Voices Of Utah reporters, April 2019. Back row: Kaeli Wiltbank, Lina Song, Shaun Ajay, Kara Rhodes, Emma Johnson. Middle row: Sayaka Kochi, Katie Rogers, Britt Brooks, Tyson Aldridge. Front row: Sarah Saidykhan, Megan Peterson, Kotryna Liepinyte, Zane Law. Not pictured: Iasia Beh, Kristen Law, Kilee Thomas, Justin Trombetti, Brianna Winn.

Students initially covered this beat during Spring semester 2008. Since then, Utah’s population has continued to grow and change. More than one in five Utahns is now a minority, according to the 2010 Census, and the population has grown by 24 percent — almost 130,000 people. Salt Lake County is nearly 29 percent minority and “communities on the west side of Salt Lake City are minority-majority,” said Pam Perlich, director of demographic research at the University of Utah’s Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute. According to a story in the Salt Lake Tribune, more than 400,000 Latinos live in Utah, or about 14 percent of the state’s population of 3 million.

Student-journalists revisited this beat in Spring 2019 in the midst of polarized discussions about immigration, migration, asylum, and funding for a border wall. Reporters were: Shaun Ajay; Tyson Aldridge; Iasia Beh; Britt Brooks; Megan Christine; Emma Johnson; Sayaka Kochi; Kristen Law; Zane Law; Kotryna Liepinyte; Kara D. Rhodes; Katherine Rogers; Sarah Saidykhan; Lina Song; Kilee Thomas; Justin Trombetti; Kaeli Wiltbank; Brianna Winn.

Their stories included: profiles of Latinos in Action and the Suazo Business Center; an article about ONErefugee and volunteers who offer mentorship to participants; and an article about the cultural importance of quinceañera celebrations.

Students also created a map with locations of some restaurants, cultural organizations, schools, and other resources.

The Spring 2008 stories included profiles of Patricia Quijano Dark, executive director of the Utah Hispanic Chamber of Commerce; a story about Su Banco, a language program at the University of Utah; an article about DIA, the Dual Immersion Academy in Sandy, Utah; and profiles of Mundo Hispano publisher Sandra Plazas.Student-journalists included: Erik Daenitz, Jeff Dunn, Teresa Getten, David Servatius, Phi Tran and Jaime Winston.

Find links to their stories and read their blogs and bios by selecting Blogs & Bios from the drop-down box, at left. Stories also can be located by clicking on a Tag or selecting a topic such as Education from the Categories box. A few articles were translated into Spanish by Miguel Nieto, a U student who graduated in May 2008.