Former staffer Gail Binkly has been hired as managing editor for the Cortez Journal, announced General Manager Suzy Meyer last week.

In addition to writing a weekly column, Binkly reported on county government, public lands and the environment for the Cortez Journal and its predecessors — the Montezuma Valley Journal and Cortez Sentinel — from 1991 up until just recently.

Binkly taught journalism courses as a full-time assistant professor for the University of Southern Colorado at Pueblo from 1985 to 1994. Prior to that, she was a sports writer for the Colorado Springs Gazette Telegraph from 1981 to 1984. She holds a master’s degree in journalism from Ohio State University and a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from USC at Pueblo.

Born in Colorado Springs, she has been a resident of Cortez for seven years.

In her position as managing editor, Binkly is responsible for newsroom management, pagination, editing and story assignments.

She said she wants to see the paper continue its focus on in-depth reporting on local issues.