I co-wrote a story on the state of JD Vance’s presidential campaign after a series of controversies relating to past comments and stances on women and children, interviewing several Republican political analysts and politicians who criticized Trump’s pick of Vance. The story, featuring a number of colorful quotes, led POLITICO’s homepage and topped traffic for multiple days.

“Republicans are already souring on JD Vance,” July 26, 2024

Alongside multiple POLITICO national reporters, I interviewed over a dozen DNC delegates to take the pulse on their support for Joe Biden as his campaign faced crisis over the summer. Several of my interviews were among the most prominently featured in the final enterprise product.

“DNC delegates sink into ‘stage of grief’ over Biden. Some say he should step aside.” July 3, 2024

Before the national media turned its attention to Penn’s campus after Oct. 7, I spent 48 hours interviewing nearly a dozen trustees and donors on and off the record, including the leader of the campaign against President Liz Magill, Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan, in his first print interview on the University’s response. My story contributed to the resignation of a trustee, inflamed discontent among donors, and prompted a directed response from the University’s board chair refuting any pressure campaign. It was No. 1 on the DP’s website for a week.

“Penn admin. allegedly pressured trustees to step down after criticizing University,” Oct. 12, 2023

A student claimed on Reddit that Penn was ending legacy admissions. Unable to reach the student, I thought of alternative ways to detect a change in Penn’s legacy policy. When asked, Penn shared a link to their admissions web page.

Their response was the answer I was looking for all along. I put the web page into the Wayback Machine and discovered that Penn had subtly changed the language of its legacy admissions policy a year ago. I spoke with students and experts, including a professor who testified in the Supreme Court’s affirmative action case, to open the black box of Penn admissions. My investigation is now cited by admissions counselors.

“‘On its last legs’: How Penn is quietly refining its legacy admissions policy,” March 22, 2023

Having spent the day before at work dissecting the truth in JD Vance’s ‘Swift Boat’ attack on Tim Walz’s military service, I was on high alert for any developments in the storyline. I consistently checked a number of biographies described Walz’s military service online to watch for any changes. Sure enough, the Harris campaign updated its description of Walz’s record in the Army National Guard. The story was picked up and cited in dozens of national outlets, and was featured in a segment on CNN’s prime-time Anderson Cooper 360 show.

“Harris campaign tweaks Walz biography amid scrutiny of military credentials,” Aug. 8, 2024

I stumbled upon a press conference with Josh Shapiro and Philadelphia elected officials endorsing Kamala Harris for president. I watched the press conference live and saw how political official after political official explicitly threw their support behind Shapiro for vice president, while Shapiro looked on and grimaced.

I spoke with one of the officials, Philadelphia Democratic Party Chair Bob Brady, afterward to understand how Pennsylvania Democrats were throwing their weight behind Shapiro, and to colorfully chronicle the competition between state delegations putting forward their governors during the veepstakes. The story topped POLITICO web traffic.

“Philly’s Kamala Harris endorsement event becomes a ‘Josh Shapiro for VP’ party,” July 26, 2024

I spent 3 months cold-contacting dozens of top experts on Wall Street, asking them which economic statistic they thought was most important to understanding the fate of the overall economy. I ultimately assembled 50 responses, each of which required me to understand the data provided, obtain a raw copy using appropriate sources, and perform rigorous analysis before visualizing the insights in a concise, immersive manner using Flourish.

After publication, the Chartbook garnered 9 million impressions and became a series which Yahoo Finance publishes every summer and winter.

“Yahoo Finance Chartbook: 50 charts tell the story about the economy right now,” Aug. 8, 2023

Penn’s tax returns showed that former President and then-Ambassador to Germany Amy Gutmann received a $23 million salary in her final year in office. I kept digging and obtained Gutmann’s ethics disclosures, revealing a home loan issued by Penn whose value I verified by cross-referencing the tax returns. I used Zillow, property records, voter registration records, and scraping of other universities’ tax returns to identify the mansion Gutmann purchased and to reveal it was the largest such loan issued in the Ivy League. My story earned the Stecklow/Lentz/Daniszewski Prize in investigative journalism, was cited by the Chronicle of Higher Education, and inspired scrutiny of other presidents.

“Penn issued Amy Gutmann $3.7 million home loan at height of COVID-19 pandemic,” Aug. 21, 2023

I spent 3 months cold-contacting dozens of top experts on Wall Street, asking them which economic statistic they thought was most important to understanding the fate of the overall economy. I ultimately assembled 50 responses, each of which required me to understand the data provided, obtain a raw copy using appropriate sources, and perform rigorous analysis before visualizing the insights in a concise, immersive manner using Flourish.

After publication, the Chartbook garnered 9 million impressions and became a series which Yahoo Finance publishes every summer and winter.

“Biden consulted Penn president about grandchild's application, 2018 texts show,” March 28, 2024

I worked on a Python script to analyze inflation data directly from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, ultimately creating a category-by-category comparison of inflation numbers in Philadelphia since the COVID-19 pandemic, compared with inflation numbers nationwide. I then provided detailed data analysis to explain why Philadelphia had higher inflation than the national average in several categories, and to dive into other surprising findings.

“Which prices are rising fastest and slowest in Philly,” Jan. 13, 2023

To compile this piece, I interviewed certified financial planners and members of CNBC’s Financial Advisor Council to gain expert insights into the growing popularity of ETFs over mutual funds. I analyzed Morningstar data showing record shifts in investments, highlighting trends and tax advantages driving the change. I explored strategies for using ETFs in portfolios by consulting advisors who shared real-world examples, such as tax-loss harvesting, diversification, and balancing risk through core and satellite portfolios.

Additionally, I detailed how specific ETFs align with investor interests, such as sustainability or niche sectors. By blending expert commentary, data, and practical applications, I created a comprehensive piece on how ETFs can enhance portfolio strategies.

“Exchange-traded funds ‘have come a long way.’ How to use them in your portfolio,” Nov. 20, 2023