Dear Alumni and Friends,
Greetings from sunny Los Angeles! I’m here with a couple thousand alums ready to cheer on our Huskers against USC. At least 80 Huskers were on my flight here. If you’ve never heard “Go Biiiiiig Red” yelled out in the middle of a flight and had the entire plane yell back, let me tell you, it’s a heart-warming experience! If you’re in LA this week and want to connect, let me know!
We will have another opportunity to connect coming up next month. On Wednesday, Dec. 4 at 5:30 p.m., we will celebrate 100 years of Ad Club at the University of Nebraska. Check out this black and white photo of the 1924 student chapter of the Lincoln Advertising Club! Our black and white themed anniversary party will be held in The Agency, located on the third floor of the Lincoln Children's Museum. RSVP to join us for refreshments while you connect with old classmates and hear from local legends and current students on how advertising has changed over the years. We hope to see you there!
Thank you to our wonderful scholarship donors who were able to join us for our third annual scholarship brunch. I loved seeing our donors engage with the students they are supporting. A special thanks goes out to superstar alum Larry Lutz (‘77) who spoke about his time at the J-School and what it means to him to be able to provide opportunities for future journalists at Nebraska.
I’m excited to announce the newest additions to the CoJMC Advisory Board. Dakarai Aarons (‘06), Kristin Fasbender (‘91), Matt Hansen (‘03), Juanita Page (‘04), Paula Lavigne (‘98) and Tari Haro (‘97) have all had incredibly successful careers. I am proud to have them back advising the college on where we are going next. Check out this story about new Advisory Board member Juanita Page (‘04) and how early engagement in college activities helped her produce award-winning work and design her dream career.
We had over 70 students engaged in election day coverage last week. Our students published stories on Nebraska News Service, produced a live blog with video inserts, interviewed political analysts on 90.3 KRNU, broadcast live cut-ins on Nebraska Nightly from Andersen Hall and party headquarters and even experimented with social media tracking software, using our new SMART Lab. We wrapped up the night with an exclusive interview with newly re-elected Congressman Mike Flood. Thank you to alum Dean Battiato (‘81) for coming out to see all the action and to our faculty and staff who made the night such an impactful learning experience!
Our mission is to nurture curious and creative minds to thrive in our ever-changing media landscape. We are intent on providing our students with hands-on experiences that will develop their passions into life-long careers through the Experience Lab, our eight college-specific clubs and organizations that support student professional development, exciting competitions like the Bailey Lauerman Design Diversity Challenge and coast-to-coast trips of a lifetime and endowed lectureships that engage our students with industry giants.
We could not do it without you. Every one of the opportunities listed in this newsletter is supported by the time, talent and treasure of J-School alums. I am thankful for each and every one of you.
I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving Holiday.
Go Big Red!
Shari