Nicole Williams Quezada

Peruvian-American, North Texas Based Journalist | Reporting Fellow @ The Fort Worth Report

Recent Articles

Future doctors receive residency assignments at Fort Worth’s Match Day celebrations

White envelope in hand, Brenda Godoy dashed through a crowd of medical students and their families, trying to reach her own before the countdown ended. She reached her gathered family before opening the envelope with shaky hands and unfolding the paper inside.A smile erupted on her face. She was matched with her first-choice residency program.Godoy was one of thousands of medical students nationwide taking part in the largest-ever Match Day, the annual ceremony in which medical students learn wh...

Women are finding their people where the West begins

When Olivia Baxter’s date bailed on their plans last November, she decided to go out anyway, alone, and filmed herself doing it. 

The video found its niche online, and the comments rapidly filled with women in Fort Worth looking for community and friendship.

Within weeks Baxter launched Fort Worth for the Girls, a women’s social club centered around Sunday wine walks. Seven walks later, 40 women show up each week to build friendship, community and navigate the particular loneliness of life aft...

TikTok famous ice cream shop lands in Fort Worth

Teresa Viveiros did not plan on opening an ice cream shop. She was just hungry. 

Late one night during a trip to Boston with her cousins, she walked into The Scoop N Scootery and ordered a sundae. Before the bowl was empty, there was a consensus. 

“We gotta bring this to Fort Worth,” Viveiros said to her cousins.

Two years later, Teresa and husband Christian Viveiros brought the Massachusetts-born ice cream chain known for customizable sundaes, late-night delivery and a viral TikTok presence...

Reimagined children’s gallery opens in Fort Worth Museum of Science and History

Cook Children’s wants kids to feel at ease in a hospital before they ever have to be in one. A new exhibit at the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History is how they plan to do it.

The museum debuted the reimagined TCU Children’s Gallery last weekend in collaboration with Trinity Metro and Cook Children’s, unveiling an interactive space redesigned into a miniature world modeled after the people, places and culture of Fort Worth. Originally opened in 2009, the redesigned space now offers a chan...

Arlington women open porch pantries to feed neighbors in need

Tabatha Parker sat on the front porch of her Arlington home on Halloween, as she’s done for the last two decades, handing out candy as well as boxes of oatmeal to neighbors who voiced need.

“Are you OK? Do you have enough food, with the SNAP benefits thing and all that?” Parker asked.

Parker, 52, worried that her neighbors were without food during fall’s government shutdown that froze Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits for millions of Americans. Tarrant County has the fourth hi...

Made in Peru, taught in Texas: South American dance finds a home in North Texas

The thumping percussion of cajón criollo punctuates Sarah Helfers’ voice, echoing through a Fort Worth dance studio on a Friday night. 

Jesús Monteverde and Marcelo Avendaño, a traditional Peruvian box-shaped wood drum positioned between their knees, use their hands to strike the front panels in the staccato beats of festejo, a high-energy dance with African roots. 

Dancers follow Helfers’ lead, practicing the footwork and hip movements that make the Afro-Peruvian dance come alive.

This is A...

5 years on, Reby Cary Youth Library still being discovered by Fort Worth families

Whitney Johnson remembered watching construction in her neighborhood and wondering what was being built. 

“I hope it’s something different,” Johnson said she recalled thinking at the time.

That construction site became the Reby Cary Youth Library. The space that adults can only enter if accompanied by a minor is the only of its kind in the Fort Worth library system.

The library is named after Reby Cary, a civil rights activist, historian and former state legislator. Now as its 5th anniversar...

3 generations lace up for Cowtown 5K as 6-year-old leads family charge

The beat of Mark Ronson’s “Uptown Funk,” fuels 6-year-old Eli Jack Harrison on runs. 

When his legs get tired and the track feels long, his playlist and a memorized Bible verse keep him going: I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.

Eli Jack ran the Fort Worth Cowtown 5K on Saturday alongside his father, David Harrison, 42, and grandfather, Josh Harrison, 74. Eli Jack placed 14 out of 202 runners in the 6-and-under category. 

