Chicago, Illinois, United States
Hi, I'm Justin Agrelo. I'm an award-winning journalist and community engagement specialist. I've spent the past eight years telling stories that are rooted in data, people, and community needs. My writing seeks to complicate predominating narratives and highlight the often overlooked nuances of over simplified social issues. At The Trace, I designed, managed, and led a trauma-informed writing program that paid and trained survivors of gun violence to learn storytelling skills and have their writing published. The program grew directly from deep community listening and engagement, and went on to secure more than ten co-publishing partnerships and win several awards, including a 2024 Anthem Award. While at City Bureau, a journalism lab in Chicago, I led a team of reporters in covering COVID-19-related housing issues, resulting in an award-winning feature series that brought renewed attention to Chicago's ongoing eviction crisis. The series was awarded Best Feature Series and Best Reporting on COVID-19 by the Chicago chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. My work explores what it means to be human at this moment in time and what our connections to time, to place, and to each other, reveals about our collective time on this floating rock. Let’s chat!
Received a Master of Science in Journalism with a specialized focus on social justice and investigative reporting.