Vernal Coleman is a reporter for ProPublica’s Midwest newsroom. He came to ProPublica from the Boston Globe, where he had been a member of the newsroom’s strike investigations team, specializing in data analysis for quick turnaround investigations. Before joining the Globe, Coleman was a watchdog reporter with the Seattle Times’ Project Homeless initiative, where he wrote stories about the intersection of housing, mental health and local efforts to combat homelessness. Prior to joining the Seattle Times, in 2014, he covered policing and public safety in Newark, New Jersey, for the Star-Ledger and NJ.com.

Coleman began his career as a fellow with Northwestern University’s Academy of Alternative Journalism, where he produced multiple news articles for various Chicago-based publications, including the Chicago Reader.