My Resume

LINDA VILLAROSA
383 2nd Street
Brooklyn, NY 11215
(718) 788-5802 (917) 972-0954
lvillarosa@gmail.com
www.lindavillarosa.com

SUMMARY

Journalist, lecturer and author with 15 years experience across all media platforms. High-level editor and strong leader with a passion for motivating and inspiring students as well as reporters, editors and designers. Big-picture thinker with an eye for detail and numerous media and professional contacts. Dynamic and engaging speaker in both the classroom and public arena.


ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE

Journalism Lecturer
Journalism Program Director
The City College of New York, 2009 – Present
Teach three classes—Introduction to Media Studies, Introduction to Journalism and Reporting and Writing—to students in urban university.  Counsel students on careers, writing, adapting to the 21st-century media landscape and other relevant concerns. Serve as faculty advisor for The Campus newspaper and Ed2010.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE


Freelance Writer and Reporter
1990 – Present
• Articles, profiles and reviews have appeared in a wide variety of national publications, including afterellen.com, Glamour, Health, Latina, Men’s Fitness, the New York Times Book Review, O Magazine, Vibe and Woman’s Day.
• Writer-reporter for upcoming PBS/Frontline documentary.
• Contributing columnist to theroot.com, the African-American equivalent of slate.com.

Editorial Consultant
2000 – Present
Provide editorial leadership to a number of companies and organizations, including, American Express Publishing and the Meredith Corporation. For the Kaiser Family Foundation and Black AIDS Institute, train journalists from Africa, Canada, the Caribbean, India and other countries to better cover the international HIV/AIDS epidemic in print and online.

Contributing Reporter
The New York Times, 2000 – 2007
Conceived and wrote dozens of articles, including three that appeared on the newspaper’s front page. Notable contributions:
• “Patients with H.I.V. Seen as Separated by a Racial Divide” (August 7, 2004, page A1)
• “AIDS Fears Grow for Black Women” (April 5, 2004, page A1)
• “Nursing Shortage Raising Worries on Patient Care” (April 8, 2001, page A1)
• “Done Right, Colonoscopy Takes Time, Study Finds” (December 19, 2006)
• “The Wheezing that Could Signal Childhood Asthma” (May 1, 2007)

Health Editor
The New York Times, 1997- 1999
Edited health and fitness pages for the Science Times section and medical and health stories for the newspaper at large. Redesigned and expanded health, psychology, fitness and nutrition coverage.

Executive Editor
Essence Magazine, 1994 – 1997 and 2003 – 2005
During two different stints at Essence, wrote or edited a number of award-winning articles. Managed all aspects of the magazine’s publication and supervised a team of 50 writers, editors, fact checkers, copy editors, art directors, designers and production managers. Served on leadership team of 12 department heads that directed all aspects of the publication, including budgets, marketing, special events and web design. Participated in mentoring program to provide career development and support to 7 junior editors and writers.

Author
1994 – Present
Passing for Black, a novel (Kensington, 2008; nominated for 2009 Lambda Literary Award)
The Black Parenting Book (co-author, HarperCollins, 1998)
Finding Our Way: The Teen Girls’ Survival Guide (co-author, HarperCollins, 1995)
Body & Soul: The Black Women’s Guide to Physical Health and Emotional Well-being (HarperCollins, 1994)

Co-Writer
1998 -- Present
Help authors conceive, package and write books and proposals:
Career GPS: Navigating Your Life and Career in the 21st Century by Dr. Ella L.J. Edmonson Bell (HarperCollins, February 2010)
Deadline Fitness by Gina Lombardi (John Wiley & Sons, January 2009)
What Your Mother Never Told You about Sex by Dr. Hilda Hutcherson (Perigee Books, 2003)
Stolen Women: Reclaiming Our Sexuality, Taking Back Our Lives by Dr. Gail E. Wyatt (John Wiley & Sons, 1998)

LECTURES

1991 - Present
Address student groups at colleges and universities throughout the country including, Columbia, CUNY Graduate School of Journalism, Dartmouth, Duke, Emory, Goddard, Harvard, Howard, Indiana University, the New School, Medgar Evers, Oberlin, Swarthmore, University of California at Davis and Wellesley. Present workshops and moderate panels on journalism, publishing, health and social issues for organizations, including, African-American Women on Tour, American Society of Journalists and Authors, American Society of Magazine Editors, the Columbia Publishing Course, Essence’s Women Who Are Shaping the World conference, the Essence Music Festival, the Kaiser Family Foundation, National Association of Black Journalists, National Press Club, National Lesbian and Gay Journalists’ Association, NYU Summer Publishing Course, OutWrite and Times Talks.

AWARDS 

Writing honored by these organizations:
American Medical Writers Association, Arthur Ashe Institute, Callen-Lorde Community Health Center, Gay Men of African Descent, GLAAD, Lincoln University, National Association of Black Journalists, National Black Women’s Health Project, National Lesbian and Gay Journalists’ Association, National Women’s Political Caucus, New York City Women’s HIV Collaborative

EDUCATION

BA in Journalism, minors in Spanish and African-American Studies
University of Colorado, Boulder

Harvard School of Public Health
Health Communications Fellowship

PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

American Society of Journalists and Authors
National Association of Black Journalists
National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association