education, prisons and parole boards, unemployment benefits and health care. Her interest in journalism began in college where she reported for the student-run paper, including covering a Ku Klux Klan rally and cutbacks in college staffing, then becoming the paper’s editor. She has interned for In These Times magazine in Chicago. A native of Speedway, a town on the west side of Indianapolis, Beck has attended the Indy 500 every year since 2016.

DorMiya Vance

DorMiya Vance is a multimedia reporter for WABE, the NPR and PBS affiliate serving metro Atlanta. A recent graduate with a bachelor’s degree from the communications and media program at Fayetteville State University in North Carolina, Vance was editor-in-chief of the student paper, The Voice, and has interned at The Fayetteville Observer. Vance says that she knew at an early age that she wanted to work as a writer, and she is passionate about telling stories.