This May, we congratulate the hardworking and passionate students of our graduating class and their numerous achievements that have redefined what it means to be a part of The Media School. With a record number of students earning their undergraduate degrees, we celebrated more than 630 students.
During their academic journey, students faced challenges with strength and determination. They have grown, persevered, and proven to the world what they’re capable of.
Now that our students have turned the tassels over, we can’t wait to see them step into a new chapter of their lives, embracing creativity and innovation. Job well done to our speaker, Logan Vaught. You can watch his speech and the entire ceremony online.
Congratulations Class of 2025 — we wish you all the best in your future endeavors.
Read the complete commencement speech
Advancing our mission: Partnerships, people, and innovation
Every ending marks the start of new possibilities, and The Media School is embracing this moment of growth and renewal. From forging impactful partnerships to welcoming new faculty members and launching a state-of-the-art lab, I am excited to reflect on The Media School's accomplishments this academic year and look forward to our next phase.
The Media School entered a formal partnership with Radio-Television Services to expand available resources for students and the community. This collaboration aims to increase engagement in news, radio, TV, digital, and athletic content through experiential opportunities while also expanding local media production capacity for campus and community. We’re seeking an innovative and dynamic leader to oversee all aspects of our award-winning public media organization, setting the strategic direction for radio, television, and digital content while ensuring alignment with the university and school's missions as the executive director of integrated public media.
On the topic of collaborative efforts, IU Bloomington’s three flagship student media organizations — the IDS, IUSTV and WIUX — took the first steps in converging into a multiplatform organization with shared business operations and professional staff. The joint venture will strengthen practical opportunities across platforms for a more cohesive learning experience.
We also set into motion a five-year strategic plan, “Shaping the Future: A Vision for Media Innovation and Impact,” to assert our standing as a world-leader in interdisciplinary media studies. The plan aligns with IU Bloomington’s 2030 Plan with clear connections to its three pillars: student success and opportunity, transformative research and creativity, and service to our state and beyond.
We executed seven faculty hires across journalism, media arts and production, and communication science this academic year. We look forward to introducing them and welcoming them to the school in the coming fall and spring semesters.
Finally, we’re eagerly preparing to launch the Kinetic Imagery and Extended Reality Lab this fall to implement virtual and augmented reality in research projects across disciplines. Media School students and faculty will now see new career possibilities in areas such as film, video game, and sports media production, and digital humanities and AI research.
Thank you
Thank you for all you do to support our graduates, welcome our new faculty and staff, and look to the future of The Media School. I hope you enjoy your summer, and I’ll be back in touch in August.
Best,
David Tolchinsky
Dean, The Media School at Indiana University
