ABOUT
Laura is an experienced storyteller, journalist and audio craftmaker based in Houston, Texas.
She has a deep expertise in education journalism and explores stories about equity, opportunity and accountability on behalf of children.
Laura’s strength lies in her dynamic approach and ability to connect and listen to community members and colleagues. She upholds high journalistic standards and delivers meaningful stories that amplify the experiences of marginalized communities.
She believes journalism is about more than getting a scoop or winning awards. It’s about building a community, telling stories that matter and finding solutions to problems that confront our society.
Laura works full-time at Houston Public Media as a senior reporter and editor. She’s cultivated the education beat there since 2013. She’s helped lead the newsroom in crisis coverage and currently guides feature story production. She’s mentored and trained up-and-coming journalists through NPR’s Next Generation Radio Project.
As an audio producer, Laura has contributed to podcasts and multimedia projects for Reveal from The Center for Investigative Reporting, The New York Times and The New Yorker Radio Hour. She’s recorded tape syncs for shows like Slate’s Political Gabfest. Laura has regularly filed feature stories for NPR’s All Things Considered and Here & Now.
She got her start in community journalism, writing for a startup Spanish-language newspaper in Texas. Since then, Laura’s reported from Buenos Aires, Pakistan and Hialeah, Florida. Her work has appeared in Reuters, The Dallas Morning News and The Miami Herald.
Laura graduated summa cum laude from The University of Texas at Austin, with a double major in Spanish and the Plan II Honors program. She holds a master’s in journalism from Columbia University. She’s continued her professional development with leadership training through the Public Media Journalists Association and the News Leaders Association.
She lives in her hometown of Houston with her husband and their young daughter, who’s the best (double) byline.