ProPublica announced today that Alexandra Zayas will join its staff as a senior editor. She will start in early June.

Zayas comes to ProPublica from the Tampa Bay Times, where she has worked since 2005, distinguishing herself as an investigative reporter and, most recently, as the paper’s enterprise editor. In this latest role she oversaw some of the Times’ most ambitious work, including a much-praised narrative on a survivor of the Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, a complex feature on a terminally ill man wrestling with whether to exercise his right to die, and a data-informed explanatory series on juvenile car theft that will publish later this month.

For her three-part series "In God's Name," which uncovered abuse at unlicensed religious children's homes across Florida, Zayas won the 2013 Selden Ring Award for Investigative Reporting, the Livingston Award for Young Journalists and a Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism, in addition to being named a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting.

Her other investigative work includes "Insult to Injury," a series about the high cost of trauma care, "Biking While Black," which led to changes to troubling ticketing practices by the Tampa Police Department, and watchdog stories on a conflict-of-interest scandal at the Lowry Park Zoo that contributed to the resignation of its CEO. Zayas also serves on the National Advisory Board of the Poynter Institute for Media Studies.

"It's an exciting time to join ProPublica, which I have long admired for its commitment to telling important stories in powerful and creative ways," Zayas said. "I'm honored to become part of a team with such a track record of impact and excellence."

“Alex embodies ProPublica’s commitment to digging deep into pressing and often complex issues, with a sharp mind for making all stories engaging to a general audience,” said Robin Fields, ProPublica’s managing editor. “We have long admired her conversation-starting, high-impact work, and are excited to welcome her to our team.”