UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Six accomplished and involved seniors will cap off their Penn State careers by representing the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications as student marshals during commencement exercises May 4 in the Bryce Jordan Center.
The group includes an overall marshal and a representative from each of the Bellisario College’s five majors.
Overall: Alison Kuznitz
Kuznitz, a Schreyer Honors Scholar and one of 10 inaugural Bellisario College Fellows, will graduate with degrees in journalism and marketing.
She was among eight students from across the country selected to compete in the individual national championship of the William Randolph Hearst Foundation’s Journalism Awards Program in 2018, where she placed third. She also is a recipient this year of Penn State’s John W. Oswald Award for Journalism, Speech and Mass Media.
Kuznitz’s journalism experience includes serving as a news/editorial intern with The Hartford Courant, an editor and reporter for The Daily Collegian, and a contributor for the Centre Daily Times. She also completed internships with the Hearst Connecticut Media Group and Penn State Undergraduate Education.
On campus, Kuznitz gained broadcast journalism experience with CommRadio and PSN News, where she was executive producer.
Following graduation, Kuznitz will serve as a metro reporting intern at The Boston Globe.
Advertising/Public Relations: Elise Bingaman
Bingaman recently was recognized by PRWeek as one of five national finalists for the Outstanding Student Award. She also was a two-time recipient of the Evan Pugh Scholar Award, given to juniors and seniors in the top half of 1 percent of their respective class.
Bingaman’s experience includes a video promotions internship with Atlantic Records, a marketing internship with the Penn State Golf Course Turfgrass Management Program, a social media/event planning internship with the Downtown State College Improvement District, and serving as a character attendant through the Disney College Program.
On campus, she was PR chair for the Penn State Lyrical Line Dance Co., an OPPerations committee member for THON, an event planning committee member for Penn State’s chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America, and part of the events staff for Valley Magazine.
Film-Video: Kathryn Mellett
Mellett also is graduating with a degree in women’s studies.
During her time at Penn State, Mellett completed an internship with the Penn State Blue Band, serving as a videographer and editor since 2016. In a part-time role with Penn State Athletics, she assisted with the production of live events, which included working with the in-house videoboards and multicamera live productions for BTN.com and GoPSUsports.com. She also completed an internship with the media team for the Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps.
In addition, Mellett worked on several films as a student, and, in 2019, she traveled to Poland over spring break as part of an advanced documentary filmmaking class.
Journalism: Kennedey Bell
Bell is a recipient of the Don Davis Ethics Award, the Presidential Service Award, and a Bunton-Waller Scholarship.
While at Penn State, Bell was an on-air reporter for “Centre County Report,” an international programming intern with C-SPAN, a production assistant with Penn State Athletics, a broadcast engineer intern and production intern with WPSU, and a radio host with The Lion 90.7 FM.
She also was a course mentor for COMM 197 Branding Yourself, co-founder and producer for Shades of State, treasurer for the Ambitions Performance Company, and a member of the Presidential Leadership Academy.
Media Studies: Bennett Nesley
Nesley was a member of the inaugural class of Bellisario College Fellows.
Nesley’s on-campus experiences included serving as an intern for Penn State’s Student Engagement Network, a student representative for the Bellisario College’s Accepted Students Program, and an orientation leader for Penn State’s Office for Student Orientation and Transition Programs.
Nesley also was an executive producer and senior staff member with PSN-TV, part of the production crew for the live THON webcast, a facilitator for the Lionquest Leadership Retreat, and a choreographer and THON chair for the Penn State Singing Lions. In addition, Nesley was a THON dancer in 2019.
Telecommunications: Tess Kearns
Kearns also graduates with a certificate from the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism.
While at Penn State, Kearns completed an editing and electronic news gathering internship with Penn State Athletics, a digital content internship with SiriusXM, a production internship with Sweda Advertising, and a summer internship with Shelly Lyons Communications.
On campus, she was a member of CommRadio and the Association for Women in Sports Media. Kearns also was a student-athlete with Penn State Cross Country/Track and Field team and served as the THON Chair for the Penn State Student-Athlete Advisory Board.
In addition, she was a Hayden Family Trustee Scholar and a Bunton-Waller Scholar.