Boyle Heights Beat serves an immigrant neighborhood in East Los Angeles of just under 100,000. Its quarterly print edition, produced by youth reporters, is distributed to 34,000 – at homes and apartments, cafes, schools and churches. The Beat came into being in 2010 through a partnership of the USC Annenberg School of Journalism and La Opinión, the Spanish language daily. Today, the Beat is an independent project under the fiscal sponsorship of Social and Environmental Entrepreneurs.
Interested in joining the Beat’s youth team or becoming an adult contributor to BoyleHeightsBeat.com? Write us at editor@boyleheightsbeat.com.
Youth team, Class of 2021-22
April Aguilera is a junior at Lincoln High School. She enjoys listening to music, photography, and spending time with friends and family. She hopes to attend a four year university and find a major in something she is passionate about.
Dania Alejandres is a junior at Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School. She enjoys reading, writing, and listening to music. She hopes to attend a 4 year university and major in Biology.
Adrian Casillas-Saenz is a junior at Felicitas and Gonzalo Mendez High School. In his free time he enjoys drawing, playing board games, and playing basketball. He hopes to attend a four-year university in the future.
Ethan Fernandez is a sophomore at Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School. He enjoys photography, music, and writing. He hopes to attend a four-year university in the future. He is determined to pursue a career involved either in film or journalism.
Samantha Gomez is a junior at Theodore Roosevelt Senior High School. She enjoys playing volleyball, watching anime, and hanging with her friends and family. She plans to attend a 4 year university to major in English and minor in education.
David Gutierrez is a senior at Mendez High School. Known for his excitability and witty personality, he likes to meet new people and socialize with the community. He hopes to find a career in finance and real estate as he also enjoys investing and stock market trading.
Eimee Mendieta-Soto is a junior at Theodore Roosevelt Senior High. She enjoys playing video games, photography, and hanging out with friends. She hopes to attend a 4 year university where she will major in anime science. Later, she hopes to be accepted into a graduate program.
Stephanie Perez is a freshman at Francisco Bravo Medical Magnet High School. She enjoys writing, listening to music, and cooking. She plans to major in English at a four year university.
Edwin Ramirez is a senior at Mendez High School. His hobbies include art, listening to music of any genre, photography, and also writing. After high school, he hopes to attend a four-year college to find a major he is passionate about.
Evelyn Ramos is a junior at Esperanza College Prep High School. She enjoys music, photography, baseball, and writing. She hopes to attend Syracuse University and major in both communications and journalism. She aspires to become a sports reporter in the future.
Humberto Rivera is a senior at Mendez High School. He enjoys listening to classical orchestral music and his favorite pastime is to read in complete silence with a good book. He has no dreams except to live peacefully and happily. Next year he will be attending LATTC.
Sophia Romero is a junior at MSTMA at Roosevelt High School. She enjoys listening to music, playing sports, and reading. She hopes to attend Barnard College and major in Film.
Sammi Ruano is a junior attending a private online school. She enjoys reading books by her favorite author during her free time, experimenting with new food recipes and cares about the environment. She hopes to attend a four year university and major in medicine.
Erick Trujillo is a senior at MSTMA at Roosevelt High School. In his free time he likes to listen to music, read poetry, watch documentaries, and scroll through social media. Erick plans to double major in Chemistry and Environmental Science at a private institution in the East Coast.
