Natallie Rocha (20) sat down in a PLNU classroom, having no idea that one day, she would work for The New York Times, The San Diego Union-Tribune, and now The San Francisco Standard. It was her first day of Introduction to Journalism, a prerequisite class for her journalism major. She was excited, but also hesitant. In fact, she wasn’t sure if journalism was the right path for her at all.
During her freshman year, layoffs were a constant among journalists, causing her to question if this career would be sustainable for her. Yet despite her fears, she jumped into journalism headfirst. She fell in love with her introductory class and with the weekly story assignments.
“That experience of getting to actually do interviews, writing it, then seeing it published was the fuel that made me say, ‘I picked the right thing,’” Rocha said.
“[I learned that faith is] being comfortable sitting in the uncertainty, in the questions. Which I feel [is] very much aligned with journalism. You’re asking questions, you’re searching for truth and you’re looking for what [the] story [is].”
Even as an underclassman, Rocha didn’t shy away from writing about difficult topics. From American politics to PLNU student opinions, she made sure that stories were told and voices were heard. Her writing was ambitious and caught the attention of her professors and peers alike.
Rocha’s passion for reporting drove her to tell the story of Dellon Sanders, a PLNU student who tragically passed away in October of 2018. She spoke with everyone she could, from mental health professionals to Sanders’ family and friends, all so she could honor his life with her story. Her article began with the statement “No words,” yet it was her words that resounded throughout campus.
“I didn’t know this person at all, but it would be a shame if they weren’t remembered how the people who loved them remembered,” Rocha said. “It was a tough story to report. It was such a sensitive subject and involved people who [were] close to [him]. … I was just very careful and it was definitely emotional from the beginning.”
Rocha recalled that her advisor, Dean Nelson, Ph.D., often checked in on her while she wrote the story. She also found support in Karl Martin, Ph.D., professor emeritus of American Literature at PLNU, and Danielle Cervantes, professor of computer-assisted reporting.
“I had a lot of different people that I met through my journey at Point Loma that I was able to lean on, which I was really grateful for,” Rocha said. “It would not have been possible otherwise.”
But even during these challenging seasons, Rocha’s faith began to grow. Through the people around her, she learned that faith doesn’t always look like having all the answers.
“[I learned that faith is] being comfortable sitting in the uncertainty, in the questions,” Rocha said. “Which I feel [is] very much aligned with journalism. You’re asking questions, you’re searching for truth and you’re looking for what [the] story [is].”
As Rocha neared the end of her college career, she left San Diego to pursue a semester of work and study in New York City. As part of the Dow Jones News Fund, she had the opportunity to learn from fellow reporters, who helped further her love for reporting.
“I had never been to New York before — never for a class trip or anything,” she said. “[But] I ended up making really good friends in the program, some of them I’m still friends with today. … [I took] a business reporting class, and that was what introduced me to business reporting. I really liked it. That’s what set me on the path for my career.”
In 2025, Rocha’s career led her to another city: San Francisco. Although she was now living over 2,000 miles away from the Big Apple, she landed a fellowship with The New York Times. She wrote about tech, bringing her readers from all over the globe into Silicon Valley. From writing news about A.I. to other cultural shifts in technology, this fellowship became a launchpad into her new job with The San Francisco Standard.
Rocha said she wouldn’t consider herself a technical person. She never studied computer science, and didn’t know much about technology until she began her fellowship with The New York Times. But she quickly recognized the importance of informing her community about tech when she saw how it affected everyone’s daily lives — especially now that she works for a local outlet.
“I’m writing for everyday San Franciscans, talking about how A.I. is changing the city,” Rocha said, explaining how San Francisco often goes through tech booms.
“People sometimes compare it to the big shift that happened with the dot-com boom in the early 2000s, where the internet and everything was changing,” she said. “But the difference here is it’s happening a lot faster, and there’s a lot more money being poured into it. People are becoming rich really fast. With that comes questions like, ‘How is that money going to change the city and the environment? Is it going to get donated?’”
Rocha said that she’s had the privilege of working with “very smart people” who have been reporting on technology for a long time. She’s been able to glean knowledge from them, providing San Franciscans with an inside view of today’s tech boom. Rocha said it’s been a fun challenge finding ways to appeal to a local audience.
With many tech entrepreneurs being around the same age as Rocha, she’s found it easy to network and make connections with people for her articles.
“A lot of young people are starting companies, so being in my 20s, that was really helpful being able to personally connect with people,” she said. “I still talk to some of those people now.”
“Do the thing. Be curious. It all worked out [for me]. If you really want to do it, I think you can do it.”
While Rocha may have an impressive resume and a long list of experiences, she credits PLNU as the reason she’s where she’s at today.
“[PLNU] was the right choice and a good environment for me to grow in,” she said. “Like I mentioned, I had a lot of uncertainty even when I started the journalism program. … But just accumulate experience. Do the thing. Be curious. It all worked out [for me]. If you really want to do it, I think you can do it.”
