KSDK reporter Justina Coronel has been named the president of the newly formed St. Louis chapter of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.

“Latino stories are St. Louis stories,” Coronel said. “Our goal is to not only empower Latino journalists in the region, but also to make sure that newsrooms reflect the full diversity and complexity of our community.”

The St. Louis NBC affiliate said Coronel helped launch the new chapter of the larger national organization, which was founded in 1984. The NAHJ said its aim is to increase the presence of Latino journalists in newsrooms, improve representation of Latinos in media and advance Latino journalists in all areas of the profession.

Coronel has been a reporter at KSDK since April 2019.

The St. Louis NAHJ also elected St. Louis Public Radio’s Brian Munoz as vp, KMOV reporter Avery Martinez as secretary and Red Latina publisher Cecilia Velazquez as treasurer.

NAHJ has more than 4,000 members nationwide and a network of 23 professional chapters and 28 student chapters.