Tonyaa Weathersbee is the bureau chief for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Before coming to Chalkbeat, she was the metro columnist for The Commercial Appeal, Memphis’ daily newspaper. Tonyaa is also a multiple-award winning journalist who spent much of her career as an opinion columnist and editorial board member for The Florida Times Union in Jacksonville, Fla. Her work has appeared on sites such as Black America Web, The Root, CNN, The Undefeated, The Bitter Southerner, The Marshall Project and Children & Nature News. She has published articles on her travels to Cuba, Haiti, Panama, Ecuador, Venezuela, Barbados, Grenada, Mexico, Canada, Jordan and Turkey. Tonyaa also holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and a master’s degree in mass communication from the University of Florida, as well as a master’s certificate in Latin American Studies from UF. In 2020, Tonyaa was inducted into the UF CJC Hall of Fame - making her one of 165 graduates to receive that honor since the college created it in 1970.