Maty Ortega Cruz is a dedicated engagement professional with 6 years of hands-on experience in community-centered initiatives. As a first-generation college graduate, they earned a Bachelor of Arts in Biology from Knox College in 2018 and a master's in public policy and administration from Northwestern University in 2023.

Their professional background includes successful engagement with community and corporate volunteers, in addition to nurturing impactful student, teacher, and family relationships across Northern Illinois. They have a commitment to developing action plans that address community needs by utilizing an approach that is centered on sustainability, and collaboration.

Shapelle Pisano is an experienced professional with a background in accounting, auditing, corporate finance, governance, and internal controls. She holds a Masters of Science in Accountancy from the University of Notre Dame and a Bachelor of Arts in Accounting from Kentucky State University. Shapelle is a licensed Certified Public Accountant in Illinois and currently leads the accounting function as Corporate Controller of the beauty-brand, Glossier, Inc.

A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Shapelle currently resides in the western suburbs of Chicago, Illinois and is a member of professional organizations including National Association of Black Accountants, DuPage County NAACP and currently serves as an officer in the Chicago Chapter of the KSU National Alumni Association. In her personal time, she enjoys cooking, organizing, and traveling with her husband and two boys.

Nick has volunteered to help protect immigrants' rights for over 20 years, first as a translator and most recently as pro bono counsel representing individuals facing removal.

Nick is an experienced attorney who currently serves as in-house privacy counsel at a leading technology company. He was previously a litigator at Jenner & Block LLP and clerked for Ninth Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt. He has a J.D. and B.A. from the University of Chicago, is a California and D.C. Bar member, and is an avid traveler who's visited all seven continents.

Suzanne Franklin is an experienced not-for-profit executive manager with more than 25 years of proven social service management and leadership skills in advancing community welfare and social justice. She is a motivated and committed social service professional with expertise in refugee and immigrant services and believes strongly in the value of working with diverse community partners. Her skillsets include Executive Leadership and Management, Fundraising and Resource Development, Community Engagement and Education, and Board Leadership and Development.

She holds a Master’s Degree in Child and Family Counseling from West Chester State University, PA and is a graduate of the Executive Leadership Institute at the University of Michigan. Suzanne was also a Consultant on Refugee Issues at a World Summit for the Council for a Parliament of World Religions and a Peace Corps Volunteer in Turkey.

Aydali is a Report for America Corps Member from Arizona who covers environmental justice and immigrant communities. Before Borderless Magazine, she wrote for Inside Climate News, The Wall Street Journal and The Arizona Republic. She also has produced videos for the government-access television station Mesa Channel 11, segments for a prime-time television series on Arizona PBS and an award-winning documentary as a graduate student in investigative journalism at Arizona State University. Dedicated to championing newsroom diversity, Aydali is also a 2024 Widening the Pipeline Fellow with the National Press Foundation.

Hillary Flores is the deputy editor at Borderless Magazine. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Media at DePaul University. As a student, she co-founded La DePaulia, an online Spanish-language news site that amplifies the voices of underserved communities in Chicago. Hillary has interned at ABC World News Tonight and worked for local and national news outlets, including Block Club Chicago, Daily Beast, Cicero Independiente and South Side Weekly. Most recently, she worked in news production and digital streaming for Univision Chicago and CBS Chicago. She holds a Master’s in Science in Journalism from Northwestern University, specializing in Media Innovation and Content Strategy.

Max is a documentary photographer, visuals editor, and former music and arts writer. As a photographer, he has been drawn to stories focused on immigration, police accountability, education, housing rights, and art for over a decade. In 2017, Max began to focus on long-form storytelling — photographing migration conditions and the humanitarian aid response along the Arizona-Sonora, Mexico border for Latino USA. Most recently, Max has worked as a visuals editor, supporting the work of other photographers and illustrators at ProPublica, Borderless, CatchLight, and City Bureau.

Fatema Hosseini is a Roy W. Howard Fellow and recent graduate from the University of Maryland’s Master’s program in investigative journalism. Since 2019, she has reported for Kabul Now, USA Today, and Capital News Service. A native of Afghanistan, Fatema came to the United States in Sept. 2021 as a journalist and is fluent in Farsi, Dari, and English.

