Kelsey Landis
Watchdog reporter
RESUME
Professional
info
I'm editor-in-chief and a reporter at INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. Before this role, I was a watchdog and county government reporter for the Belleville News-Democrat in southwestern Illinois. I've worked in the newspaper and magazine business for more than five years, although before that I was a professional tutor and a college teacher. I have a digital-first skill-set with a focus on accountability reporting, although I'm also adept at covering breaking news.
Work
experience
INSIGHT Into Diversity
Dec. 2018 - Present
Oversee a staff of three full-time writers to produce a monthly magazine published nationwide. Cover trends in higher education related to social justice and diversity efforts.
Belleville News-Democrat
Nov. 2016 - Dec. 2018
Covered civic watchdog news, breaking news, courts and economic issues. Covered Madison County and St. Clair County government, achieving 50,000 views monthly through content and audience engagement strategy. Also filled in as editor of the breaking news team when regular editor was out of the office.
The (Alton) Telegraph
July 2015 - Nov. 2016
Filed business stories and planned Sunday’s business page, almost always succeeding in generating an all-local page weekly. Also covered Lewis and Clark Community College. As city editor, managed daily operations in a newsroom of six. Also maintained the newspaper’s Facebook and Twitter feeds.
Southern Illinois Community Newspapers
July 2014 - July 2015
Worked for three different five-day-a-week newspapers—The Murphysboro American, The Benton Evening News and The (Harrisburg) Daily Register—covering general assignment community news, including city government. At the Harrisburg paper, edited the paper and produced local content for the coal mining community in rural Saline County and oversaw a staff of three.
Rend Lake College
July 2013 - July 2014
Tutored students for their English classes and other writing endeavors. Worked with students with disabilities, coal miners and manufacturing workers out of a job as well as students bound for four-year universities. Also trained volunteer student peer tutors. Oversaw a staff of three.
DePaul University Richardson Library
Nov. 2011 - July 2013
Proofread historic Vincentian texts in French, Spanish and Latin to make them correct in a searchable digital format.
Université de Caen Basse-Normandie
Aug. 2010 - Aug. 2011
Taught English to students in discipline-specific courses, including majors in English, psychology, history and biology. Volunteered to host English-speaking club meetings.
Skills
iMovie
Adobe Suite
SEO
Social media content strategy
Editing, copy editing
Storytelling
Photography, video
Languages
French (fluent)
Spanish (intermediate)
Education
DePaul University, Chicago, IL
2012 - 2014
M.A. in Writing, Rhetoric & Discourse
Southern Illinois University
2006 - 2010
B.A. in French and English