INBA celebrates 2024 college scholarship winners

2 hours ago

The 2024 INBA Scholarship recipients are (top row, from left) Harrison Belsanti and Olivia Bennett from Eastern Illinois University, (bottom row, from left) Maggee Bleyer from Illinois State University, Lauren Brennecke from Webster University, and Drew Coffey from EIU.

The Illinois News Broadcasters Association is proud to announce its 2024 college scholarship recipients. The students will receive their awards on Saturday, April 20, during the INBA Spring Convention in Rock Island.

The INBA has been supporting college students pursuing degrees in broadcast journalism since 1963. During that time, including the $13,000 in awards being handed out this year, the INBA has awarded about 213 scholarships worth nearly $202,000.

Here are this year’s winners:

Harrison Belsanti accepts an INBA scholarship from INBA President Rachel Lippmann.

HARRISON BELSANTI of Highland Park is a broadcast journalism major at Eastern Illinois University, graduating in just a few weeks. He has worked at WEIU-TV, the campus’ PBS affiliate, as a multimedia journalist, assistant producer and many other positions since January 2022. He’s also a repeat winner, having taken home an INBA scholarship at last spring’s convention. After graduation, Harrison will begin work as a multiskilled journalist at WQAD-TV, the ABC affiliate in the Quad Cities.

Harrison is being awarded the INBA’s Fred “Fritz” Sorenson Scholarship. Sorenson was a longtime reporter and anchor for WKRS radio in Waukegan and WCIA-TV in Champaign.

Olivia Bennett, left, stands with the late Molly Hall’s husband, John Buehner, after Bennett received the INBA Molly Hall Scholarship on April 20, 2024, in Rock Island.

OLIVIA BENNETT is a freshman at Eastern Illinois University majoring in broadcast journalism and minoring in criminology. She works as a general assignment reporter and anchor for WEIU-TV and as a radio personality for WEIU Hit Mix 88.9 FM. Olivia is the first-ever recipient of the INBA Molly Hall Scholarship. Friends and family of Molly donated funds to establish this award after she passed away a year ago. Molly was an EIU graduate who spent 14 years in broadcast journalism starting at WTAX radio in Springfield, and then working as a reporter, anchor and Statehouse Capitol Bureau Chief for WCIA-TV. She went on to become executive director of the Energy Education Council.

MAGGEE BLEYER from Mount Carmel is completing her junior year as a journalism major at Illinois State University. She is heavily involved in student media, including being an assignment editor, anchor, producer and reporter at TV-10; a DJ at WZND; and a news and feature reporter and editorial board member for the Vidette. She was recently named the Vidette’s editor-in-chief for the upcoming year. Maggee also was an intern and digital media reporter last spring and summer for WEHT-WTVW in Evansville, Indiana. She also worked in student media extensively while she attended Wabash Valley College in Mount Carmel during her freshman and sophomore years.

Maggee is being awarded the INBA Mary McAndrew Scholarship. Mary was a longtime journalist who spent 18 years with NBC News and also worked for the Associated Press and United Press International in New York and WBBM radio, WGCI radio and USA Today in Chicago.

LAUREN BRENNECKE of O’Fallon, Missouri, is a media studies major who will graduate next month from Webster University near St. Louis. She is currently a newsroom intern for St. Louis Public Radio, and she recently signed on to work there full time for an additional six months. Lauren also has worked for the University Podcast Network, editing and writing shows.

Lauren is being awarded the INBA Ed Brown Scholarship. Ed was a professor at Southern Illinois University Carbondale and was a longtime executive secretary for the INBA.

DREW COFFEY of Mattoon is graduating in May from Eastern Illinois University with a degree in television and video production. He has worked at WEIU-TV for three years in a variety of roles, including reporter, anchor, writer, videographer, editor, studio camera operator, and graphics operator. He also works at Eastern’s on-campus newspaper, The Daily Eastern News. Last summer, he interned at WCIA-TV in Champaign.

