General assignment in Ashland County with a Solutions and Engagement reporting angle

Mariah Thomas covers education and workforce development in Ashland, Ohio, for the Ashland Source. Thomas recently completed her bachelor's in journalism and political science at the University of Montana, where she served on the editorial board of the student newspaper, the Montana Kaimin. At the Kaimin, Thomas focused on gender discrimination lawsuits, sports, budget cuts and the state Legislature's impact on college students. She was part of a team that produced "In the Crosshairs," a project funded by the Poynter Institute to examine a bill in Montana that would have put guns on college campuses. While at the University of Montana, Thomas traveled to Northern Ireland with the school's Journalism Abroad program and reported on domestic violence rates there. She served on her school's Accessibility, Equity and Inclusion Student Council. Thomas completed an internship with her hometown newspaper, the Helena Independent Record, where she covered everything from education to music festivals. That internship also gave Thomas a chance to work with the Montana State News Bureau, one of the leading newsrooms covering Montana politics, where she produced a series looking at the Democratic party's future in the state following its down-ballot losses in the 2020 election. Thomas values community service, and worked as the president of her university's Honors Student Association to coordinate volunteer opportunities for her peers in Missoula.

Nathan Hart covers education and workforce development in Ashland, Ohio for Ashland Source, a digital news organization serving residents of Ashland County in north central Ohio. Before joining Ashland Source, Nathan worked on Capitol Hill and covered the Texas delegation of Congress for McClatchy DC and the Fort Worth Star-Telegram as an intern reporter. Prior to that, Nathan worked in the Ohio statehouse as a statehouse news fellow for Cincinnati-based news station WCPO. Nathan’s journalism career started in high school where he worked on his school’s newspaper and weekly news show. Nathan has a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a bachelor’s degree in political science from Ohio University. He is a member of Phi Betta Kappa and Kappa Tau Alpha, both academic honor societies for college students. In his free time, Nathan enjoys playing video games, performing stand-up comedy, and going to social events.