Tess Wilkinson

Class of 2027

I was born in Los Angeles and moved to Colorado as a child, before moving back to California at 9 years old — where I’ve since grown up in Santa Rosa.

My life has been intimately touched by addiction and mental health. This experience has inspired me to find purpose exploring the interconnectedness between systemic barriers and injustice, cultural norms, intergenerational trauma, and genetic predisposition as we continue to experience an epidemic of loneliness and addiction across our society.

While I continue to work in addiction treatment as a substance use disorder counselor, I believe journalism and all forms of storytelling — at their best — hold the potential to effect systemic and community-wide changes that can impact lives for the better. I aim to weave in the core tenets of addiction counseling — trust, active listening, compassion, and ethical boundaries — into my work as a journalist as I make this shift.

I got my start in journalism writing for the News and Opinion sections of Sonoma State University’s student-led newspaper, the Sonoma State Star. My coverage ranged across topics including the tech industry, animal agriculture, elections and ballot measures, education, addiction and belonging, and an editorial interview with Rep. Mike Thompson. I worked as the News editor in my final semester at Sonoma State.

In addition, I worked on the news team in the video production outlet at SSU, where I gained experience with camera operation and video editing. I created a short documentary film with my classmate, centered on an interview with her grandfather and his experience fleeing Vietnam after the war.

During an internship with the Wild Narrative Project, I covered the impact of animal agriculture and policies on wildlife and public land. My writing has also appeared on The Revelator and Sentient Media. I volunteered as a film screener for SFFILM Festival, where I wrote reviews and analyses on nearly a hundred independent films — giving me a lens into work as a film critic as well as a keen eye for effective film techniques.

For the fall semester as a student at UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism, I will be reporting on Health and Environment for Oakland North. My goal is to investigate systemic issues and tell stories that hold power to account, raise awareness, and inspire hope for a better world.

EDUCATION

EMPLOYERS

PUBLICATIONS & OTHER WORK

REPORTING INTERESTS

Agriculture, Animal Welfare, Climate justice, Health & Environment, Human Rights, Humanitarian Issues, Incarceration, Mental Health and Addiction, Politics, Social Justice, Visual Investigations and Documentary Filmmaking, solutions journalism, wildlife