| DEEPTI HAJELA is a newswoman with The Associated Press. She served as president of the South Asian Journalists Association from January 2005 to January 2008.
She works in the New York City Metro Bureau, where she is primarily a reporter but also spends some time as an editor.
Being an AP reporter means she covers anything and everything that happens in New York, her absolute favorite city in the world, and believe her when she says that encompasses topics she never imagined. Her primary area of interest is race and culture, and her coverage in those areas has won her a couple of awards.
Among her memorable AP and SAJA moments: writing the AP review of "Harry Potter and the Order of The Phoenix" while putting the final touches on the 2003 SAJA Convention.
SAJA has been an incredibly important part of Deepti's life from the first event she attended. She's been honored to serve on the board, and is particularly proud of seeing both the SAJA Reporting Fellowships and the first SAJA Fundraising Drive come in being during her tenure as president.
Deepti has also worked for the AP in Newark, N.J., where she covered daily life in her favorite state. (Hey, she's from there.) She loved covering sports, especially since she can't play any but is a champion spectator. And even now, she can usually figure out how to get home no matter what part of North Jersey she's in.
A New Jersey native, Deepti left for the Midwest in 1992 to attend Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. She graduated in 1996 with both bachelor's and master's degrees, and has been working for the AP ever since.
A founding member of the SAJA Board, she served as convention coordinator for several years before becoming president.
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