How I got there
The transition from Media School student to media professional is rarely predictable.
The career paths of our 23,000 living alumni are varied, but they have one thing in common: They started in The Media School.
Leah Koch-Blumhardt
BAJ’13, MBA’18
Her career plans pivoted when she suddenly inherited a theme park while still in college.
Read Koch-Blumhardt's story
Leah Johnson
BAJ'16
A bestselling and award-winning author, she's writing the stories she needed as a Black, queer, Midwestern adolescent.
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Sneha Dave
BAJ'20
She builds community and advocates for people with chronic medical conditions as executive director of Generation Patient, a nonprofit she founded in college.
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Erica Anderson
BAJ'06
After a career working for the heavy hitters of the media and technology sectors, she's all in on a small business she started at her kitchen table.
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Bernie Rosenthal
BA'51
As a veteran, journalist, adjunct professor, business manager, marketing consultant, CIA employee, leader and more, he has used his skills to communicate across all media to reach people around the world.
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Michael J. Hayes
BA'88
Hayes is the chief operating officer and deputy group head of Hearst Television.
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Paul Tash
BA'76
After more than four decades serving the Tampa Bay Times, Paul Tash will retire July 1.
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Sarah Hutchins
BAJ'11
As training director of Investigative Reporters and Editors, she's working with Media School students to help them master a secret storytelling ingredient: data.
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Brian Richardson
BA'85
As executive producer of "American Ninja Warrior," alumnus Brian Richardson coordinates the details that makes the stunts and feats possible.
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Caleb Marshall
BA'15
He uses his YouTube platform to encourage people to move their body, no matter their shape, size, sexual orientation, gender identity or dance background.
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Ashlee Fujawa
BAJ'04, MA'06
She co-founded Uncovered, an organization that combines data, analytics and community efforts to help solve the cold cases of murdered and missing people.
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Greg Sorvig
BA'06
In a year where festivals around the world were canceled, he helped Heartland Film rise above "the Band-Aid year."
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Jonathan Cohen
BAJ'98
He booked top talent for Jimmy Fallon's late-night shows for years, and he wrote the first band-authorized biography of Pearl Jam. His career started with Bloomington basement shows.
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Nick Hollkamp
BA'91
His first job out of college was writing article synopses for library index systems. Now he has a Pulitzer.
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Mark Gillespie
BA'84
In 2005, he seized onto two emerging trends: podcasts and whiskey. Fifteen years later, he hosts the longest-running podcast on whiskey.
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Katie Crump and Riley Dismore
BA'18 and BA'19
The co-founders of Film Wives Productions channel lived experiences such as sexual assault and the death of a loved one to evoke universal emotions.
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Max Aronson
BA'07
After working on "Community" and other hits, he's on the hunt for the next big TV show.
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Mary Kenney
BAJ'13
She uses the character development skills she developed as a newspaper reporter to create compelling video game narratives.
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Melanie Sims
BAJ'06
In her career as an entertainment reporter, she realized celebrities know how to tell a story to sell a product. Now she draws on those lessons in her new career in advertising.
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Laura Emerick
BA'79
She edited renowned film critic Roger Ebert's Chicago Sun-Times columns for nearly 30 years. When he died in 2013, she decided it was time to try something new. Now she's the digital content editor for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
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Brian Stack
BA'86
A comedy writer and actor who has played Cartoon Donald Trump, Kilty McBagpipes and Hannigan the Traveling Salesman on late-night television, he entered comedy as an Indiana Daily Student cartoonist.
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Myrna Oliver
BA'64
As one of the only women in professional journalism at the time, she found her niche writing the obituaries of influential people.
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Tom Hensley
BS'65
His first job was recording radio jingles at a Nashville, Indiana, studio. His last was playing keyboard for Neil Diamond.
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Aaron Sharockman
BAJ'03
As executive director of Politifact, his mission is to combat misinformation on the internet.
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Matt Shane
BA'02
A last-minute sound engineering job offer from HBO's "Flight of the Conchords" developed into a years-long, Grammy-winning partnership.
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Eric Pankowski
BA'99
His first job in TV research gave him the insight he needed to pitch hit TV shows. Now he's executive producer of "Carpool Karaoke: The Series."
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Garrett Greller
BA'18
He started a hemp product business during his sophomore year and developed its brand through Media School classes.
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