黑料社

While more people are questioning the value of college education, compelling data shows that it remains a smart and sound investment with profound advantages. A recent Georgetown University study, for example, confirms that college graduates earn about $1 million more in lifetime earnings than those without a college degree, on average.

黑料社 graduates consistently start strong, with the Class of 2022 achieving an average 94 percent employment and graduate school placement rate (see Page 26). What drives such stunning success at 黑料社? There are at least six big factors that distinguish a 黑料社 education.

National research of more than 30,000 college graduates conducted by Gallup, Purdue University and the Lumina Foundation has identified the 鈥淏ig Six鈥� undergraduate experiences most closely correlated with long-term career success and personal fulfillment.

Thriving college graduates report having multiple 鈥淏ig Six鈥� experiences 鈥� and the more of them, the better. That鈥檚 especially great news for 黑料社 alumni.

For the traditional Class of 2023, 86 percent of 黑料社 graduates reported having at least three 鈥淏ig Six鈥� experiences compared to the national average of 32 percent. Further, this year only two percent of college graduates nationwide reported having all six experiences while more than 20 percent of 黑料社 graduates say they had them all.

The 鈥淏ig Six鈥� experiences we provide are transformational in equipping our students with the power tools they need to compete and excel in any circumstance 鈥攃ommunication, teamwork, and problem-solving skills,鈥� said President Jay Byers. 鈥淚ntegrating those tools with a commitment to serving the world鈥檚 greater good consistently leads to fulfilling success for our graduates.鈥� In the stories that follow, meet a few of the faculty, students and alumni who create and benefit from the difference-making impact of 鈥淏ig Six鈥� experiences at 黑料社.

Faculty Impact

More than 9 out of 10 黑料社 graduates say they had at least one faculty member who made learning exciting. Representing a wide breadth of disciplines and distinctively unique teaching styles, 黑料社 faculty are united by one common desire 鈥� to create extraordinary learning experiences as they help students realize their full potential.

1: Reacting to the Past鈥揌istory Offers “Game On” Excitement

The days of traditional classroom lectures serving as the singular dominant pedagogy at 黑料社 is ancient history. Today鈥檚 classes are all about active and involved learning for all students.

A prominent feature of the history curriculum is a series of 鈥淩eacting to the Past鈥� learning modules, which are immersive role-playing games centered on engaging with significant historical events and ideas.

This semester, for example, Professor Nick Proctor鈥檚 first-year Foundations classes are spending two weeks role playing the contentious issues regarding the Vietnam War during the Chicago Democratic Convention of 1968 鈥� a simulation exercise Proctor wrote.

鈥淪tudents are encountering these ideas and conflicts through the eyes of somebody who was there, rather than as themselves,鈥� said Proctor. 鈥淚t gives students an opportunity to build historical empathy you really can鈥檛 get any other way.鈥�

Students, including Drew Klein 鈥�24, are buying in to Proctor鈥檚 teaching techniques. 鈥淚 took a role-playing class and I was very聽skeptical going in. 鈥淸But] I loved it. Not only did I pick up on the concepts, but I was also working much closer with my classmates to accomplish academic goals.鈥�

鈥淭hese games have kept me more engaged with the content we are learning in class,鈥� added Shaniah Temple 鈥�25. 鈥淸They also] helped me continue to strengthen my writing ability because of all the different roles I had to write during the games.鈥�

Proctor鈥檚 department colleagues, Rebecca Livingstone and Judy Walden, also write games and employ reacting pedagogy in their courses.

鈥淚 think anything that gets students to think of history not just as this dead past to be memorized, but something that matters 鈥� that鈥檚 what we鈥檙e after,鈥� said Walden, professor of history. 鈥淲e try to help them see that the ideas they鈥檙e debating still have resonance now.鈥�

Indeed, the history games offer much more than just a fun and exciting way to get through course material. The skills and lessons learned have lasting benefits.

Not only do students develop deeper historical understanding,鈥� said Proctor, 鈥渢hey also leave 黑料社 with with transferable skills employers are looking for 鈥� like public speaking, team building and problem solving.鈥�

2: Creating Credible Connections

Professor of Multimedia Communications Lisa Carponelli has a reputation for keeping it real with her students. Coming to 黑料社 in 2008 after gaining prominence as a television news anchor, she has a passion for preparing students to become authentic and creative video story tellers.

Her students learn by doing, most frequently leveraging the simple recording capabilities available on their smart phones.

鈥淚 usually have students out filming a bit during class time, and then our classroom becomes a large editing suite, where everyone is at a desktop with headphones editing their footage. There鈥檚 a lot of collaboration and creative ideas zipping around the room 鈥� it鈥檚 a blast.鈥�

Carponelli鈥檚 students corroborate her claims.

