El Paso Matters is among 70 newsrooms nationwide to be selected to host a Report for America journalist in 2022.

The person hired for the El Paso Matters position will focus on health care issues in the El Paso region, as well as assist with editing the work of other journalists.

“Yes, local news is in crisis — but this batch of newsrooms also fills us with tremendous hope,” said Steven Waldman, president and co-founder of Report for America. “Newsrooms across the country are pushing to cover essential local beats like schools and rural areas, at the same time they try to better represent all of the people in their communities.”

Report for America is a national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms for two years to report on under-covered topics and communities. Report for America pays for half of the journalist’s salary in the first year and a third of the salary in year two. The local newsrooms are responsible for raising the rest of the funding for salaries.

This is the second consecutive year El Paso Matters, which began publishing in 2020, has been selected to host a Report for America corps member. Victoria Rossi is currently a corps member focused on gender issues in the El Paso region.

Corps member applications — including the El Paso Matters position — are being accepted until Jan. 31; however, those who apply before Dec. 31 will receive early consideration. Information about how journalists can apply to be members of the reporting corps can be found by clicking here.

If you’d like to contribute to support the new health reporting and editing position for El Paso Matters, you can donate by clicking here. Through the end of the year, your donation can be matched dollar for dollar by The Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) Partner Fund, which is supported by the Knight Foundation, Meta Journalism Project and the Walton Family Foundation.