Drew is being awarded the INBA Larry Wilson Scholarship. Larry was a longtime INBA member who served as news director of WSMI in Litchfield in the 1970s and ‘80s. He was an organizer and longtime supporter of the former INBA Road Shows and was a big advocate for involving students in INBA activities.

Thank you to the INBA Scholarship Selection Committee, which interviewed scholarship finalists and selected the winners. They are:

Devin Brooks, reporter/anchor, WQAD-TV, Quad Cities, a multi-time INBA scholarship winner himself.

Ryan Burrow, news director, WGN Radio, Chicago

Rachel Lippmann, justice reporter, St. Louis Public Radio

Emily Manley, the Missouri capitol bureau reporter for Nexstar

The INBA Scholarship program is supported through the INBA Foundation, which would welcome your help to continue supporting college broadcasting students. If you’re interested in making a gift to support that effort, make an online donation now.

Andrew Tanielian

Freelance Video Journalist

INBA taught me how to network in a meaningful way. The scholarship process taught me how to endure a hard job interview and thrive.

Mike Miletich

Broadcast journalist, Springfield

Joining the INBA was one of my best life decisions. I met some of the best broadcast journalists while I was still a college student. Plus, I ended up getting a job through the connections I made!

Michelle Eccles McLaughlin

Public Relations Account Manager; Horace Mann Insurance

INBA is an organization that really caters to continuing education for professionals. It offers a relatively inexpensive way to learn new things, reinforce best practices and network.

Nora Baldner

Professor; Quincy University

The support INBA gives to student journalists is vitally important as we all discover how technology is changing news dissemination, INBA monitors and actively encourages truth, transparency and accountability from students and their universities.

Bob Roberts

Retired, WBBM-AM, Chicago

INBA is as much about friendship and as it is about achieving common goals. It provides two things individual newsrooms cannot: in-service training, and the ability to speak out on issues affecting the profession. But most of all, it brings newspeople together.

Jeff Bossert

Morning Edition Host; WVTF, Roanoke, Virginia

When I was working in radio for the first time, I had no idea whether I could truly handle the demands. But INBA made me curious and want to improve. Even now, when I’ve maybe worked a lot of hours or planned some stories that didn’t come together for one reason or another, what I learn from an INBA conference gets me re-invigorated about the business.

Jennifer Fuller

Associate Director for News and Public Affairs, WSIU

INBA is not only a great networking tool, it also provides advocacy and support for journalists in an ever-changing world.

Brian O'Keefe

News Director (Retired), WDCB radio, Glen Ellyn

One of the greatest benefits for me has been getting to see and know other parts of the state. I’m not from Illinois and traveling to spring and fall conventions over the years has transformed dots on a map to memories of places that enhance my story telling process.

Molly Jirasek

News Nation, WGN America Chicago

One of my top goals in my career was to get to Chicago. Thanks to INBA I met Margaret Larkin. She remembered our great conversations about Chicago and first alerted me to a job opening in the city I might be interested in. Lo and behold, I got that job! INBA helped me reach my dream.

Aaron Eades

Producer at Spectrum News 13, Orlando, FL; Former Morning Anchor at WCIA-TV, Champaign

As a student, it's often difficult to picture what working in the real world will be like. For me, the INBA bridged that gap by giving me the chance to talk to professionals who used to be in the same shoes I'm in now.

Alexis McAdams

Fox News National Correspondent

INBA played a huge part in preparing me for my broadcasting career. The INBA conventions connect students with on-air talent and news directors who give feedback on now to improve your work. Through relationships I made at those conventions, I was able to obtain my first on air reporting job.

Ryan Denham

Digital Content Director, WGLT (Normal)

I recently attended my first INBA conference—and it won’t be my last. The combination of professional and student journalists learning together is electric. Everyone learns from each other and walks away with new friends (and LinkedIn connections). I know I did.