Vanessa de la Torre
Executive Editor, New England News Collaborative
Vanessa de la Torre is executive editor of the New England News Collaborative, a partnership of eight public media stations producing in-depth news and features throughout New England. Until recently, she covered race, identity and culture for Connecticut Public Radio and the public radio collaborative Sharing America. Previously, Vanessa was a newspaper reporter for the Hartford Courant, where her investigative storytelling on Hartford education won regional and national awards. She also was part of the Courant team that was a finalist for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Reporting. Vanessa grew up in El Centro, Calif., a desert town near the U.S.-Mexico border, and is a graduate of Princeton University and Stanford University's Graduate Program in Journalism.
Treasurer Introduces Plan For Connecticut To Divest From Gun Industry
By Ryan Lindsay & Vanessa de la Torre • Dec 3, 2019
Adam Rosen / Congregation B'nai Israel
The state of Connecticut announced Tuesday that it plans to divest from its investments in civilian gun manufacturers -- the latest move in a state that has enacted stricter gun policies since the Newtown massacre.
'He's Not A Criminal': Family, Advocates Plead With ICE In Deportation Case
By Vanessa de la Torre • Nov 26, 2019
Vanessa de la Torre / Connecticut Public Radio
Since ICE took her husband away, Madina Mamadjonova said life has been a nightmare.
She's trying to support her family, Mamadjonova said Tuesday, but she can't be both a "mother and father" to their three children. The youngest, a son named Ibrohim, is nearly 2 years old -- that's about how long Bakhodir Madjitov has been detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Domestic Violence Outreach Gets A Boost In Hartford
Ryan Lindsay / Connecticut Public Radio
The state's biggest domestic violence agency announced Wednesday that it will embed a domestic violence worker at the Hartford Police Department -- a partnership that advocates hope can save lives.
Interval House's collaboration with Hartford police is part of a larger effort to partner directly with local law enforcement to ensure "we reach more victims before it's too late," Mary-Jane Foster, Interval House president and CEO, said in a statement.
A Father Remembers The Son He Lost In 'Collision Course'
By Vanessa de la Torre • Oct 18, 2019
Collision Course / Connecticut Public Television
Connecticut Public Radio's Diane Orson interviews reporter Vanessa de la Torre about the documentary "Collision Course."
It's been six months since a police officer fatally shot Anthony Jose "Chulo" Vega Cruz after a traffic stop in Wethersfield, Conn.
The 18-year-old's father, Jose Vega, often walks by the site of the shooting on Wethersfield's Silas Deane Highway. It's hard not to — he lives just a block and a half away.
Videos Of Hartford Police Shooting Released, Showing Struggle Between Suspect And Police
By Frankie Graziano & Vanessa de la Torre • Jul 29, 2019
State's Attorney For The Judicial District Of Tolland
Three days after a man was shot and killed by a Hartford police detective, the state's attorney investigating the incident released body camera footage showing the shooting from the perspective of three different police officers.
At Muslim Sunday School, Learning About Islam — And Correcting Misconceptions
By Vanessa de la Torre • May 30, 2019
Off a highway in central Connecticut is the mosque with a 400-student Muslim Sunday school.
More guards are on patrol these days. And for the older students in the transition class, talking about Islamophobia is not only welcomed, but encouraged. The teenagers are in their final years of high school and will be heading off to college soon.
Leticia Colón de Mejias: Green Eco Warrior
Learn more about Leticia Colón de Mejias in this radio profile.
Leticia Colón de Mejias thinks no problem is insurmountable if Americans come together.
"Sometimes we take these subjects and we make them so big and scary that people feel we can't take action," said Colón, 42, a Connecticut entrepreneur, environmentalist and mother of seven. "Climate change seems terrifying. And everyone's like, it's too big."