She joined Borderless Magazine in September 2024 as an investigative reporter covering immigrant communities in Chicago

Diane is a writer with a passion for storytelling, art and fostering community connections.

Diane grew up in Brummana, Lebanon and is fluent in Arabic. She earned her bachelor's degree in sociology from Northeastern Illinois University and a master's degree in international studies from DePaul University. She is also an alumna of the Emma Bowen Foundation Leadership Program.

Diane was Borderless Magazine’s first pathway intern before joining the team as an engagement reporter. Diane has also worked as a journalism instructor with After School Matters and the World Relief refugee agency.

Sarah grew up in the Tri-Taylor neighborhood. She first got involved with Borderless as a freelance reporter in 2020, and she has continued to report on the African and Afro-Caribbean communities in Chicago for the magazine.

Before joining Borderless, she worked in communications at the City Club of Chicago and the Chicago Cook Workforce Partnership. She earned her B.A. in Creative Writing from the University of Illinois at Chicago and her M.S. in International Public Service at DePaul University. She is an associate board member of Sarah's Circle and the Stories Matter Foundation. She has written for Common Ground Review, Third Coast Review, and South Side Weekly.

Tara grew up in California but is originally from Iran. She is passionate about solutions journalism.

She worked at her college radio station WPGU, and newspaper The Daily Illini, reporting on local and national issues.

She is currently a master's degree candidate studying journalism at Northwestern University, specializing in social justice and solutions. She earned her Bachelor's degree in journalism and criminology, law and society from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Mauricio is an award-winning journalist. He began his career as a crime and breaking news reporter at DNAinfo Chicago. He was a founding member and Southwest Side reporter for Block Club Chicago. Mauricio also worked as an investigative reporter covering immigration at the Desert Sun for the USA Today Network, an education reporter at Chalkbeat Chicago, and an associate digital editor at Chicago magazine.

Katrina is a multimedia journalist whose focus is on race and social justice reporting. Most recently, she's worked for The Yappie as a staff writer and newsletter contributor. There, she reported on solutions for inaccessible mental health care for Southeast Asian American refugees among other topics relating to Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. Before Borderless, she interned for ABC 7 Chicago's Race & Culture News team, connecting with community organizations in Chicago to pitch stories for the newsroom.

Katrina was born in Chicago, where both her parents settled after arriving in the United States as refugees from Vietnam following the end of the war. These experiences inform Katrina's work, and she cares deeply about social justice issues.

Siriluck is a proud Thai immigrant and a dedicated Chicagoan. She is a mission-driven finance and administration leader, and her multifaceted background and commitment to empowering the immigrant community help fuel her passion for creating positive change.

Prior to joining Borderless, she worked at the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum, advocating for AAPI women and girls to thrive in their lives and community. She also spent time teaching English as a second language to adult learners of immigrant and refugee backgrounds to improve their academic and cultural literacy. Before her commitment to nonprofit work, she was a dedicated front office staff member at the Chicago Cubs Baseball Club. There, she learned and cultivated many of her professional skills and remains a lifelong baseball fan.

Siriluck loves food, music, nature and is an animal advocate for all creatures big and small. She lives with her husband at their home in Albany Park, the most diverse neighborhood in Chicago. It is a multigenerational household, with her parents recently joining them there.

Nissa is a Peabody-award nominated journalist whose work has appeared in The Christian Science Monitor and Chicago magazine, among others.

In her 15-year career, she has covered global issues as a producer at Chicago Public Radio, served as a foreign correspondent in South Korea and Vietnam, and reported on police abuse and gun violence in Chicago.

In 2019, she received the Chicago Headline Club award for best online feature story. Previously, she served as a reporting fellow at the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma and a juvenile justice reporting fellow at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Chicago and a Master’s degree in International Studies from the University of Queensland.

Chelsea moved from Texas to Chicago in 2017. She studied journalism in college. She appreciates how journalism can be used to shed light on important issues, like the stark contrast between the political climates of her two homes and the impact of those differences on so many lives. She currently works for Hireology and writes in her spare time.