Career Lunches

The Department of Communication hosts a series of career lunches for undergraduate and graduate students. Alumni and friends visit campus and talk to small groups of students about jobs and job search strategies. Students recently had the opportunity to meet crisis communication specialists, journalists, PR professionals, and public officials. They benefit greatly from these events and quite often these encounters lead to continued mentoring beyond the lunch. The lunches are paid for by private donations from alumni and friends of the Department.

The Department is grateful to the lunch mentors and their dedication to our students.

…our visitors and some highlights from the lunches:

Saadia Van Winkle

Andre Billeaudeaux

Anna Fahey

• Saadia Van Winkle, ’03
  News reporter and anchor for CTV, a cable station in the D.C. suburbs
• Elizabeth Becker, ’69 Far Eastern
  Former NY Times reporter
• Katya Yefimova, ’08
  Reporter for The Everett Herald
• Andre Billeaudeaux, ’05
  Director of Auxiliary for the 13th Coast Guard District
• Anna Fahey, ’06
  Communication Strategist for Sightline Institute
• Sally Clark, '90, '04
  Seattle City Council member

Lucas Mack, '04
4th Avenue co-founder
"Thank you so much for setting this mentor lunch up, it was one of the best I've been to. Lucas was incredibly dynamic, up-beat and encouraging. He offered great advice for success in college and after. He is one of the few professionals who genuinely wants to help young people enter the work force. It was also great to speak to an alumnus of UW and to hear his positivity about his UW education."
—Kelsey Gray

Kellie Cheadle, '96
KING-TV executive producer
"I thought it was refreshing to hear Kellie speak so candidly about her career and career path. Her tips on what we should be learning to be useful in the industry as well as how to look good in an internship were very helpful. The best part about the whole talk was how open Kellie was to our questions and how she genuinely wanted to hear from us and answer any questions after the meeting! It was reassuring to know that she was willing to help us beyond the allotted hour and a half for lunch."
—Megan Gagnon

Jim Caple

Jim Caple, '86
ESPN.com senior writer
"Thank you for the opportunity to attend this luncheon with ESPN.com sports writer Jim Caple. He provided tremendous insight into entering the field and the necessary steps it takes to follow the path of a future writer. Jim's passion for his job is motivating in itself and has excited me to pursue a future in the same or a similar field of work. I am thankful to the University of Washington and the Communication Department for having experienced this luncheon."
—Nicholas Michael Holmes

Florangela Davila
Freelance radio reporter at KPLU
"This was my first career lunch, and I'm really glad it was with Florangela! She had so much to say about journalism, and the future of journalism and how we as students are the ones that can really broaden the field of journalism, especially through technology. She was just so charming and inspiring! I really enjoyed getting to meet and talk with her, thank you so much for the opportunity."
—Sarah Kane