CSUMB journalism students report success

By Mark Muckenfuss

There are nights when Andrea Valadez doesn’t get much sleep. 

Working as a political reporter in Sacramento with CALÓ News, a Latinae community-centered news organization, the Cal State Monterey Bay alumna said covering the action in the state’s capital is a demanding job that often requires working into the wee hours.

“Things move so fast up here,” said Valadez, a 2024 humanities and communications graduate. 

Whether it’s wading through the language of a pending bill, standing in a line with other reporters who are hoping to get a comment from a legislator, or chasing a breaking story, she said the job she’s doing is energizing and taxing. 

“It's very fast-paced, and it's hard on your health sometimes,” she said. “But I always wanted to cover politics.”

Her time as an Otter gave her the tools she needed to break into the world of journalism. And she’s not alone. Over the past several years, a steady stream of students carrying a degree in humanities and communications have cracked open the door to the news industry, providing another avenue for CSUMB’s goal of workforce development. Those transitions have often been made easier, sometimes directly, with the help of the Monterey Herald’s managing editor David Kellogg. 

Kellogg, who has been with the Herald since 2002, became the advisor for CSUMB student newspaper the Lutrinae four years ago, after the sudden death of its previous advisor, Sara Gobets. The paper has been a benefit not only to students studying journalism (a concentration within the humanities and communications major) but to the news industry as well, Kellogg said. 

“We need to keep students coming into the field,” he said. Working with Lutrinae students “has allowed me to identify some good young talent.”

Starting with one student in 2023, Kellogg can now point to more than a half dozen who have found careers in journalism after graduation, including two current reporters: Chris Hamilton, who was recently in the news for helping to save an unconscious surfer from the waters off Spanish Bay, and Sean Tubo, who has had several of his stories picked by the San Jose Mercury News. In addition, CSUMB senior Tom Nolan is not only writing for the Lutrinae, but has a fellowship with CalMatters, a statewide news agency. 

“Now we’re getting a flow,” Kellogg said. 

In fact, Kellogg’s current assistant editor is the first of the group. Arianna Nalbach served as editor-in-chief of the Lutrinae during her senior year while she was also working at the Herald. 

“The Lutrinae really trained me,” Nalbach said. “I learned a lot from Sara Gobets before she passed away. Then Dave took over for her in my senior year, and I was really fortunate that he liked my work ethic. He really helped my career.”

Nalbach worked on her high school newspaper and wanted to be involved with the Lutrinae because it was student-run. 

“Journalism is incredibly important,” she said. “Having accurate news is really important, whether that’s on a national or local level.”

As the Herald’s assistant editor, she spends most of her time working with reporters. But she also writes stories on higher education and covers the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

“When we did the 40th anniversary series on the aquarium, I loved doing those stories,” she said. “I got to see behind the jellyfish tanks. Those articles ended up  winning awards with the California News Publishers Association.”

The Lutrinae is a good feeder, said Kellogg.

“We have to teach them the principles of journalism,” Kellogg said, discussing CSUMB’s journalism concentration. “The industry needs good young talent, but it needs to develop that talent in a good, responsible way.”

During her time at CSUMB, Valadez said, “Most of my experience came from being on the Lutrinae.” 

That was further honed at the Herald.

“The Herald was my first crash course in journalism,” she said. “It really prepared me for the workload now. How to write fast is pretty much what it taught me. That experience was really invaluable.”

It also helped teach her what to look for. 

“Legislative bills are very complicated,” she said. “My job is to parse through that and present it in a way that people can understand it and how it affects their lives. It's been rewarding to see the impact that my writing has had in keeping people informed. ”

The serious nature of that role was something that began to impress her while working at the Lutrinae, she said. 

“I think the paper kind of took a turn at a certain point,” Valadez said. “And I think I had a hand in that. For a very long time it was just campus events. Then, at a certain point, it turned to campus protests, profiles and stories beyond the campus. I wanted it to be something students wanted to read. I feel like every year it gets better and better.” 

She’s convinced she made the right decision to major in humanities and communication. 

“I think it is one of the best avenues you can take when you start off,” she said. “You can go into so many different fields with that degree.”