Valerie Nava is now an education lab reporter for The Post and Courier in Charleston, South Carolina. She reports on K-12 and higher education. Her coverage includes the second-largest public school district in the state, the rise of charter schools, special education and issues involving educational equity.
“My experience with WWG was crucial to helping me start my career. I learned so much from Mya Frazier, my writer, specifically about research and having a careful approach when speaking with vulnerable sources. These are invaluable skills for a reporter. Beyond that, I received so much moral support and career advice from Mya and Chris Leonard when it was time to begin my job search, and I can’t thank them enough.”
Nava earned her master’s degree at the University of Missouri School of Journalism. Born in Virginia, Nava spent her childhood and early adulthood in Maracaibo, Venezuela. There, she obtained her bachelor’s degree in print journalism and worked as an economy and politics reporter for Diario Version Final, a regional newspaper, during the 2016 political and humanitarian crisis in Venezuela. Her stories have also appeared in the Columbia Missourian, Vox Magazine and KBIA.
