2024-2025 Reflect America Fellow: Nate Perez
2024-2025 Reflect America Fellow Nate Perez Nate Perez hide caption
2024-2025 Reflect America Fellow Nate Perez
Nate PerezNate Perez is an associate producer for the NPR Member station LAist in Pasadena, California, where he's covered daily news since 2020.
He's reported on oil wells that have been abandoned by their owners, wage theft and the growing number of exonerations in Los Angeles County.
He previously worked as a reporter and copy editor at the Casper Star-Tribune in Casper, Wyoming. There, he covered nationally recognized amateur boxers (who happen to be triplets), the college rodeo circuit and the Wind River Reservation.
Nate grew up in a Spanish-speaking household in the San Joaquin Valley. His bilingual skill set was crucial to navigating home life to working in kitchens, marketing and now as a journalist.
When he's not working, Nate enjoys baking bread, making tortillas and reading.
Staff Announcement (from Keith Woods and Neela Banerjee)
Colleagues,
It's my pleasure to announce that Nate Perez, an associate producer on the daily news team at Member station LAist, is the 2024-2025 Reflect America Fellow. Nate will begin his fellowship in September.
During the 12-month fellowship, Nate will embed with NPR's Climate Desk and report on vulnerable communities, particularly Indigenous communities. Along with building essential climate reporting skills, he'll also assess potential solutions to climate threats, including those that vulnerable communities are exploring.
Nate brings a wealth of professional experience to the fellowship, gained from years of producing at LAist and reporting across the West. He's reported on oil wells that have been abandoned by their owners, wage theft and the growing number of exonerations in Los Angeles County.
He previously worked as a reporter and copy editor at the Casper Star-Tribune in Casper, Wyoming. There, he covered the Wind River Reservation, nationally recognized amateur boxers (who happen to be triplets), and the college rodeo circuit.
Nate grew up in a Spanish-speaking household in the San Joaquin Valley. His bilingual skills were important whether navigating home life, working in kitchens and marketing, or now, as a journalist. When he's not working, Nate enjoys baking bread, making tortillas and reading.
Nate is the 5th Reflect America fellow since we launched in 2019. We created the fellowship to boost NPR's efforts to expand the diversity of voices on air and online and to open a new pathway into public radio for young journalists. The fellowship's focus shifts this year to concentrate on one of the world's most important beats.
Last year's fellow, Seyma Bayram, is completing a Spencer Fellowship at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism.
A big thank you to Sadie Babits and Lauren Sommer for joining the hiring committee, to talent acquisition director Mel Clarke, who went above and beyond with handling phone screenings and advising the process, to the Content Talent Development team's Natalia Fidelholtz, who helped with recruiting, and to the Training Team's Sara Richards, who orchestrated this process from start to finish.