IRE's 2023 Chauncey Bailey JOC Investigative Reporting Fellows publish their projects

Over the course of 2023, IRE fellows Halima Gikandi, Leslie Rangel and Kaylee Tornay worked hard and dug deep to share important, investigative reporting with their communities.

They asked questions about abuse allegations, spoke to experts about mental health and analyzed data on child care. We’re proud to share their investigations, part of the Chauncey Bailey Journalist of Color Investigative Reporting Fellowship program.

Halima Gikandi

Halima Gikandi, of The World, found several allegations of abuse, neglect and misconduct at two Uganda orphanages. Listen to her multi-part series "No place to call home":

• Part 1: Americans are funding orphanages against expert advice
• Part 2: American missionary accused of abuse at his organization, AidChild
• Part 3: A Dutch children's home in Uganda full of complaints
• Part 4: A tale of two children's homes in Uganda

“Halima is relentless, tenacious and she reaches for big stories,” Andrew Lehren, Gikandi’s IRE mentor, shared on LinkedIn.

Leslie Rangel

Leslie Rangel, of KTBC’s Good Day Austin, highlighted the mental health crisis for kids in Texas, which ranks last in the nation for access to mental healthcare. Watch “Admitted,” her multi-part series: Texas mental health crisis: Parents and professionals say the state is failing children

“I wanted to be a journalist… to make sure that stories were being told of people who look like me, people who look different and have different lived experiences. And to really just bring more accountability and justice to everyone’s story,” Rangel told us at IRE23 in Orlando.

Kaylee Tornay

Kaylee Tornay, of InvestigateWest, reported on lack of child care supply in Oregon. Several counties are considered “severe” child care deserts for infants and toddlers, despite tens of millions dollars of investments. Read her story: Badly Needed Infant And Toddler Care Investments Aren’t Reaching Oregon’s North Coast

“It feels really rewarding to work this long on understanding such a complicated topic, and I’m happy with the result,” Tornay told IRE after her project was completed in November. “And there’s more to come!”

The Chauncey Bailey Journalist of Color Investigative Reporting Fellowship is intended to prepare and support a journalist of color for a solid career in investigative reporting. Fellows attended IRE conferences, trained at data bootcamps and received mentoring to work on their projects. Learn more about the fellowship here.