With a finishing time of 38:17, the race brought to...

McNair program at TCU opens doors for first-generation scholars

Each time Sharon Arthur sits through Ph.D. interviews she makes the same observation.

She is the only Black woman in the room. 

“I’ve heard that the higher you go up, the less you see of yourself,” Arthur said.

Arthur graduated from Texas Christian University with a bachelor’s in psychology and now works as a clinical assistant while applying to graduate programs. The isolation Arthur describes drives the mission of TCU’s Ronald E. McNair Postbaccalaureate Achievement Program, a federally fu...

Garden challenge cultivates coding lessons at Fort Worth charter school

Colin Christian’s biggest gripe with school is that he doesn’t get enough opportunities to apply learning outside the classroom. The IDEA Rise junior is getting that chance now by coding a solar panel to water the school’s vegetable garden.

“I’m really glad I actually do get the chance to do that here,” Colin said.

Students at the far west Fort Worth charter are programming a solar panel to power an irrigation system for their garden club’s next harvest. The project merges environmental scienc...

Rare white buffalo to appear at Fort Worth Stock Show Saturday

A rare, all-white buffalo named Mo will appear at the Fort Worth Stock Show & Rodeo on Saturday.

Mo, the PlainsCapital Bank’s living mascot, will greet visitors from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday on Rip Johnson Drive across from the Richardson Bass Building. Handler Bree Worthington Clay will be on hand to answer questions.

“It’s not that often that you see a live buffalo on display, especially a white one, which is very rare,” said Mark Warren, PlainsCapital’s Fort Worth region chairman.

Short f...

How an Austin Nonprofit That Started at Marcia Ball’s Kitchen Table Keeps Musicians Housed

Around Marcia Ball’s kitchen table in 2012, a group of Austin women pooled their money to solve an immediate problem: get Lavelle White, an 84-year-old blues legend, into an apartment. The singer had just returned to Austin with nowhere to live.White’s nephew, whom she’d been living with in Louisiana, had passed away. Her belongings were in storage and she had no money for an apartment.“Marcia Ball got us all on the email,” said Nancy Coplin, one of HOME’s founding board members. “Everybody who...

Fort Worth Democrat Rehmet wins Texas Senate seat

Editor’s note: This story was updated at 6:22 p.m. on Feb. 1 to reflect unofficial results.

Fort Worth Democrat Taylor Rehmet flipped the historically red Texas Senate District 9 race against Southlake Republican Leigh Wambsganss, unofficial results show. 

Rehmet, a veteran and union leader, faced off against Wambsganss, a conservative activist and executive of Patriot Mobile, a wireless service provider, in the special election that attracted nationwide attention. 

As of midnight on Saturda...

How Austin's Sister Cities Keep Latin America Close to Home

Through music, food, and cultural exchange, Austin’s sister city connections bring Lima, Peru and Saltillo, Mexico a little closer to home.The sixth floor of Austin’s Central Library pulsed with the hypnotic rhythm of Andean pan flutes as dancers in bright, layered skirts spun across the floor. For two days, the library transformed into a celebration of Peruvian culture and a reminder that Austin’s ties to Latin America run deeper than geography.


“Perú Unveiled,” held this fall during Hispani...

What's Happening to Central Texas Spanish-Speaking Students When They Reach High School?

Despite strong early academic promise, a 2025 report reveals they face systemic barriers that significantly hinder their path to post-secondary education. Find out how Austinites are working for solutions. A key 2025 Central Texas Hispanic status report revealed a striking contrast in the educational outcomes of students from Spanish-speaking families learning in English and Spanish. These emergent bilingual students demonstrate stronger kindergarten readiness than their English-only speaking p...

Johnny Limón Village Creates Path to East Austin Home Ownership

The affordable housing community named after the late East Austin advocate Johnny Limón will help preserve history, heritage in changing neighborhood. At the recent groundbreaking ceremony for Johnny Limón Village, longtime activist Susana Almanza stood before the crowd and recalled the housing struggles her family faced while growing up – a struggle that has now shaped the new 27-unit affordable housing community meant to help families with deep ties to East Austin.