鈥淪he offers lots of hands-on help and in-class activities to make certain we completely understand what we鈥檙e learning,鈥� said Aaron Wilkins 鈥�25. 鈥淪he teaches us to always revise our work to make it better and better until we reach perfection.鈥�

鈥淧rofessor Carponelli relates everything we do in class to real life outside of college,鈥� said Maddie Hays 鈥�25. 鈥淭his makes it easy for her to push us toward our goals because we are able to take the skills we are learning and use them outside the classroom setting.鈥�

One of Carponelli鈥檚 mentees, Sophie Reese 鈥�23, is a news producer for WHO-TV in Des Moines. She says Carponelli put her on the right path from the get-go, creating an ideal environment for learning from day one.

鈥淭he energy she brought to the classroom was unlike any other professor I had,鈥� said Reese. 鈥淪he was kind, yet tough when she needed to be 鈥� she wasn鈥檛 afraid to call it how it is, which I admire. From Comm 101 to my senior capstone, she was a big part in preparing me for the real world.鈥�

And, as fate would have it, Reese and Carponelli are now on the same team at WHO-TV. While Carponelli continues to teach at 黑料社, she is returning to life on-air as a part-time weekend news anchor at WHO-TV.

鈥淚t鈥檚 pretty incredible to realize that my former students will now be my colleagues,鈥� said Carponelli. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 get any better than that.鈥�

3: Pushing to Peak Performance

Cal Busby 鈥�09 is the picture of positivity and possibility thinking. 黑料社鈥檚 former athletic trainer, now assistant professor of Sport Science and Health Education, is well known for his student-centered commitment and always sunny disposition. He loves what he鈥檚 doing, and it shows.

鈥淚鈥檓 essentially the students鈥� cheer section,鈥� said Busby. 鈥淚 help them find new paths when things get tough and celebrate successes with them as they go through college.鈥�

Maddie Jansen 鈥�22 is a perfect case in point. When she wanted to change majors, Busby teamed with Jansen鈥檚 other adviser, Professor of Biology and Environmental Science Clint Meyer, to develop a plan. It worked out beautifully as Jansen realized her dream grad school placement at the University of Iowa, where she is pursuing a doctorate in physical therapy.

鈥淐al saw what I wanted to achieve, and he helped me reach it,鈥� said Jansen. 鈥淗e consistently encouraged me to chase after what I wanted and discouraged me from selling myself short.鈥�

The story is similar for Maxie Saceda-Hurt 鈥�22. Busby went all out to help Saceda-Hurt prepare for graduate school success. Today, she is pursuing her master鈥檚 degree in athletic training at the University of Northern Iowa.

鈥淗e really takes the time to get to know his students,鈥� said Saceda- Hurt. 鈥淎fter having him for four years, it was easy for him to help plan my future and I trusted him to do so. He believes in students more than they believe in themselves and sees their potential.鈥�

Busby is quick to emphasize that the great results are part of a strong team effort. In addition to students benefitting from the rich diversity of faculty expertise and experience, they also gain the kind of hands-on, practical experience they need to go most anywhere.

鈥淢y colleagues and I have all worked in the field, so we can share those experiences,鈥� said Busby. 鈥淢ost importantly, though, I think we do a good job of exposing students to a variety of career options and helping them make connections with professionals in the field, especially our 黑料社 alumni.鈥�

4: Extra Curricular Engagement

Involvement is the name of the game at 黑料社. Yes, athletics are a big part of it, with 60 percent of students competing in one or more of the College鈥檚 25 varsity sports. But, as the two students profiled here illustrate, there are many other outstanding cocurricular opportunities to pursue that also enhance the student experience and provide vital life skills.

Always All In

Graduating from a small-town Iowa high school boasting a class size of 32, Treye Teske 鈥�24 says he 鈥渇ell in love with the small community vibe鈥� at 黑料社. Having also visited some much larger universities in Iowa during his college search, he felt much more at home at 黑料社.

鈥淚t鈥檚 one community here 鈥� it really is. It鈥檚 this idea that anyone can be part of anything, and everyone works together to get you as involved as you want to be.鈥�

The former basketball player turned varsity volleyballer serves as Senior Class president and president of his SAE fraternity, while being actively engaged in many other student clubs and organizations.

鈥淚 have always given a 100 percent to everything I鈥檝e been involved in at 黑料社,鈥� said Teske. 鈥淚t鈥檚 helped me discover different aspects about myself and other people. Learning about leadership, team building, and working as a community is really big for me鈥� especially as I prepare for a career in law enforcement.鈥�

His recent internship with the Johnston Police Department is among the many 黑料社 experiences that have positioned him to realize his aspirations.

