A Journalist Shines

Kellie Mejdrich, a 26-year-old Univeristy of Arizona graduate, started her journalistic career long before she graduated with a double major: Journalism and English.

Mejdrich, having 10-12 internships under her belt since her sophomore year in college, was able to quickly build her portfolio with many of her clips.In January of 2012, she did an in-depth investigative reporting on obtaining concealed weapons permit in Ariz., which helped her get much recognition.

“Having contacts from outside and inside the newsroom is very crucial,” Mejdrich stated.

Christopher Knap, a journalism instructor from California State University of Long Beach, helped mentor Mejdrich during the start of her career.

Just a month after her graduation, Mejdrich moved to Calif. and started reporting for the OC Register, where she worked as a local community news reporter, then eventually reported on state and county transportations for over two years.

In Feb., Mejdrich moved to Washington, DC, where she currently works for three different publications:

CQ, a special online news service
CQ Weekly Magazine, or Congressional Quarterly
Roll Call newspaper, a daily on Capitol Hill, in Washington, DC.

“Somehow you’re constantly covering what’s going on in politics,” Mejdrich said.

On average, she writes one story per day, but depending on the current events, her articles could range anywhere from two to five daily.

Apart from her every day articles, Mejdrich also writes a three to five paragraphs briefs which would then be published on the CQ website within minutes.

Mejdrich plans on staying in Washington, DC until well after the 2016 presidential election. Depending on her interest during that time, she might eventually move on to do some investigative or state level policy reporting.

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