Melvin Félix

New York University

Melvin Félix leaped from civil engineering to journalism after his sophomore year at the University of Puerto Rico at Mayagüez because he was feeling unsatisfied with a project in which he had to design a mailbox.

If he didn’t enjoy designing a simple mailbox, Félix figured, he wouldn’t enjoy designing a bridge. So he decided to pursue a career in writing, something he loves.

The change landed Félix, 22, at New York University, where he is a senior double-majoring in journalism and political science, two fields of study that he said give him more freedom.

“There’s no right answer,” he said, “so you really have a lot of space to be creative, and your personality really comes through, which is important to me.”

Last spring, Félix participated in the Scripps Howard Foundation’s Semester in Washington, where he enhanced his reporting skills and satisfied his love for politics. He spent the following summer as a National Association for Hispanic Journalists Ford Blue Oval intern at El Nuevo Día, a daily newspaper in San Juan, Puerto Rico, close to his hometown, Caguas. Félix was born in Virginia, but soon afterward his family moved to Puerto Rico to be closer to his other relatives.

Félix enjoys political writing, he said, but he’s also drawn to more personal stories about human experiences.

He said he remembers spending a day with a homeless man in Puerto Rico while reporting for El Nuevo Día. That day he learned “how important it is to tell those stories,” he said.

For Félix, what’s most important about journalism is that it can incite change.

“People write about things and share them, but it doesn’t always inspire action,” he said. He hopes that his work will be different. “If I write a good enough story, people will change their minds about things and will care about them.”

- Carol Moran