By Zach Powell
The Associated Press Sports Editors Foundation is pleased to announce its next class of Fellows for 2025-26. Class XIV features Bria Manning, Carlos Silva Jr., Andre Fernandez, Isabella DiAmore, Courtney Shultz, Lyric Swinton and Zoe Collins Rath.
Bria Manning is the sports editor at The Montana Standard/406 MT, where she coordinates sports coverage in southwest Montana. She spent three years at ESPN as an associate editor before transitioning to Montana. A University of California, Berkeley graduate with a master’s in journalism, Manning also served as editor-in-chief of California State, Long Beach’s student newspaper during her undergraduate studies.
Carlos Silva Jr. has held the sports editor position at the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal and Gannett Center for Community Journalism since 2018, where he works with sports reporters across six newsrooms in Texas. Silva previously worked as a high school sports editor covering 60 high schools, and has served as a high school and college sports writer across many beats throughout the Lone Star State.
Andre Fernandez is the deputy sports editor at the Miami Herald, where he supervises beat writers and helps generate daily and feature content of Miami’s robust sports landscape. Fernandez began his sports-reporting career at the Herald, covering and coordinating high school sports in South Florida. Fernandez covered the NFL, NBA and MLB for two years at The Athletic before a brief stint at the Tallahassee Democrat. He is also a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
Isabella DiAmore is an associate sports editor at The Philadelphia Inquirer. She manages the high school and general assignment budget and writes feature and enterprise stories. DiAmore is a Temple University graduate who served as sports editor of the school’s student newspaper, The Temple News, during her senior year. She was The Inquirer’s Temple athletics beat writer in 2021.
Courtney Shultz has been an editor at The Athletic since 2019, when she first began on the Universal Desk. She is now a deputy managing editor. Shultz spent six years as a copy editor at Bleacher Report, where she was eventually promoted to copy-editing trainer. She has been involved in several activities, including judging “The Best of The Athletic” awards in 2022 and 2023, and the NPCMA Golden Leaf Awards in 2025.
Lyric Swinton is a social media producer for Blavity, helping to plan content and strategize it. Before operating social media accounts, Swinton began freelance writing for Pro Wrestling Media, contributing on-site coverage for wrestling events around the world. She also edited newsletters and similar platforms at The Post and Courier in Columbia, South Carolina.
Zoe Collins Rath is a sports producer and reporter at the Austin American-Statesman in Texas. She served as a digital news editor in 2022 for Nola.com and The Times-Picayune, where she wrote breaking news and produced live streams and podcasts. Rath, a Northwestern University graduate with a master’s in journalism, also has investigative reporting experience and was awarded Best of Gannett in that category.
The Fellows are participating in a weekend of training and enrichment hosted by APSE Foundation president Michael Anastasi in Nashville, Tenn. through Jan. 12. Other program activities include serving as on-site judges at the APSE contest from Feb. 22-26 in Las Vegas; helping judge the APSE student contest; and participating in their respective APSE region meeting before completing the Fellowship at the APSE summer conference July 16-18 in Arlington, Va.
The APSE Foundation in Leadership Fellowship was established in 2011 by APSE, and 59 fellows have graduated. Success stories abound as many have ascended in the newsroom ranks and have impacted the media industry and beyond. The program targets mid-career professionals, preparing and supporting them for leadership positions and advancement at all career levels of sports journalism.
