Sue Atkins, Journalism Instructor, Point Loma Nazarene University (incumbent)

Dr. Sue Atkins is just completing her first term on the SPJ Board. She has enjoyed working with fellow board members in planning a variety of SPJ activities that bring professionals and students together to explore the challenges of 21^st century newsgathering. Sue has been involved in coordinating and publicizing events such as the Report Card on the Media and the Writers’ Symposium by the Sea held and videotaped at Point Loma Nazarene University. She teaches journalism, broadcast news writing, travel writing, media ethics, public relations writing and the occasional literature and composition class at PLNU. Her undergraduate degree is from the University of Missouri, and her advanced degrees from the University of Alabama. Sue envisions a strong role for the San Diego SPJ chapter in the professional development and support of news personnel and student journalists in an increasingly challenging media terrain.

JW August, Managing Editor, 10News (incumbent)

SPJ board member and FOIA chair JW August has been involved in investigative reporting for 28 years as both a freelance print journalist and broadcast journalist. As the managing editor of 10News, he oversees the expanded 10News I-Team as well as special projects for KGTV. He also writes a blog on the nuts and bolts of the I-Team investigations. JW won the national SPJ Sunshine Award for open government in 2006, recognizing his advocacy work including obtaining a legal ruling requiring San Diego city government to provide details on why a meeting must be held behind closed doors. JW has won IRE and National Press Club awards for investigative and consumer reporting, as well as a number of Emmy, SPJ and San Diego Press Club awards for investigative reporting. In 2006 and 2008, he helped coordinate statewide television news participation in Californians Aware’s audit of public records practices in local law enforcement agencies. JW currently serves as president of the board of Californians Aware.

Scott Horsley, Business Reporter, NPR (incumbent)

Scott Horsley is a business reporter for National Public Radio and is the long-time treasurer and a past president of the SPJ board. He covers general economic issues with a special emphasis on energy. He’s also part of a team of reporters who has been covering the 2008 presidential campaign, having failed to learn his lesson covering John Kerry’s campaign four years ago. Before joining NPR in 2001, Scott was a reporter for KPBS-FM in San Diego. He also worked as a reporter for WUSF-FM in Tampa, Florida, and as a news writer and reporter for commercial radio stations in Boston and Concord, New Hampshire. Scott began his professional career in 1987 as a production assistant for NPR in Washington.

Andrew Kleske, Online Content Producer, SignOnSanDiego.com (incumbent)

Andrew Kleske, a current board member and a past president of SPJ, works for the San Diego Union-Tribune as an online content producer for SignOnSanDiego.com. He graduated from San Diego State University and has taught journalism courses at University of California-San Diego since 1998, where he developed the university’s first online journalism curriculum. Andrew also is a board member and past president of the San Diego Press Club. Previously he was online editor for the North County Times and The Californian newspapers and was the editor of The San Diego Daily Transcript, the first comprehensive online daily newspaper in Southern California.

Leo Laurence, Editor, San Diego News Service

Leo Laurence has been working for many decades in print and multi-media (current), in broadcasting, a wire service (UPI) and as a photojournalist (Navy & civilian). He served two terms on the board during which he was the chapter’s diversity chair. For the past two years, he’s been active on the SPJ’s National Committee on Diversity. Laurence founded in ‘03, and for four years coordinated, our nationally unprecedented High School Journalism Project, which was twice covered with major, illustrated stories by the SPJ’s Quill. “On a personal level, as sports editor for the Patriot Press at Patrick Henry High, Leo and I worked one-on-one during the production of our sports section,” writes Mike Ritter, now a graduating senior at the University of Arizona and sports editor of the Arizona Daily Wildcat. “Leo helped instill great journalistic passion in me. I was wavering between several different college majors as a high school senior; but after working with Leo, it was easy for me to pick journalism.” Ritter now has “the dream job,” covering the Arizona Diamondbacks as a beat reporter for MLB.com. Leo can bring 61 years experience in print, broadcasting and multi-media to the SPJ board.

