Creating Career Connections

Savannah Richardson ’27 has been on the fast track to career success since the day she arrived at Simpson. Beginning college with enough credits to enter as a sophomore, Richardson says she’s been able to hit the ground running in her honors program studies as a multimedia journalism major and marketing minor. She’s found the perfect place to pursue her aspirations in broadcast journalism.

“All my professors have worked as journalists,” said Richardson. “They bring real-world lessons from their experiences to their teachings. I’m in an environment where I can learn much more than just what’s on a test.”

One of Richardson’s professors, longtime television news anchor Lisa Carponelli, helped her land a nine-month news internship at WHO-TV in Des Moines.

“I was able to learn the things that a classroom can’t 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 Simpson College on “Hello Iowa.””

On campus, the ODK National Leadership Honor Society member also hones her journalistic skills working in student media as a reporter for the Simpsonian, producing news and feature content for SCTV and writing for ID Magazine. The sum of Richardson’s evolving experiences at Simpson is fueling her confidence to one day thrive as a television news reporter and anchor.

“My 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,” said Richardson. “And 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.”