Alumni Stories & News

Emily Borcherding and Matthew McLellan

UNI teaching alums recognized with 2025 Yager Exemplary Teaching Award

Matthew McLellan and Emily Borcherding have earned recognition for their service to the education field when they recently received the UNI Dr. Robert E. and Phyllis M. Yager Exemplary Teaching Recognition Award.
Bella Markley

Out-of-state student finds home at UNI

As an out-of-state student, Bella Markley has found her passion and her community at the University of Northern Iowa. Find out more about her story!
Marvin Carr graduated from UNI with a bachelor's degree in Social Sciences Teaching.

Meet the 2025 Iowa Military Veteran of the Year, who just started student teaching

Marvin Carr, a 47-year-old non-traditional student at the University of Northern Iowa, walked across the McLeod Center stage in the spring to receive his diploma in Social Sciences Teaching.
Participants in the architecture walking tours gather around Seerley Hall to learn about its history on campus.

UNI students bring campus architecture to life through sesquicentennial walking tours

As part of the University of Northern Iowa’s Sesquicentennial Celebration, UNI history students are guiding architectural walking tours that showcase 150 years of campus.
UNI graduate, Maddie Palmersheim, holds passed inspection certificate on her new location on College Hill.

From classroom to College Hill: UNI marketing graduate finds success in local business

UNI graduate Maddie Palmersheim opens a new bakery location on College Hill, crediting her most impactful experiences to UNI's JPEC and the Entrepreneurship Club.
Sydney and Paige Hollingshead

Double the creativity: UNI sisters teach art education together

Sisters Sydney and Paige Hollingshead share an alma mata, an employer and a profession as art educators.
Student teacher in classroom pointing at world map

Advice for new teachers: 5 tips from seasoned pros

It's normal to be nervous as a first-year teacher. Here’s some of our best advice for new teachers from experienced UNI alumni and teacher education leaders.
Michelle Barnell in her classroom

New UNI teachers ready to enter classrooms for the 2025-26 school year

First-year teachers Benjamin Buseman and Michelle Barnell are readying their classrooms for students. Both teachers graduated from UNI.
The Iowa State Fair Butter Cow.

UNI alum’s Butter Cow headed to the Smithsonian

One UNI family’s artwork — the iconic Iowa State Fair Butter Cow — is going all the way to the Renwick Gallery, Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C. 
Gary Keenan, chainsaw artist at the Iowa State Fair.

Meet UNI alum Gary Keenan, chainsaw artist at the Iowa State Fair

Keenan, a 1979 UNI graduate originally from Grinnell, has been carving wood for more than 25 years. What started as a weekend hobby has turned into a fairtime fixture, with Keenan serving as the lead carver for one of the fair’s most crowd-pleasing attractions.