About Mariel Waloff

Contact Mariel Waloff

Education:

University of California, Berkeley

September 2011 - May 2013

Salt Institute for Documentary Studies

September 2008 - December 2008

Documentary Photography and Multimedia.

The Center for Global Education, Cuernavaca, Morelos, Mexico

January 2003 - May 2003

Studied Mexican history, politics and religion.

Vassar College

September 2000 - May 2004

BA Religion - focused on Latin American Liberation Theology activist movements.

Published Stories:

A study of twins aims to clarify the roles genes, environment play in autism

Oakland North

The recent California Autism Twins Study has revealed new information about the causes of autism. Christopher and Gerald Dixon of East Oakland were one of 1,000 twin pairs that participated in the study.

At the Oakland Museum, Question:Bridge facilitates a high-tech conversation among black men

Oakland North

The multimedia art exhibit, Question:Bridge, simulates a real-time conversation between hundreds of black men throughout the United States.

In Oakland, a center works to protect Cambodian girls from sexual exploitation

Oakland North

A non-profit mental health organization for immigrants and refugees in Oakland works to protect Cambodian girls from commercial sexual exploitation.

Bay Area medical marijuana dispensaries face a federal crackdown

Oakland North

VIDEO // In October, the U.S. Department of Justice announced a crackdown on medical marijuana facilities. Since then, the four U.S. Attorneys for California have sent eviction notices to various medical marijuana dispensaries throughout the state.

Reacting to closures, three Oakland public schools ask to become charters

Oakland North

In the wake of Oakland public school closures, three district schools petition to become charters, diverting funding and attendance from the district.

OUSD board votes to close five schools at contentious meeting

Oakland North

The Oakland Unified School District board voted 5-2 to close five elementary schools — Lakeview, Lazear, Marshall, Maxwell Park and Santa Fe — and transform or merge several other schools at its meeting at Oakland Technical High School on Wednesday, October 26th.

Students at Oakland International High School describe their immigration experiences with graphic art

Oakland North

Oakland International High School's art teacher, Thi Bui, teaches a combined oral history and comic book curriculum to help her students process their immigration experiences.

At Oakland schools on closure list, distraught pleas to reconsider

Oakland North

VIDEO // Parents, students, teachers and community members voice their concerns over the uncertain future of their schools.

The things we saved: reminders of the Oakland hills fire

Oakland North

PHOTO:AUDIO // In the panic to escape the 1991 Oakland hills fire, fleeing residents faced the challenge of choosing which possessions to take with them. Some took practical things like clean underwear and tax forms. Others saved family pets or a favorite shirt. The experience forced many to question their relationship to objects. For others, the memories of the fire live on in what they saved.

“99 Percent” protesters occupy Oakland’s Frank Ogawa Plaza

Oakland North

VIDEO // Since Occupy Wall Street protests began in New York, similar actions have erupted across dozens of US cities, including Boston, Chicago, and San Francisco. By the beginning of October, nearly 100 Oakland residents had built a tent city on Ogawa Plaza’s grass field.

Ethiopian families gather in Oakland to celebrate the Ethiopian Orthodox holiday of Meskel

Oakland North

VIDEO // On September 25th hundreds of Ethiopian families from around the Bay Area celebrated Meskel, the finding of the True Cross, one of the most important holidays in the Ethiopian Orthodox calendar and a national holiday in Ethiopia.

A Radical, Artistic Life

Patch.com

Amir Lyles and Naeemah Patterson live in a cozy house on the border of the Mt. Airy and Germantown neighborhoods of Philadelphia with their five children. Disappointed by Philadelphia's public schools the couple has chosen to keep their children home, "radically un-schooling" them. They teach them about life by living it.

Nazir Ebo: The 11-Year Old Drum Prodigy

JUMP: The Philly Music Project

In Nazir Ebo's spare time from the 4th grade he works on building his professional music career. Or perhaps it is the other way around. In the time between concerts, jam sessions and lessons at the Philadelphia Clef Club, he manages to go to school and do his homework.

None listed.

An Iraqi Refugee in Philadelphia

Philadelphia Weekly

Originally from Basra, Iraq, Johina Jama and her family had spent five long years living as refugees in Jordan before coming to Philadelphia. Life isn't as easy here as she hoped however, as she and her husband struggle to find work and take care of their three children.

Love on the El

Philadelphia Weekly

Artist Steve Powers has returned to Philadelphia to paint a series of murals on walls he once tagged. His Love Letter series of murals on the elevated Market-Frankford train line calls for a revival of the lost art of sign painting. Written like a series of love notes between sweet-hearts, they’re also love notes to the city, in a neighborhood that especially needs it.

The Youngest Monk

Philadelphia Weekly

Horn Pa was twelve years old when his family settled in South Philadelphia, seeking refuge from the war plaguing their native Cambodia. He grew up amidst drugs and violence and eventually wound up in jail. Horn went to a Cambodian Buddhist temple for a week to clear his mind. A year later, Horn still shaves his head and wears the orange robes of a Buddhist monk.

None listed.

Young Hot is Hot. And Young.

Philadelphia Weekly

Twenty-one year old Omar “Young Hot” Richmond, has been taking Philadelphia’s underground rap scene by storm since he began freestyling in the halls of West Philly High. His music is therapy for himself, and, he hopes, a tool for understanding.

Awards:

Richard Wood Jr. Memorial Book Prize (May 2004)

For excellence in moral and ethical work

Work Experience:

Multimedia Producer/Photographer

Patch.com - Mt. Airy, Philadelphia  - Philadelphia NY  ( October 2010 - July 2011 )

Produced audio slideshows stories and photo galleries for hyper-local news site.

Video Producer

Media Mobilizing Project  - Philadelphia PA  ( August 2010 - August 2011 )

Helped shoot and edit videos for public access television show MMPtv.

Multimedia Storytelling Intern

Night Kitchen Interactive and the Historical Society of Pennsylvania  - Philadelphia NY  ( May 2009 - September 2009 )

Researched and produced 23 multimedia stories for map-based neighborhood history website, PhilaPlace.org.

Multimedia Producer/Photographer

Philadelphia Weekly  - Philadelphia NY  ( January 2009 - March 2010 )

Regularly contributed audio slideshows and photo galleries to philadelphiaweekly.com.

Museum Educator / Teaching Artist-In-Residence

Philadelphia Museum of Art  - Philadelphia PA  ( September 2005 - June 2011 )

Taught art history and studio art to school groups. Taught documentary photography and multimedia workshops in residency programs at public schools, nursing homes and hospitals.

Skills:

• Adobe Photoshop CS5, GarageBand, Audacity, Final Cut Pro, Microsoft Office, Wordpress. Conversational Spanish.

Other Works:

Lubec, Maine is the easternmost town in the United States. It was once a thriving fishing community that sustained generations of families. As Lubec's economy worsens many young people have left to find work elsewhere. While its population shrinks and unemployment rises drug abuse has also become a problem.  Read more...