Marisa Iallonardo, Patch Staff

<b>Welcome Video:</b> Click here to watch. 

<b>Phone: </b>914-843-3977 

<b>Email: </b>marisa&#64;patch.com

<b>Hometown:</b> Yonkers

<b>Birthday: </b>September 26 

<b>Bio:</b> 

In 2005, I graduated from Boston University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Italian. I moved back to NY and worked at a publishing company in Irvington, before becoming an editor at <i>Westchester Magazine</i>. After covering the entire county for the magazine, I&#39;m excited to hone in on a few specific communities.

I&#39;ve also been on staff as a health editor at <i>First for Women </i>magazine, and my work has appeared in <i>Boston Magazine</i>, <i>Transitions Abroad</i> and i-Italy.org, an online news magazine for Italian-Americans, among others publications. 

<b>Beliefs </b><br><i>At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible and human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal certain key beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. <br><br>This disclosure is not a license for our editors to inject these beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that our beliefs are on the record will force us to be ever mindful to write, report, and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you, the user, ever think you see evidence that we failed in this mission, we wholeheartedly invite you to let us know.</i><br><br><b>Politics</b>

<i>How would you describe your political beliefs?</i>

I am a registered Democrat, and tend to lean  left. That being said, I do think that decisions should be based on facts and qualifications, not just along party lines. 

Religion

<i>How religious would you say you are? Casual, observant, devout, non-religious?</i>

I went to Catholic school for 13 years—from kindergarten at St. Ann&#39;s in Yonkers to high school at Good Counsel Academy in White Plains. I think both schools provided a good foundation in faith and I believe myself to be a spiritual person.  

Local Hot Button Issues

<i>What do you think are the most important issues facing the community?</i>

I think each of the three communities are different, but I think the schools are definitely important in all of them.

<i>Where do you stand on each of these issues?</i><br><br>As I become more involved with each community, I&#39;ll be able to touch upon specific hot button issues and learn what makes the communities tick.