Ren Larson

Data Reporter

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Ren Larson is a data journalist with the ProPublica-Texas Tribune Investigative Initiative. Ren uses statistical methods, geospatial analysis and database development to investigate stories and hold officials accountable. She previously worked for the Arizona Republic where she reported on elections, immigration, environmental contamination and wildfires. Larson's 2019 project "Ahead of the Fire," which analyzed nearly 5,000 Western communities for wildfire hazard and human vulnerabilities, won the MIT Knight Science Journalism's Victor K. McElheny award, a 2019 EPPY award for innovation and was a finalist for the Philip Meyer Award.

She holds a masters of public policy and an M.A. in international and area studies from the University of California, Berkeley. Prior to becoming a journalist, she was an urban planner, a case manager and a data analyst.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Is Cracking Down on Cities’ Enforcement of COVID-19 Orders, but Many Already Took a Lax Approach

Texas cities and counties have dramatically different interpretations of the state’s COVID-19 emergency orders. Complaint data from a dozen cities shows disparate approaches to enforcement, particularly among businesses, have been incredibly common.

Coronavirus Put Her Out of Work, Then Debt Collectors Froze Her Savings Account

Kim Boatswain’s tax refund could have helped her get through the coronavirus slowdown. But debt collectors seized it. There are few options for Texans like Boatswain whose money was taken just before the state temporarily banned such garnishments.

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