Maria Bernal

Maria Fernanda Bernal

Alumni

LinkedIn

I am a journalism student at the Graduate School of Journalism at UC Berkeley. I am the first-place award winner of the Mexican Institute of Radio 2021 contest. Currently a KQED newscast intern my duties include writing scripts for broadcasting. I freelance for NPR and the Richmond Pulse. Previously a community health reporter and the Social Media Marketing Coordinator for the Richmond Pulse.

EDUCATION

  • San Jose State University B.S Public Health

  • UC Berkeley School of Journalism, Multimedia Track Graduate Candidate

EMPLOYERS

  • National Public Radio
    Freelance Newscast Reporter
    (May 2022)

  • KQED, San Francisco, CA
    January 2022- present General Assignment Newscast Intern
    ● Writes 2-4 radio scripts for evening and next day broadcasting.
    ●Produces radio pieces for the newscast segment and The California Report.

  • The Richmond Pulse, Richmond, CA September 2019 – present
    Community Health Reporter and Social Media Marketing Coordinator
    ●Wrote “Poor Air Quality in Richmond Increases COVID-19 Risk” and “Black Liberation is Latinx Liberation Too”.
    ●Produced social media videos on Instagram and Tiktok
    ●Started the Richmond Pulse Podcast

  • KALW, San Francisco, CA December 2020 – April 2021
    Radio Host, A Tour of Richmond’s Underground Food Scene
    •Produced and hosted an audio piece about the underground food culture in Richmond
    •Wrote, sourced and edited the script

  • Richmond Confidential, Berkeley, CA August 2021 –December Reporter, Chevron Richmond Refinery beat
    •Wrote “Chevron refinery events raise air pollution concerns”

  • Stanford Tobacco Prevention Toolkit, Stanford University, CA June 2018 – September 2019
    Research Assistant , School of Medicine
    ●Developed new curriculum for Cannabis Prevention Toolkit in order to educate adolescents of the risks of using cannabis
    ●Develops Spanish version of the English Tobacco Prevention Toolkit curriculum
    ●Contributed to background research including data entry, data analysis, and literature reviews
    ●Coordinated a budget proposal meeting with The California Endowment

  • Immigrants Rising, San Francisco, CA May 2016 – January 2017
    Legal Advocate Fellow
    •Participated in Legal Immigration Law trainings and provided 1-on-1 follow-up calls to ensure that users of our DREAMer Intake Serve understand their cases
    •Provided individualized screening to users and conducted weekly reviews of 2-3 online cases of DREAMer Intake Service

AWARDS & HONORS

  • White House Correspondents' Association and Cokie Roberts Scholar (2022)

  • Instituto Mexican de La Radio (IMER) and Mexican Culture Institute of Washington D.C August 2021
    Award Winning Journalist
    •Part of the first cohort of the IMER podcast contest
    •Awarded first prize with a stipend from the Consulate General of Mexico

  • San Jose State University Department of Health Science and Recreation, Fortitude Award winner (May 2019)

  • San Jose State University Department of Health Science & Recreation, Graduation Celebration Special Presentation Speaker (May 2019)

  • CSU Health Policy Advocacy Summit, University Nominated Attendee (April 2019)

  • San Jose State University College of Health and Human Sciences, Graduation Speaker Nominee (April 2019)

  • The American Public Health Association annual conference, Attendee and Co-Author of Presentation Alongside Dr. Kathleen Roe (November 2017)

  • Students Rising Above, awarded recipient (August 2014 – Present)

  • Toastmaster International, Club President and Ceremony Hostess (August 2014)

  • West Contra Costa County, Women's History Month Celebrate

PUBLICATIONS & OTHER WORK

  • Fire Danger Higher Than Normal In Northern, Central California
    July 5, 2022
    https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432285393/the-california-report

  • https://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2021/09/10/richmond-college-grads-uplifts-her-hometown-through-journalism/

  • A Tour Of Richmond’s Underground Dining Scene, https://www.kalw.org/2021-04-12/a-tour-of-richmonds-underground-dining-scene

  • Sanders Campaigns to Capacity Crowd in Richmond, February 2019.https://richmondpulse.org/2020/02/19/sanders-campaigns-to-capacity-crowd-in-richmond/

  • Pandemic Inspires Richmond Residents to Dress Their Way August 24 https://richmondpulse.org/2021/08/24/pandemic-inspires-richmond-residents-to-dress-their-way/

  • La Mariposa, https://www.imer.mx/ganadores-convocatoria-concurso-entrada-libre/

  • https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/richmond-college-grads-uplifts-her-hometown-through-journalism/

MEMBERSHIPS & AFFILIATIONS

  • Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Committee, UC Berkeley, J-Peer (August 2021 - Present)

  • National Association of Hispanic Journalist UC Berkeley Chapter, member (August 2021- Present)

  • National Association of Hispanic Journalist, member (October 2020 - Present)

  • California Black Media, Articles picked for newsletter and statewide dissemination (May 2020)

  • CA Youth Media Network, selected to participate and represent Richmond Pulse (February 2020)

  • The California Endowment (TCE), Advocate (May 2017 – 2020)

REPORTING INTERESTS

Fashion, Immigration, Investigative reporting, LGBTQ Communities, Politics, Women's Rights, broadcasting