Donna Alvis-Banks

Donna Alvis-Banks is a features reporter at the Roanoke (Va.) Times. Raised in Christiansburg, Va., she worked as a classroom teacher at Blacksburg High School before joining the Roanoke Times in 1988. As a features writer and news reporter she has won a Landmark Award and Virginia Press Association Award.

On April 16, 2007, she reported the breaking story of the Virginia Tech shootings and led the newspaper's coverage of its aftermath. She now has a new beat, covering the ongoing mental health and social fallout of the shootings.