About the Editorial Board
Kimberly Cortez, Editor-In-Chief
Kimberly Cortez is a senior Social Work major with a Spanish minor from Orange County, California. They are this year’s Editor in Chief.
This is Kimberly’s forth year working at The Beacon, joining her fall semester of her freshman year. Kimberly loves the environment The Beacon created that focuses on both compelling story-telling and informative media.
When she isn’t doing Beacon work, you can catch Kimberly thrifting, hanging out with friends, binge watching Ru Paul’s drag race, listening to music, scrolling on the New York Times app and rock climbing.
She can be found on Instagram @_kimberly_cortez_.
Julianna Pedone, News & Managing Editor
Julianna Pedone is a senior political science major and English and Constitutional Studies minor from Gilroy, California, and is the news and managing editor for the 2024/2025 school year.
Julianna joined The Beacon in the Fall 2023 semester as a news reporter and is incredibly excited to use her new position to further her writing skills and her knowledge on the world of athletics.
Beyond The Beacon, Julianna loves to bake several types of bread, go to the gym, and listen to audio books when she goes on long walks.
She can be found on Instagram @j_pedone_
Camille Kuroiwa-Lewis, Living Section Editor
Camille Kuroiwa-Lewis is a junior English major from Olympia, Washington. She is this year's Living section editor.
This is Camille’s second year working for The Beacon, having joined staff as a reporter her sophomore year. She loves the fast-pace energy and community found within the newsroom. Her favorite part of writing for The Beacon is when she can be creative with the stories she’s assigned.
In her free time, Camille enjoys mending clothing, cooking food that reminds her of home and reading on the porch.
She can be found on Instagram @camillekuroiwa
Tiffany Marquez Escobar, DEI Editor
Tiffany Marquez Escobar is a senior Political Science Major and Writing/Spanish minor from San Jose, CA. She is this year’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Editor.
This is Tiffany’s fourth year on The Beacon, having joined as a reporter fall semester of her Freshman year. She initially joined staff to find her place of belonging at UP and rediscovered her love for storytelling. Her time as a club leader for the Latinx Student Union as well as her experience as a first-generation college student encouraged her to pursue journalism.
When not in the newsroom, she can be found updating her Letterboxed, practicing editorial makeup looks, or listening to her latest musical obsession.
She can be found on Instagram @father_tiff
Maggie Dapp, Sports Section Editor
Maggie Dapp is a junior political science major from Corvallis, OR. She is this year’s Sports Section Editor.
This will be Maggie’s first full year on staff after joining The Beacon in her spring semester of her freshman year and studying abroad in the UK in her sophomore year.
When not reporting, writing or editing, Maggie can be found sticking postcards to her walls, making iced vanilla lattes and listening to the same song over and over.
She can be found on Instagram @maggiedapp
Riley Martinez, Opinions, Faith, and Copy Editor
Riley Martinez is a senior English major and The Beacon’s opinions and copy editor for the 2023-24 academic year.
He is from Upland, CA, and although he loves Portland for its food scene and its access to nature, he’s a Californian at heart. After transferring to the University of Portland from UC Santa Cruz in the spring of 2022, a chance encounter with another Beacon staffer led him to apply. In his first two semesters on staff, he served as a reporter and photographer and spent last year as the copy editor.
Both a bookworm and a linguaphile, Riley loves sharing ideas with his professors and peers. And since joining The Beacon, he has taken the opportunity to hone his writing and communication skills, as well as talk about the things that matter on campus.
In his spare time, he enjoys chipping away at his reading list, playing his guitar and going for long, long walks.
He can be reached at martinri@up.edu.
Natalie Gordon, Multimedia Editor
Natalie Gordon is a junior Psychology major from Tacoma, Washington. She is this year’s Multimedia Editor.
Natalie joined The Beacon spring semester of her Freshman year as a photographer. This is her third year on staff but her first year as an Editor. Photojournalism is something Natalie is passionate about pursuing and is excited about the opportunity to lead other photographers in the pursuit of reporting the truth and providing captivating visuals.
When there isn’t a camera in her hands, Natalie can be found at a Seahawks game or answering trivia questions with her friends.
She can be reached at gordonn26@up.edu
Netty Jurriaans, Community Engagement Editor
Netty Jurriaans is a senior Political Science major with a Constitutional Studies minors from Whidbey Island, Washington. She is this year’s Community Engagement Editor.
This is Nettys third year working at The Beacon, joining her fall semester of her sophomore year. Netty joined The Beacon due to her love of writing and interest in learning more about UP and people around her on campus. This is her second year as community engagement editor and as she's graduating early in December, she cant wait to make this last semester count.
When not posting on The Beacons instagram, Netty is probably passionately discussing some political topic, cooking and eating with friends, re-watching new girl, or listening to Taylor Swift.
She can be found on Instagram @nettyjurriaans.