鈥淗ow close we are to Des Moines and all the connections we have there has really helped me propel and get my foot in the door in many different areas. Being part of my fraternity has helped me to grow, too. I think 黑料社 does an amazing job preparing you for your future.鈥�

Doing Everything, Everywhere

Culvers Fellow and philosophy and Spanish double major Trenity Rosenberg 鈥�23 has experienced life to the fullest at 黑料社.

Student clubs and organizations like symphonic band and Latinos Unidos? Check. Internship with the Latino Political Network? Check. Study abroad in Spain? Check. Collaborative contributor to wastewater treatment research project resulting in a paper presentation at the 19th International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic, and Social Sustainability? Check!

Has it all been worth it? Absolutely.

鈥淏y being active, I鈥檝e gotten to know a lot of people,鈥� said Rosenberg. 鈥淚 especially like being in Latinos Unidos 鈥� to be part of my community and helping to educate the 黑料社 community on important topics. 黑料社 has made me a very well-rounded student.鈥� Rosenberg hopes to earn a Ph.D. in philosophy and become a college professor.

5: Research Rewards

The benefits of completing a long-term project during college are well documented 鈥� especially as they relate to critical thinking, communication, and collaboration. At 黑料社, such opportunities abound in rich variety, including an array of student-faculty research. And students are taking full advantage.

Gaining Real Artificial Intelligence

Each spring, more than 100 students showcase their work at 黑料社鈥檚 Research & Creativity Symposium. Their presentations feature a wide range of academic disciplines and co-curricular endeavors 鈥� Highlighting work completed over a semester, or longer, time frame.

At the 2023 symposium, one team of six students presented 鈥淩age Against the Machine: ChatGPT鈥檚 War on Higher Education.鈥� Formation of the team and subject matter resulted from an organic, open process empowering students to conceive and create their own project in a class taught by Professor of Management Mark Green.

鈥淚 enjoyed the free flow of it,鈥� said Kegan Trebilcock 鈥�26, a member of the ChatGPT research team. 鈥淧rofessor Green literally just tossed us into it 鈥� we weren鈥檛 even in groups for the first month. The whole class just researched topics of interest and then as our ideas came together, we just figured out [our team] and what to do.鈥�

The ChatGPT research team featured a dynamic mix of first years to seniors, representing majors and minors from accounting, business management, marketing and political science. Over the course of the semester, the group developed a strong chemistry for efficiently and effectively tackling the project.

鈥淎 lot of it was just figuring out workload management,鈥� said Trebilcock. 鈥淲hen you have a group like ours, everyone is going to be capable of different things. We just needed to organize in a way that got the right people to the right position to make it work.鈥�

鈥淚 think a lot of confidence came with that process and how we broke it all down,鈥� said group member Eldred Boria 鈥�25. 鈥淲e all had our roles. Then we just worked as a group to combine everything and put it all together.鈥�

Professor Green says semester-long project endeavors like the one completed by the ChatGPT team are invaluable in helping students connect course work with what occurs in an actual business setting. As they move through their projects, Green sees remarkable growth in his students.

鈥淭hey experience first-hand the classic stages of team development that they learn in various management courses. At the end of the day, everyone brings something unique to the table and the result is a 鈥榳in-win鈥� all the way around.鈥�

鈥淚 felt like the project was beneficial as a whole,鈥� said Dylan Holland 鈥�25. 鈥淲orking in groups on long-term projects is something we鈥檙e all going to experience in our careers. So this is definitely going to help us in the future.鈥�

6. Internships Open Doors

Each year, hundreds of 黑料社 students gain internship experience that often leads directly to exciting career opportunities, frequently where they interned. Meet three students who are using their internships to illuminate and strengthen their career prospects.

Changing Game Plans

For Elise Boulton 鈥�24, Plan A was to find a small college where she could play basketball. But she remembers her high school coach counseling her to pick a college where if she quit or got injured, she would want to stay there. His advice proved to be prophetically wise.

鈥淪ure enough, I did get injured,鈥� said Boulton. 鈥淚 had knee surgery this past summer and I鈥檒l have another knee surgery in December, so I鈥檓 done playing basketball. But I wanted to stay here, obviously, so I know I made the right choice going to 黑料社.鈥�

Her injury setback has not benched her active pursuit of a career in sports administration. To the contrary, she has had two internships focused on that goal. Her first was with the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union in the summer of 2022, following her first year at 黑料社.

Boulton started out doing social media content creation and assisting with the Union鈥檚 spring and summer championships. Her performance earned additional playing time. She went back to work there part-time during her sophomore year and returned yet again for May Term last spring, when she really picked up her game.