Prosecutors, Family Want To Know Why Police Stopped Wethersfield Man Before Firing Fatal Shots
By Vanessa de la Torre, Ryan Lindsay & Patrick Skahill • May 8, 2019
Ryan Caron King / Connecticut Public Radio
The state's attorney investigating the fatal Wethersfield, Conn. police shooting said she wants to go back to the beginning of the traffic stop and understand why police pulled over 18-year-old Anthony Jose "Chulo" Vega Cruz.
Videos Of Wethersfield, Conn. Police Shooting Released, From Traffic Stop To Fatal Shots
By Ryan Lindsay, Vanessa de la Torre & Frankie Graziano • May 3, 2019
Chief State's Attorney
Nearly two weeks since a Wethersfield police officer shot an 18-year-old driver after a traffic stop, the chief state's attorney's office released dashcam footage and surveillance video on Friday that show the incident that led to the man's death.
Another 'First' As College Building Renamed In Honor of Ebenezer Bassett
By Vanessa de la Torre • Mar 21, 2019
Ebenezer Bassett was the first African American to graduate from the college now known as Central Connecticut State University. Then, in 1869, he became the first African American to serve as a U.S. diplomat.
Now 150 years after that appointment by President Ulysses S. Grant, CCSU has renamed its Social Sciences Hall in honor of Bassett — a recognition that comes with another historic first, university officials said this week.
Obama Foundation Picks Hartford For Leadership Training Initiative
By Vanessa de la Torre • Mar 5, 2019
Charles Rex Arbogast / Associated Press
The Obama Foundation is recruiting 100 young people in Hartford to be part of a six-month training program to develop the next wave of community leaders in Connecticut's capital city.
Hartford Photo Exhibit Stirs Memories of '60s Riots
Courtesy of Hartford History Center, Hartford Public Library
Steve Harris climbed the steps to the upper lobby of Hartford Stage. This was a night off for the cast and crew of Detroit '67, a theater production set during the civil unrest of late 1960s Detroit.
But Harris, a 71-year-old retired fire captain in Hartford, came to see the photo exhibit inspired by the play. It brought him back to those turbulent times.
The Lure Of Luck: How Gambling Can Turn Addictive For Southeast Asian Refugees
By Vanessa de la Torre • Feb 6, 2019
Chitose Suzuki / Associated Press
Quyen Truong still gets a cozy feeling when she sees a hand of cards.
It reminds her of family and traditions as a refugee from Vietnam who arrived in the U.S. in late 1990. Aunts, uncles and cousins in Connecticut — among the Southeast Asian refugees who resettled here in waves after the Vietnam War — would get together on weekends with rolls of quarters, nickels, pennies and dimes.
Connecticut Factors In 'Trust' To Avoid Undercount In 2020 Census
By Vanessa de la Torre • Dec 11, 2018
On one side of the room was a scrolling slideshow of maps. Connecticut cities looked like they were stained with red blots — the red being an indicator of how hard it was to get a response from households during the last Census.
Connecticut's Older Housing Stock: A Lead-Poisoning Risk?
Some folks see chipped paint on windowsills and door frames of older Connecticut homes as rustic, New England charm. But it makes public health officials wary.
The U.S. banned lead-based paint for housing in 1978. By then, many homes in the state were already constructed.
Democrat Jahana Hayes Wins 5th Congressional District
By Vanessa de la Torre • Nov 6, 2018
Democrat Jahana Hayes, an educator who rose from poverty and teen motherhood to become a National Teacher of the Year, made her own history Tuesday night as the first black woman elected to Congress from the state of Connecticut.
For Minority Voters, Will 'Status Quo' Candidates Be Enough On Election Day?
Frankie Graziano / Connecticut Public Radio
The nerves are kicking in, said Constanza Segovia, talking politics outside her house in Hartford before Election Day. The stakes are high -- nationally and in the Connecticut gubernatorial race.
Democrat Jahana Hayes Goes 'Full Steam' In Historic Race For Congress
Team Hayes brought out the bullhorn. A League of Women Voters debate was starting in an hour in Danbury, Conn., so a crew of volunteers set up on the side of the road, waving campaign signs at passing cars and chanting about change.