“In 1965, my family was d...

St. Edward’s University disputes former student’s mold exposure lawsuit

St. Edward’s University officials dispute claims made in a lawsuit filed by a former student athlete who alleges that dangerous mold exposure in campus housing caused serious health complications.
Lisa L. Kirkpatrick, vice president for student affairs and administration, addressed the campus community in a statement sent to students, staff and faculty Wednesday evening following Monday’s filing in Travis County District Court.
“We are a community built on care and mutual support,” Kirkpatrick s...

St. Edward’s University remains committed to mission despite loss of Hispanic-Serving Institution funding

The U.S Department of Education announced Wednesday that it will eliminate $350 million in federal grants to Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs), ending discretionary funding at St. Edward’s University, where more than half of the undergraduate population is Hispanic.
The move impacts 615 Hispanic-Serving Institutions nationwide as well as other minority serving institutions (MSI), including those serving large numbers of Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian students, Asian students and grants for...

Students learn nixtamalization as Cherokee partners share traditional food science

Under the shade of trees in the St. Edward’s University food forest, Rachel Caldwell Hill, a Cherokee Nation citizen, held up ears of Cherokee White Eagle corn as the Saturday morning heat set in. Over 40 students, faculty and community members gathered ready to learn the nixtamalization process that turns corn into masa for tortillas.
Caldwell Hill demonstrated the various stages of nixtamalization, a traditional Mesoamerican process in which corn is treated with an alkaline solution to increas...

Lawmakers will start with a clean slate if Democrats fail to return Friday, governor calls for second special session

AUSTIN (KXAN)– As Texas House Democrats remain out of the state to block a controversial redistricting bill, Gov. Greg Abbott has threatened to call a second consecutive special session, raising questions about what these legislative sessions actually mean and how they reshape the political process in Texas.


With Republicans controlling the Texas legislature but lacking the quorum needed to pass legislation due to the Democratic walkout, the state finds itself in a dramatic standoff that high...

Cornyn announces FBI Director has approved request to locate Texas Democrats

AUSTIN (KXAN) — U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R) announced Thursday morning that FBI Director Kash Patel has approved his request for federal assistance in locating Texas House Democrats who fled the state to prevent a vote on mid-decade redistricting legislation.


“I am proud to announce that Director Kash Patel has approved my request for the FBI to assist state and local law enforcement in locating runaway Texas House Democrats,” Cornyn said in a statement Thursday morning.


The announcement...

Texas House committee advances congressional redistricting plan

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — In a Saturday morning meeting, the Texas House Select Committee on Congressional Redistricting approved legislation to change redraw voting districts for the Congressional seats in the state. The committee vote sets the stage for the bill to be considered by Texas House members next week.


House Bill 4 calls for redrawing 37 of the state’s 38 congressional districts, with changes primarily focused on five districts drawn for partisan Republican advantage. President Donald Tr...

Jaworski promises to replace ‘voter suppression’ with enhancement division in campaign for attorney general

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Former Galveston mayor Joe Jaworski said Texas needs an attorney general focused on protecting consumers and expanding voting access rather than serving as what he called “a consigliere for the Republican reelection machine.”



Jaworski, making his second bid for the Democratic nomination after losing the 2022 runoff, outlined an agenda centered on election reform and corporate accountability.



The centerpiece of his platform involves creating a “voter enhancement d...

Redistricting, flood warning systems on Texas special session agenda

AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced a full special session agenda Wednesday, including a rumored mid-decade redistricting of congressional maps and the creation of flood warning systems in response to the deadly and destructive floods that hit Central Texas. The special session begins July 21.

Redistricting made headlines in recent weeks as the New York Times reported President Donald Trump was urging Texas Republican congressmen to redraw the state’s maps ahead of the 2026 mid...
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