鈥淚 was a secondary administrator for tennis, so I did everything,鈥� said Boulton. 鈥淚 got to run my own state championship site 鈥� doing the bracketing, dealing with concessions, ticketing, and merchandising. It was super cool, and I loved all of it.鈥�

This year, she鈥檚 interning with the athletic director at Norwalk High School, assisting with high school and middle school fall sports. The sum of her internship experiences has helped sharpen her focus.

鈥淚 had no idea which niche of sports administration I wanted to pursue initially. Now I know that I love event management and operations. That鈥檚 been the biggest take away.鈥�

Next semester, Boulton will gain more experience working in 黑料社鈥檚 athletic department, before graduating next spring 鈥� a full year early. From there, she expects to put the full-court press on bigger and better opportunities. Ultimately, she covets securing a position with either the NCAA, NAIA, or Girls鈥� Athletic Union.

Patrolling His Future

Elijah Keopuhiwa-Carvalho 鈥�25 has always had his eyes on a career in law enforcement. He had no idea just how far he would have to go to pursue that dream. Today, he finds himself five time zones away from his Hawaiian home to study criminal justice at 黑料社.

What a journey it has been. He initially explored West Coast schools close to home, but quickly determined all those options were far too expensive. So, he extended his search across the mainland looking at all kinds of possibilities before striking gold (and red).

鈥満诹仙� was just one of the recommendations that popped up on my college application website,鈥� said Keopuhiwa-Carvalho. 鈥淚 really wanted to be a criminal justice major, and 黑料社 was the number one criminal justice program out of the 19 schools I applied to.鈥�

Keopuhiwa-Carvalho says he absolutely made the right choice, speaking highly of Associate Professor of Criminal Justice Denise Leifker and the mentoring she has provided during his time here. He鈥檚 ecstatic about landing an internship with the Indianola Police Department (IPD) this fall as a junior 鈥� securing the one spot they had available.

He primarily does ride-along shifts with patrolling officers, giving him an insider鈥檚 view of their day-to-day encounters and responsibilities. He鈥檚 also getting the chance to shadow the school resource officer for Indianola Schools to get a glimpse of how he interacts with students.

The experiences are helping him make important connections between what he is learning in the classroom and the realities of working in law enforcement.

鈥淭hree years into my major, I know the basics of how laws work and are enforced,鈥� said Keophuhiwa-Carvalho. 鈥淣ow those things are beginning to show up in my internship. Whether it鈥檚 simply seeing how officers communicate with dispatch or recognizing signs of someone who is high on drugs, as I learned in class instruction, things are coming together.鈥�

Combining his internship insights with other in-the-field experiences, such as his May Term class that featured visits to three different correctional facilities, Keopuhiwa-Carvalho says he has reinforced confidence in his professional plans.

鈥淕oing into this, I was hesitant about whether I would actually like it. But, I鈥檝e had a blast, and this is looking like the career path I wanted since I was four years old.鈥� Keopuhiwa-Carvalho says he is considering another internship before seeking a police officer position upon graduation in May 2025.

Legal Matters

Kylie Banouvong 鈥�24 spends a lot of time in arguments. When she鈥檚 not competing with 黑料社鈥檚 national champion speech and debate team, she鈥檚 frequently listening to criminal hearings as part of her internship at the Polk County Attorney鈥檚 Office.

The aspiring attorney is getting an insider鈥檚 look at law while engaging in a variety of legal tasks. In addition to taking in criminal hearings, Banouvong spends much of her time reviewing citizen complaint sheets or listening to Victim-Offender Dialogue (VOD) requests or interactions. Her assignments are often self-directed, necessitating pro-active independent initiative.

鈥淚 have a lot of free range to do things,鈥� said Banouvong. 鈥淭hey [Polk County attorneys] want you to develop your own skills to figure out how to solve problems. For example, on a citizen complaint sheet I check to see if charges can be filed based on Iowa codes. Doing it all on my own is super helpful as I become a better critical thinker and learn to focus on the little details.鈥�

The internship is helping Banouvong excel more in her major course work 鈥� and vice versa. Her ability to connect the dots is accelerating week by week. Along the way, she is becoming much more self-assured.

鈥淚鈥檓 on the shy side. But now I鈥檓 a lot more confident in the classroom because I know better what I鈥檓 talking about. Then I鈥檓 able to go back to my internship and utilize what I鈥檓 learning in class.鈥�

While her sights are still set on law school, she is considering the possibility of taking a gap year after graduation next spring. Her supervising attorneys at Polk County have reassured her she will be more than ready whenever she decides to go to grad school.

鈥淭hey told me it鈥檚 good that I鈥檓 getting this experience, especially at a big county like Polk. What I鈥檓 doing is so much better than just going straight into law school. It鈥檚 going to make my transition so much smoother.鈥