Heather Vogell
I cover commercial space companies and the federal agencies that work with and regulate them, like the Federal Aviation Administration and NASA.
Have a Tip for a Story?
I’m interested in hearing from former and current employees of rocket companies like SpaceX and other space-related businesses. I’d also like to hear from staffers at the FAA and NASA. What’s changing as we move into a new administration?
What I Cover
I’m covering the commercial space industry and its billionaire leaders, including Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos. I’m interested in how companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin do business, and how federal agencies like NASA and the FAA regulate them.
My Background
I focus on the nexus of politics and business. Last year, my stories showed how U.S. trade officials worked on behalf of the baby formula industry to thwart other countries’ efforts to regulate it. Before that, I investigated how landlords were sharing data and using a common algorithm to set rents — potentially in violation of laws against price fixing.
I’ve also written about President Donald Trump’s business entanglements and collaborated with WNYC reporters on the podcast “Trump, Inc.” My 2019 stories were the first to chronicle discrepancies between what the Trump Organization told New York City property tax officials and what it reported on loan documents.
Previously, at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, my work on test cheating in the public school system resulted in the indictments of a school district superintendent and 34 others.
My work has been a finalist for the Goldsmith Prize for investigative reporting and the Gerald Loeb Awards for business and financial journalism; it has also won the Hillman Prize, Sigma Delta Chi Awards and others.
‘Trump, Inc.’ Podcast: Money Laundering and the Trump Taj Mahal
The casino’s money laundering controls were so lacking, regulators found, it amounted to “willful” violations of the law.
Arkansas Spurns Warehousing of Floundering Students
In much of the country, alternative schools are neglected, underfunded and stigmatized. But one of the poorest states is spending big on them.
How Students Get Banished to Alternative Schools
In this era of so-called “school choice,” a pattern has emerged: Students don’t choose their alternative schools. They’re sentenced to them.
For-Profit Schools Reward Students for Referrals and Facebook Endorsements
Schools for potential dropouts market aggressively to boost enrollment — especially during weeks when heads are counted to determine funding. Some of their tactics may violate federal consumer protections.
For-Profit Schools Get State Dollars For Dropouts Who Rarely Drop In
Schools touted by Betsy DeVos aggressively recruit at-risk students, offer barebones courses, and boost revenue by inflating enrollment.
Bellwether Behavioral Health Is Controversial Group Home Operator AdvoServ — With a New Name
After two deaths of teenage residents in less than four years, AdvoServ has quietly taken a new name that makes it harder to follow the trail of media coverage, including ours.
Florida to Examine Whether Alternative Charter Schools Underreport Dropouts
State officials are following up on a ProPublica report last month that Orlando uses alternative charter schools to boost ratings and hide dropouts.
Help ProPublica and USA Today Investigate Alternative Schools
If you are familiar with alternative schools for students with academic or behavioral issues, we need your help.
‘Alternative’ Education: Using Charter Schools to Hide Dropouts and Game the System
School officials nationwide dodge accountability ratings by steering low achievers to alternative programs.
Alternative School Enrollment and Warning Signs
Which districts have large numbers of students in alternative schools, and where are those schools potentially problematic?