Alumni Stories & News

Jesús Lizárraga Estrada

UNI’s director of Student Success & Retention is paying it forward for students

Read about Jesús Lizárraga Estrada’s journey from being a first-generation college student to helping students succeed while earning his doctorate.
Man playing carillon in 1958

Campanile renovations are an opportunity to revisit history

Dive into Rod Library’s Special Collections and University Archives, which consist of more than 100,000 documents, photographs, catalogs, news articles, yearbooks and more.
Trevor Penning

UNI alum Trevor Penning preps for second season with New Orleans Saints

Follow our exclusive journey beginning from Trevor's hometown to the University of Northern Iowa, to becoming a first-round draft pick for the New Orleans Saints.
Jim and Bonnie Raasch

UNI-Dome renovation receives $250,000 boost from Cedar Rapids couple

The UNI-Dome gift adds to the Raaschs' enduring philanthropic giving across many areas of the university including scholarships for student-athletes in track and field, cross country, volleyball, women's basketball and football, as well as an endowed scholarship for education majors.
Headshot of Dr. Anthony Miller

History graduate reveals research on Iowa’s Chinese immigrant history

On August 25th, 2022, people tuned into a dynamic virtual lecture about the history of Iowa’s Chinese immigration for the State Historical Society of Iowa’s online learning series. The speaker was UNI alum, Dr. Anthony Miller.

The Steele Report

UNI details Return of the Bells on KWWL's The Steele Report

UNI's Hillery Oberle and Leslie Prideaux joined Ron Steele on The Steele Report to talk about the upcoming celebration, which begins May 1.
Josh Wilson in front of Capitol Hill

UNI alum builds political career that spans both sides of the aisle

Josh Wilson knew he wanted to do two things after graduating from high school: he wanted to be involved in politics, and he wanted to go to UNI.  
Isaac Campbell pasting on picture of Paul Rusesabagina onto wall

Where art meets advocacy: UNI alum Isaac Campbell spotlights American detainees

Isaac Campbell is the man behind the Bring Our Families Home mural in Washington D.C., which advocates for American hostages and wrongful detainees.
Ryan Penning

How UNI helped Ryan Penning bring communities together

Before starting at UNI, Ryan Penning had never heard of a parks and recreation department. Now he directs one in West Des Moines.
UNI students wearing Live Purple Give Gold shirts posing with TK and TC with thank you signs

Thanks for making #LivePurpleGiveGold an incredible success!

Thanks to all of your incredible support, you made #LivePurpleGiveGold 2023 better than ever!