PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

The Record and USA TODAY Network - Woodland Park, NJ - Specialty Writer, Investigations and Public Service - July 2010 to present

  • Investigated the systematic detention and torture of criminal deportees to Haiti and the extortion of their families in the U.S. Coverage sparked international scrutiny and aided in the men’s release. News stories have been widely cited as evidence in Convention Against Torture cases for Haitians.

  • Profiled individuals harmed by no-fly lists, shuttered bank accounts, hate crimes and policies banning and limiting refugees and immigrants. 

  • Led The Record’s coverage of the New York Police Department’s secret surveillance of Muslims in New Jersey. Broke news of New Jersey clashing with the NYPD over surveillance. Wrote in-depth stories about the impact of surveillance on Muslim communities. 

  • Wrote stories about Syrian Americans, including features about the divisions over the Assad regime and the increase in Syrian immigration to New Jersey after the war. Work includes hard-hitting, personal stories about the refugee crisis and resettlement.

  • Crafted feature stories on faith and culture, including the lure of New Jersey 24-hour diner for pre-dawn meals during Ramadan, a fashionable hijabi voted best dressed in her graduating class, and a blind chef realizing his dream of going on Hajj. 

The Journal News/LoHud.com - White Plains, NY Reporter - December 2003 to July 2010

  • Covered Yonkers and Mount Vernon city halls and community news. Wrote about the growth of Ecuavolley courts, the trend of $2-per-dance bars popular among day laborers and illegal immigration by Irish citizens via the Canadian border. Reported about veterans, including their struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder and their return to college.

The Star Ledger - Newark, NJ -Reporter - May 2003 to Dec 2003

  • Warren County reporter with a focus on the environment and land use. Wrote about the use of human waste as fertilizer, the rise of memorials on the banks of the Delaware River for drowning victims, and the efforts of one township to change zoning law to keep out families with children.

The Norwood News - Bronx, NY - Reporter - June 1999 to July 2002

  • Covered politics, education and community news in the north Bronx. Wrote about overcrowded schools, gerrymandering and demographic changes. Performed layout of the biweekly newspaper using QuarkXPress and Photoshop.

AWARDS AND RECOGNITIONS

Society of the Silurians Excellence in Journalism

  • Reporting on Minority Issues Award (2025) - Coverage of the lives and hardships of four men deported to Haiti, Syrian Americans traveling home post-war, and family separation after a father and breadwinner self-deported.

  • Reporting on Minority Issues Award (2019) - Investigative series on the death of detainee Carlos Mejia-Bonilla in immigration detention that prompted public scrutiny and reforms.

New Jersey Press Association

New Jersey State Bar Association Diversity Summit

  • Panelist (2019) for “Media and Reporting on the Rise of Extremism” program.

Jim Murray Memorial Foundation

  • Journalism Scholar recipient (2002) for editorial on patriotism and ethics in newsrooms after the Sept. 11 attacks.

EDUCATION

Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism

Master of Science in Journalism. Wrote thesis about growing controversy over use of batterer intervention programs as a resolution in domestic violence cases. Reporting included interviews with men enrolled in programs and their partners and first-hand observations of court proceedings and intervention programs.

Fordham University

Bachelor of Arts in Political Science