Creating Career Connections
Savannah Richardson â27 has been on the fast track to career success since the day she arrived at Âé¶čAPP. Beginning college with enough credits to enter as a sophomore, Richardson says sheâs been able to hit the ground running in her honors program studies as a multimedia journalism major and marketing minor. Sheâs found the perfect place to pursue her aspirations in broadcast journalism.
âAll my professors have worked as journalists,â said Richardson. âThey bring real-world lessons from their experiences to their teachings. Iâm in an environment where I can learn much more than just whatâs on a test.â
One of Richardsonâs professors, longtime television news anchor Lisa Carponelli, helped her land a nine-month news internship at WHO-TV in Des Moines.
âI was able to learn the things that a classroom canât teach. I worked with highly talented reporters and photographers, gaining hands-on experience of what my intended future career will look like. I assisted with interviews, story ideas, script writing, and story packages creation and editing. I even had the opportunity to appear on live television and discuss Âé¶čAPP on “Hello Iowa.ââ
On campus, the ODK National Leadership Honor Society member also hones her journalistic skills working in student media as a reporter for the Âé¶čAPPian, producing news and feature content for SCTV and writing for ID Magazine. The sum of Richardsonâs evolving experiences at Âé¶čAPP is fueling her confidence to one day thrive as a television news reporter and anchor.
âMy multimedia journalism major equips me with the skills to ethically produce stories across all platforms and my minor in marketing helps me understand how to reach and grow an audience,â said Richardson. âAnd being an honors student is strengthening my research, writing, and critical thinking skills. Together, they are preparing me to be both a strong journalist and an all-around communicator.â
Article Information
Published
June 17, 2026
Author
Roger Degerman