Staff Bios
Lisa Burris
Christopher Veck
Copy Editors
Kymberly Harris
Jara Greenfield
Chris Reed
David A. Robbins
PR Editor
Chelsea Jo Simpson
Reporters
Sarah Anderson
Armando Bezies-Lopez
Paloma Boykin
Tom Corey
Rahsaan Gethers
Emma Keilbey
Osama Naser
Kevin Scannell
Resource Editor
David A. Robbins
Website Design
Rob Wisner,
Arizona Daily Star
Michael McKisson
Under the direction of:
Professor Jay M. Rochlin
*Click each reporter's name to read their bios
Sarah Anderson is a senior journalism student graduating in December of 2008, with a minor in Latin American studies. She hopes to work in photojournalism, but also enjoys print. She enjoys cooking, photography, movies, music and gaming as well as traveling with her husband of three years and their 3-year-old son, Rowan. Blog: The Spice
Armando Bezies-Lopez is a journalism senior at the University of Arizona minoring in political science. After his December 2008 graduation he plans to go into the marketing/public relations field. When he is not updating his blog, which you can check out here , you can probably catch him playing guitar, which hopefully will be in front of some sort of audience sometime soon. Blog: Borderline Entertainment
Paloma Boykin is a senior at the University of Arizona, studying journalism and political science. She plans to graduate this upcoming December. Besides finishing her undergraduate degree, she is involved with various activities on and off campus which makes for an interesting semester. If Paloma is not in class or at home you can find her spending time at Old Main giving tours to prospective students and their parents an Arizona Ambassador. Blog: The Culture of the Border
Lisa Burris is a Minnesota native, majoring in Journalism with a minor in Political Science. She is a producing intern at Channel 12 News in Phoenix and also works as a server/bartender at Frog and Firkin. In her very little spare time, Lisa enjoys cooking, snowboarding, reading and watching the NFL. She aspires to be a TV news producer and is in the process of writing her first book. Also obsessed with video documentaries, she writes a blog about her attempt at creating a documentary, and also has a personal blog on MySpace. Blog: Border Doc Talk
Tom Corey is a senior at the University of Arizona, majoring in Journalism with an English minor. After graduation in December of 2008, he plans on continuing his education in graduate school. Tom chose journalism because of his combined love for writing and concern about the times we are living in. Originally from Seattle, Tom is a constant nature enthusiast who loves trying exciting outdoor activities ranging from rock climbing to surfing. Blog: Arizona Sports at the Border
Rahsaan Gethers is a senior at the University of Arizona and is a Journalism major. Sports takes up the majority of his time as he is the Sports Coordinator at Arizona Intramurals through the Rec Center and is also the basketball beat writer for GOAZCATS.com. Rahsaan also co-host a weekly sports radio show for KAMP radio. In the future, Rahsaan hopes to work for a major sports magazine. Blog: Still American Dreaming
Jara Greenfield is a senior at the University of Arizona, majoring in journalism with a minor in political science. Her past internships include working in editorial news at ELLE Magazine and working on a segment called "News 4 You with Perri Peltz" on WNBC. Jara will be graduating in May 2009 and will return to her hometown of New York, NY to pursue a career in print journalism. Blog: Local Threads
Kymberly Harris is finishing her last semester at the UA. When she is not working diligently as a Border Beat reporter, she likes to run and bike ride. She plans to run her first half-marathon this year! She has had previous internships with the Tucson Citizen, Fox 11 Sports Force and now currently the Pima County Superior Court. Her future plans consist of traveling, saving the world and eventually going to law school. Blog: Health on the Line
Emma Keilbey is a senior at the University of Arizona, majoring in journalism with a minor in Spanish. After her May 2009 graduation she plans on moving back to Scottsdale, Arizona. She currently works in promotions for the Arizona Diamondbacks, is a campus representative for Sports Illustrated and works in the sports department of KAMP, U of A's radio station. Emma loves traveling and cooking. She is also an avid sports fan and would one day like to work in sports PR for a Major League Baseball team. Blog: The Mexican America
Osama Naser was born in the Bay Area of California and grew up in Phoenix, Arizona. He will receive his BA in Journalism with a minor in Arabic in December 2008. He is unsure of whether he will pursue journalism as a profession but will continue his education in graduate school. He is interested in international affairs and expanding the knowledge of issues that affect that border. Blog: Osama's Border Beat
Chris Reed is a fifth year senior at the University of Arizona who is taking his time to major in Journalism as well as minor in English and Business Administration. His past internships include working with an investigative reporter at CBS 2 Chicago and then on CBS Evening Weekend News at the network level in New York. When Chris isn't avoiding getting paid (interning/volunteering), he likes to let certain sports teams affect his mood far too much. He also enjoys music and politics. Upon graduation, Chris plans to return home to Chicago for law school. Currently, he is writing stories for Border Beat and tutoring at the UA's SALT Center. Chris (or at least his parents) hope(s) that he finds an effective way to kill time between graduation and when he starts school again. Blog: Border Politics and Law
David A. Robbins is a senior at the University of Arizona majoring in journalism and creative writing. He is the resource editor for Border Beat. He has written for Inside Tucson Business, The Scottsdale Republic and had poetry published in The Inland Journal. He is the Managing Editor for Persona Undergraduate Literary Magazine, and spent two years as the Editor in Chief of All The Truth That's Fit to Print magazine. His primary interest with Border Beat is finding ways to integrate the latest new-media technology with traditional news reporting. Blog: Literature of the Border
Kevin Scannell is a senior at the University of Arizona, majoring in Journalism with a minor in English. He is on track to graduate in December 2008. Kevin has lived in California, Colorado and Arizona and enjoys playing sports, humor, and spending time with friends and family. His goal after graduating is to take some time off and then begin the process of life after college. Blog: Beat of the Border
Christopher Veck expects graduate from the University of Arizona in December 2008 with a degree in Journalism and a minor General Business Administration. He was born in St. Louis, Mo. but raised in Mesa, Ariz. He spent two semesters as an sports reporting intern and currently freelances for the Tucson Citizen and covered events such as high school football, UA baseball, softball, and soccer, a rodeo, and the Tucson Sidewinders. Chris hopes to go into Public Relations for a sports franchise. Blog: Borders and Balls