Ryla Manalang

Ryla Manalang is a current student at Cal State Long Beach in her third semester,

pursuing a degree in journalism. At a glance, this is as much as you’d see. However, diving in

further you would find there is a lot more under the surface. Born in Burlingame, California,

Ryla actually spent a portion of her early years in Oregon. In fifth grade, she moved back to

California where she has stayed ever since. She attended Santa Ana College before transferring

to CSULB to further pursue her BA in Journalism. Ryla feels that Journalism suits her because

she has always been naturally inquisitive. She enjoys asking questions as well as hearing stories

from all walks of life. She also feels a call to give a voice to those who may not have the

platform to speak or tell their stories. Her focuses are to get into entertainment or sports

journalism. Her dream jobs include a fashion reporter for Vogue or a social media manager for

the MLB. Outside of her school and career aspirations, Ryla enjoys shopping and curating

outfits, hence her dream to be a fashion reporter. She also enjoys staying fit by doing pilates,

going hiking, or working out at the gym. Ryla feels confident in her ability to achieve goals once

she sets her mind to it, however she is striving to become better at consistency. Ryla understands

the difficulty of the industries she is getting into and knows that consistency will be key. One of

her biggest inspirations is her grandmother. Ryla says that she is her hero because she was able to

raise three successful children without a father figure present in her life. This perseverance and

independence displayed by her grandmother helped Ryla realize that she is strong enough to

achieve the goals she is setting as long as she puts her mind to it.