The UNI Sesquicentennial Celebration was featured in an hour-long episode of “Talk of Iowa” on Monday, Feb. 16. Hosted by Charity Nebbe, the statewide program highlights UNI’s 150-year history and the people, programs and service that continue to shape the university today.

The episode can be heard online on the Iowa Public Radio website or by finding “Talk of Iowa” on your favorite podcast platform.

Guests in the conversation include UNI archivist and special collections coordinator Tessa Wakefield, who shared stories from the university’s earliest days, tracing its evolution into the institution it is today. She also offered a glimpse into some of the unique treasures preserved in the university archives.

Jess Cruz, exhibits coordinator and distinctive collections educator, described the work behind the sesquicentennial exhibits, including collaboration with community partners and a design firm to help shape the story the university wanted to tell. The exhibits highlight student involvement through the decades and incorporate stories gathered from alumni. Cruz also shared how students selected the university’s mascot and even created the first mascot uniform.

Assistant professor of gerontology Melinda Heinz, a regular guest on the program, spoke about a class project that paired current UNI students with alumni from past generations. Students interviewed the alumni, then worked with university archives to locate photos and images from their time on campus.

In one case, a former student who had been deeply involved in campus life – particularly in Campbell Hall – was reunited with a decades-old photo she may not have seen since her college days. Students compiled photo books for their alumni partners. “It was a fun surprise and thank you,” Heinz said.

Julianne Gassman, McElroy Professor and director of community engagement, discussed the campuswide Day of Service and the semester-long initiative “Spring Into Service: Cats Who Care.” Nearly 70 activities are planned, with 1,200 individual volunteer opportunities available.

“Service and giving is so embedded in who we are,” Gassman said, noting that students across disciplines are contributing. A geography class, for example, is mapping delivery routes for 150 beds to families in need. “We have a class for that!”

The program also previewed this week’s “75 Years of Jazz” celebration, highlighting UNI’s jazz program — one of the oldest university jazz programs in the nation, dating back to 1951. Mike Conrad, associate professor of jazz studies and music education and director of Jazz Band Two, described the culture of creativity fostered within the program.

“I would say one of the things that’s kind of special about our program at UNI is the way that we make space for students to do their thing and to be creative,” Conrad said.

A 2011 UNI graduate himself, Conrad added, “after going to graduate school and seeing how other programs were structured, that’s when I came to realize just how special that piece of it was. It’s not in every jazz program that if you write something and bring it to the director, they’re going to make sure it gets played. Over many years that culture has been built at UNI.”