We’re thrilled to announce that Theresa Vargas, a dynamic and insightful journalist with a long track record of delivering distinctive and memorable coverage, will take on the role of local enterprise editor.
In this position, Theresa will oversee high-impact accountability reporting, incisive narratives and conceptual scoops, working with a team of reporters on a range of issues that impact our communities, as well as contributing to coverage of the biggest stories of the day. Theresa brings to this role a deep understanding of the D.C. region, a reputation for taking on complex issues and a keen eye for stories that resonate with people.
A columnist since 2018, Theresa has found hidden local gems and broadened national conversations. She has captured the struggles of a Virginia doctor who went to renew his passport and became stateless, delivered the backstory of how Lizzo ended up playing a president’s crystal flute and written a heartbreaking piece about a 5-year-old girl who was killed while riding her bike in a crosswalk.
Many of her columns have spurred action. After she wrote about a baby who went four months without a name because of bureaucracy, that child got a birth certificate — and tens of thousands in donations from impassioned readers. After she wrote about a Virginia organization that was helping to fulfill children’s needs in a dignified way, so many donations came in that the organization was able to expand its reach to other states. After she wrote about why the public didn’t receive an alert when a man with Down syndrome went missing, her column was read aloud by a lawmaker at a hearing for a bill that called for creating a new alert in Maryland to cover individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. That bill was recently signed into law.
