Michelle A. Monroe

University of Arizona

As a college freshman looking for extra cash, Michelle Monroe ended up on the copy desk at the Arizona Daily Wildcat, the University of Arizona’s student newspaper. But editing the work of her peers moved her to get in on the action of reporting and writing.

“I realized I could do more than sit at a desk for four hours,” said Monroe, 21. “I begged and pleaded to get on the news desk.”

At the time, Monroe was “a blank slate.” She had minimal experience, and her primary motivation was still financial. Then she got her first story — reporting on a car accident that killed a 25-year-old female student.

Monroe called the student’s mother, unexpectedly reaching her on the day of her daughter’s funeral. The mother talked for 20 minutes as she rode in the procession to the cemetery.

The impact of the story was immediate: Readers responded with donations for the funeral expenses, which the mother couldn’t afford. And Monroe learned firsthand about the power of journalism.

“I got to help this family, and all I did was tell their story,” she said.

Since then Monroe, now a senior, has worked as a photographer, opinion columnist and opinion editor, and news editor. A year ago, she spent a semester as editor-in-chief. Her first day coincided with the shooting of Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.

She has interned with The Orange County Register, the Arizona Daily Star and the Phoenix bureau of The New York Times, along the way developing an interest in computer-assisted reporting, sifting through public records and analyzing data.

Monroe will graduate in May and hopes to pursue a career in reporting.

“I really like finding stories that no one else is looking for,” Monroe said. “You get stories people don’t want you to tell and need to be told.”

- Emily Wilkins