Scott Lewis, Co-Editor, voiceofsandiego.org (incumbent)

Scott Lewis, who currently serves as vice president of the SPJ board, is the co-editor of voiceofsandiego.org. He oversees the commentary section and production of the non-profit Web site. He also maintains a blog and writes a regular column on local politics. He covered politics for The San Diego Daily Transcript before his wife’s commitment as an officer in the Navy took him away from San Diego briefly. He returned in October 2005 to help voiceofsandiego.org reach its potential as a daily alternative source of in-depth, investigative and totally local news and opinion about San Diego.

Tanya Mannes, Staff Reporter, The San Diego Union-Tribune

A staff writer for The San Diego Union-Tribune, Tanya Mannes covers city government and general happenings in Chula Vista and Otay Mesa. Before moving to San Diego in 2006, she was the lead education reporter for the Virgin Islands Daily News on St. Thomas. Mannes attended the University of Massachusetts and interned at The Boston Globe. Before moving to the Virgin Islands, she was a staff writer at The Reporter in the Northern California city of Vacaville. Her personal interests include dining at every Japanese noodle restaurant on Convoy Street, improving her Spanish through frequent trips to Ensenada, and swimming at La Jolla Cove.

Christy Scannel, Editor, Writer, Journalism Instructor, Grossmont College

Christy Scannell is an editor, writer and college journalism instructor. She has worked in every type of print media, even owning her own newspaper, The San Diego Irish Reporter, in the late ’90s. More recently, she has been writing and editing for local and national newspapers, magazines and book publishers and is the featured columnist for Catholic Couples. In January, she joined Grossmont College as instructor for The Summit, the student newspaper, and she teaches online through the Christian Writers Guild. An interest in all types of writing led her to join a co-author friend in pursuing a three-book fiction contract with Simon and Schuster, which resulted in the “Secrets from Lulu’s Café” series. She and her co-author were named “Authors on the Rise” by a publishing trade association last year for that work. Prior to freelancing, Christy was editorial director for a book publisher, overseeing the creation of award-winning children’s books, and was a PR writer and events coordinator for a variety of businesses. She has an MA in communication from SDSU and a BA in mass communications from Anderson University. Christy and her husband, Rich, a San Diego Union-Tribune news copy desk chief, live in North Park.

Joe Schneider, Journalism Instructor, San Diego State University (incumbent)

Joe Schneider’s journalism career stretches back to 1945 when he hawked extras on VJ Day. He worked on school papers and became a copyboy at the Louisville Courier-Journal. Later, he held reporting and editing positions in the southeastern United States. In 1962, he began a 10-year overseas stint with the Pacific and European editions of Stars and Stripes. He served as Southeast Asia Bureau chief, Philippines Bureau chief and Vietnam Bureau chief. He began working for The San Diego Union in 1972 and left the paper in 2003. He has taught journalism classes at San Diego State University since 1975 and continues to work on freelance assignments. Joe has been an SPJ board member since 2004 and was awarded an SPJ First Amendment Award in 2002. He received a B.A. from the University of Louisville and M.A. from Sophia University, Tokyo, Japan, and he currently lives in Clairemont.

Ana Tintocalis, Education Reporter, KPBS-FM

Ana Tintocalis is a radio journalist at KPBS FM. She is the station’s education reporter, covering a wide array of education issues affecting the kindergarten through college levels. Her work has been commissioned by NPR and other public radio organizations such as KQED’s California Report. Her stories also have been recognized by the Society or Professional Journalists, the San Diego Press Club and the California Teacher Association. Last year she accepted a fellowship from the Poynter Institute in St. Petersburg, Florida. Previously, Ana was a producer for KPBS Radio’s These Days. She also worked as a field reporter and anchor at KLON Radio 88.1 FM in Long Beach, covering breaking news in Orange and Los Angeles counties. She also has worked for a number of print and online publications in Southern California. Ana secured her journalism degree from Cal State Long Beach where she graduated with honors. She was the president of the Society of Professional Journalists for the CSULB student chapter. In her spare time, Ana enjoys creating and producing arts and crafts projects. Her hidden talents include sewing, knitting and painting. She also enjoys riding her bike and spending time in her neighborhood of South Park.