'Not Going Anywhere': Hartford Youth Group Finds Voice In Fight Against Gun Violence
Gunfire brought chaos to the West Indian Day Parade in Hartford a decade ago. Some parade goers assumed fireworks — until they saw a kid on the ground.
His head was soaked with blood.
Columbus Day? In West Hartford, Schools To Honor Indigenous Peoples' Day
By Vanessa de la Torre • Oct 8, 2018
Amar Batra / Connecticut Public Radio
Instead of honoring explorer Christopher Columbus, the second Monday of October will soon be called Indigenous Peoples' Day on the school calendar in West Hartford.
Hartford Police Sergeant Demoted, Could Lose Job After 'Trigger Happy' Remarks
By Vanessa de la Torre • Sep 6, 2018
A white Hartford police sergeant who was caught on a citizen's video saying he was "trigger happy" has been demoted and is fighting for his job, city officials said Thursday.
Off To Prep School: Hartford Students Get Scholarships After Learning Sport Of Squash
Julissa Mota can recall the exact moment when squash — the preppy racquet sport — entered her consciousness.
Visitors had stopped by Julissa's fifth-grade class at M.D. Fox School, a neighborhood school in Hartford's South End. Capitol Squash, an urban squash program, was new and recruiting kids in 2014, so the executive director brought along a coach and a big blue box with racquets inside for the children to pass around.
In 5th District, 'Students For Hayes' Get Hyped Up For Former Teacher Of The Year
By Vanessa de la Torre • Aug 17, 2018
Zack and Gillian Petrarca aren't old enough to vote. But the teenage siblings say they are Team Hayes all the way.
In Fight Against HIV, Outreach Workers Take 'PrEP' To The Streets
By Vanessa de la Torre • Jul 24, 2018
Tatiana Melendez waited in the shade during a New England heat wave, ready to make a move.
"I got all the information for you, all right," Melendez, 46, said as she handed a baggie of info to a passerby. "This is very good for you. For everybody doing sex."
After Starbucks Fiasco, Hartford Coffeehouse Gets Its Own Anti-Bias Training
By Vanessa de la Torre • Jun 8, 2018
A sign taped to the door told customers that Story and Soil Coffee was closing early for a staff training.
For Hurricane Evacuee And Mom, Persistence Leads To Graduation
Commencement was two days away and Karina Lasalle Arroyo had hauled out nearly seven months' worth of luggage from her time in Connecticut.
She stood in a dormitory parking lot and confirmed she was ready to go home.
Por Los Evacuados Del Huracán Y Por Mamá, La Perseverancia Lleva A La Graduación
Faltando dos días para la ceremonia de graduación, Karina Lasalle Arroyo había sacado el equipaje, con un valor de casi siete meses de su permanencia en Connecticut.
As Hartford Becomes Home, Puerto Rican Evacuees Take A Trip To Mark Twain House
Minutes into touring the Mark Twain House in Hartford, the visitors came across a black-and-white photo of a young Clara Clemens, a daughter of Mark Twain. Soon, it dawned on everyone that Clara looks a lot like Milianis Rivera, a Puerto Rican evacuee.
A Medida Que Hartford Se Convierte Su Hogar Evacuados Puertorriqueños Van De Paseo A Casa Mark Twain
Minutos después de entrar a visitar la casa de Mark Twain en Hartford, los visitantes pasaron por una foto blanco y negro de la hija menor de Mark Twain, Clara Clemens de joven. Pronto, fue evidente para todos que Clara se parece mucho a Milianis Rivera, una evacuada puertorriqueña.
Puerto Rican Evacuees Become College Mentors At Hartford's Bulkeley High
By Vanessa de la Torre • Apr 30, 2018
Communications major Marivelisse Acosta attends Central Connecticut State University. But on Wednesday night, she stood in the cafeteria of Hartford's Bulkeley High School, contemplating what to say as a mentor to the school's displaced students from Puerto Rico.