Alumni Stories

Leah Johnson

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

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

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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Two side-by-side photos. On the left, a black and white photo of Bernie Rosenthal standing in a doorway wearing a graduation cap and gown and holding a trophy. On the right, a current photo of Bernie Rosenthal standing in a doorway holding the same trophy.

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 Hayes

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

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 posing with American Ninja Warrior materials.

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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Three people wearing white t-shirts dance outdoors.

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

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, leads a post-screening Q&A after the 2018 Heartland International Film Festival screening of 'When Jeff Tried to Save the World' with director Kendall Goldberg and actor Jon Heder.

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 and Eddie Vedder

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

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

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

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

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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