PHOTOGRAPHY

Lyric Aquino

Aquino is an award-winning multimedia journalist with a passion for writing about all things relating to science, the environment and Indian Country. Originally from Ohio, she is a proud member of Ohkay Owingeh Pueblo with ancestry from Isleta Pueblo and the Jicarilla Apache Nation. She earned two bachelor’s degrees, in anthropology and journalism, from Kent State University. Aquino holds a master’s degree in science, health and environmental journalism from New York University, where she worked as editor-in-chief for Scienceline and as a science writing intern at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History. Prior to joining Underscore Native News, Aquino held a fellowship at Grist, where she reported on climate change and global Indigenous affairs. One of Aquino’s passions is reporting on the intersection of traditional ecological knowledge and Western science, as well as Indigenous litigation and issues. In her spare time, she can be found fawning over reptiles, geeking out over Lord of the Rings and exploring her surroundings.

Hali Mecklin

Before joining the Uvalde Leader-News as a Report for America corps member, Mecklin covered arts, culture and local news for Los Angeles Magazine. She also served as managing editor at Annenberg Media, the University of Southern California’s digital news outlet, and reported on LAPD’s response to pro-Palestinian encampment protests and the subsequent cancellation of main-stage commencement. During her time at Annenberg Media, she won best student arts or entertainment news story at the 2024 LA Press Club National Arts and Entertainment Journalism Awards for her reporting on the Syrian antiquity trade in Los Angeles. Before starting at USC, she began her career in journalism at 16 as an intern with the Santa Barbara Independent. During COVID-19 she took a break from reporting to work at the zoo as a giraffe experience specialist, where she helped guests feed and learn about endangered Masai giraffes. She loves Vietnamese food, abstract expressionist painting and her pet pug.

Camilla Forte

Camilla Forte is a visual journalist based in Chicago. Before joining Borderless Magazine as a Catchlight/Report for America corps member, Forte was the multimedia producer for The Hechinger Report, a nonprofit newsroom focused on covering innovation and inequality in education. She holds a B.A. in photojournalism from Columbia College Chicago. As a student, she was a Borderless Pathways Photo Fellow, participated in the New York Times Institute and was the director of photography of the Columbia Chronicle. Forte is a member of Diversify Photo, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists and the National Press Photographers Association. She is a big fan of the Great Lakes, reading for pleasure and kindness.

Maria Crane

Prior to joining the Fort Worth Report, Crane worked as a freelance photojournalist in North Texas, including an internship with the Denton Record-Chronicle. Crane was the Spring 2024 photography fellow at The Texas Tribune where she covered politics and policy in Texas, and she was a part of the Eddie Adams Workshop XXXVII in Fall 2024. Crane has dual bachelor's degrees in photojournalism and political science as well as a master's degree in journalism from the University of North Texas. At UNT, she was photo editor of the North Texas Daily and Managing Editor for Hatch Visuals, a student run photo agency.

Tabius McCoy

Before joining The Atlanta Voice, Tabius McCoy was a visual journalism fellow at the Connecticut Mirror, where he reported on a variety of topics across the state, including politics, social justice, education, and culture. During his time at The Connecticut Mirror, he produced a written and photographic documentary on the 50-year history of Connecticut hip hop, making it one of the first publications in the nation to document and tell the history of Connecticut’s hip hop scene. McCoy's journalism journey began during his senior year at Georgia Tech, where he was a writer and photographer for The Technique and a weekend jazz radio personality for 91.1 FM WREK Atlanta, the university’s campus station. After graduating, he attended the Columbia School of Journalism, where he discovered his passion for photojournalism. In his spare time, McCoy enjoys weightlifting, running, and discovering new music to add to his Spotify playlist.

Candace Dane Chambers

Prior to joining The Chicago Sun-Times, Candace Chambers was a freelance photographer and videographer based in Washington, DC. She’s contributed to The Washington Post, New York Times, AARP, Ebony magazine, and National Geographic TV, covering arts and culture, health and wellness, and spot news. She has served as an oral history videographer at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, where she produced a series on intergenerational activism over the course of a year. Chambers holds a master's degree in New Media Photojournalism from The Corcoran School of the Arts at Georgetown University, where she was awarded the 2022 Outstanding MA Student in New Media Photojournalism for "Watered", her thesis project on local Black women farmers. During her time in grad school, she was also selected to attend Eddie Adams Workshop Class of XXXIV and earned an assignment award with People Magazine for her story documenting a woman born with idiopathic epilepsy.

Emma Malinak

Emma Malinak covers the stories of Lynchburg, Virginia, for Cardinal News. Before becoming a Report for America corps member, Malinak reported on everything from climate change to child care as an intern at VTDigger. She holds a bachelor's degree in journalism and English from Washington and Lee University, where she was co-editor-in-chief of the student newspaper, The Ring-tum Phi. Malinak was the founding CEO of the Ring-tum Phi, Inc., a nonprofit corporation designed to secure a sustainable financial model and editorial independence for the student-run paper.

Hannah Shields

Before joining Daily Inter Lake, Hannah Shields reported on the Wyoming state government for the Wyoming Tribune Eagle, covering health care policy, education and state politics, among other issues. She earned a first-place Pacemaker Award from the Wyoming Press Association for an investigative piece on special education in public schools. She placed third in the Top of the Rockies Award for a story on Medicaid in Wyoming. Her passion for journalism was sparked while taking Journalism 101 at a community college in California. From there, she transferred to Long Beach State University and immediately joined the student newspaper, where she served as the news editor. She interned at The Sacramento Bee the summer after graduating with her bachelor's degree in journalism and political science. When not writing, Shields enjoys dancing ballet, reading and listening to podcasts!

Chandra Colvin

Chandra Colvin covers Native News for Minnesota Public Radio (MPR) News. Born and raised in Minnesota, she previously interned for MPR News as a general reporter covering a range of beats and stories. She has freelanced for AMPERS Radio as a reporter and producer for Minnesota Native News and has contributed to the Minnesota Humanities Center’s project titled, “We Are Water MN.” In 2024, Colvin earned two bachelor’s degrees in mass communications and global studies from St. Cloud State University. She has contributed to student-run shows at the university as well as student-led newspaper, the University Chronicle. During her undergraduate experience, she studied abroad at Akita International University in Japan with a focus on ethics and rural studies. Colvin is Native American, and a proud member of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa located in northern Minnesota.

Gabrielle Nelson

Before joining Buffalo's Fire, Gabrielle Nelson worked as an environmental reporting intern at the nonprofit publication Bridge Michigan, covering climate change, renewable energy and the Great Lakes. At Bridge, she broke the story on an International Energy Forum report about a looming copper shortage, which prompted discussion in the mining and EV industries. Nelson loves learning something new with every environmental story she writes, but before she found this love for environmental journalism, she wrote for her college radio station, Impact89FM, covering entertainment news. She also trained as a live DJ for the station where she often played songs by Pearl Jam and Coldplay. She graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in journalism and minors in global studies and gender studies. Nelson hopes to combine her love of environmental journalism with her narrative writing style from entertainment news to tell the stories of North Dakota's indigenous communities and their deep ties to the land at Buffalo's Fire.