Meet the Team
2024-2025
News Editor | 2023 – present
Christine Herman
Christine Herman is an independent audio editor and health journalist. She got her start in public radio at Illinois Public Media in 2015 as a founding producer for The 21st show and went on to become a reporter for IPM News, and later, the managing editor of Side Effects Public Media based at WFYI in Indianapolis. Herman serves on the board of the Association of Health Care Journalists, received the 2023 Media Award from Mental Health America and is a 2018-19 Rosalynn Carter Mental Health Journalism Fellow. She got her Ph.D. in chemistry and M.S. in journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
Producer | 2023 – present
Stephanie Mosqueda
Stephanie Mosqueda is a senior journalism student from Chicago, Illinois. She is a reporter and one of the producers responsible for peer-editing stories. Every morning, Mosqueda also produces Illinois Public Media’s 217 Today podcast. Outside of the newsroom, she works as a grader for a journalism course and is the treasurer for The Collective Magazine — an art magazine on campus. After graduation, Mosqueda hopes to pursue a career in public radio.
Producer | 2023 – present
Elissa Eaton
Eaton is a junior journalism student from Naperville, Illinois. She joined Illinois Student Newsroom in 2023, and she focuses on stories about science and student life. Outside of the newsroom, Eaton is the Deputy News Director for WPGU News. She is also the events director of the Alpha Xi Delta sorority and a member of the running club at University of Illinois. Eaton is excited to see where her journalism major will take her after her time at U of I.
Reporter | 2022 – present
Madison Holcomb
Madison Holcomb is a senior journalism major from the small town of Coal City, Illinois. She joined the Illinois Student Newsroom at the start of 2022. She recently started a new role at IPM News as an investigative reporter with its collaboration with the Invisible Institute. Previously, she interned at St. Louis Public Radio and WGN Radio in Chicago, served as news director at the student-run radio station WPGU and wrote as a news writer for The Daily Illini, the university’s independent student newspaper.
Producer | 2024 – present
Adelyn Mui
Adelyn Mui is a sophomore journalism major from Lisle, IL. She joined the Illinois Student Newsroom in 2024. Outside of the newsroom, Mui records and produces WILL-Call for Illinois Public Media. She is also a university tour guide and a member of No Comment, an all-gender a cappella group. Mui is excited about exploring everything that the world of journalism has to offer.
Reporter | 2024 – present
Nathan Gonzalez
Nathan Gonzalez is a sophomore journalism major, and legal studies minor from Lombard, IL. He joined the Illinois Student Newsroom in 2024. Outside of the newsroom, Gonzalez is a Reporter, and Director at UI7 Newsroom for En Vivo, Illini Sports Night, and Good Morning Illini, does marketing for Illinois Student Council and the Student Trustee, and was a news intern for WCIA 3. In his free time, Gonzalez like to do photography and write poetry.
Reporter | 2024 – present
A. Oishii Basu
A. Oishii Basu is a student reporter with Illinois Public Media, and is involved with other on-campus publications such as WPGU 107.1 FM. Her work has been seen in the Daily Illini, Montage Undergraduate Literary Journal and the Collective Magazine. Her work focuses on the eclectic, unpretentious local arts scene of Champaign-Urbana. Hailing from Raleigh, North Carolina, she is a junior studying journalism, minoring in Asian American Studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign.
Reporter | 2024 – present
Brendan Gallian
Brendan Gallian is a sophomore journalism major from Oak Lawn, Illinois. He joined the Illinois Student Newsroom in 2024, focusing on stories about the environment and fine arts. Outside of the newsroom, Brendan covers various sports for the Daily Illini and occasionally appears on WPGU’s Illini Drive. He is also a member of the newly formed Illinois Rubber Baseball League, a long-tortured White Sox fan and a proud Eagle Scout.
Reporter | 2024 – present
Anna Koh
Anna Koh is a junior journalism major from Seoul, South Korea, but spent most of her childhood in Jerusalem, Israel. She joined Illinois Student Newsroom in 2024 and focuses on stories about student life and community. Outside of the newsroom, Koh works as a reporter for UI7 Live. Previously, she has also interned at the Borgen project as a journalist/writer intern, focusing on technology and politics.
Reporter | 2024 – present
Diana Zhang
Diana Zhang is a sophomore majoring in journalism with minor in public relations from Shanghai, China. She joined Illinois Student Newsroom in 2024. Outside of the newsroom, she is a photojournalist for the Daily Illini. In her free time, she enjoys watching films and sleeping. She loves drinking bubble tea.
Reporter | 2025 – present
Brittany Prempin
Brittany Prempin is a PhD candidate in Chemistry who originally hails from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. She joined the student newsroom in 2025 where she focuses her reporting on science. Outside of her PhD studies and the newsroom, Brittany is on the board for the UIUC chapter of the National Organization for the Professional Advancement of Black Chemists and Chemical Engineers and is a Commercialization Analyst at the Office of Technology Management. In her free time she loves to bake, garden, and sew.
Reporter | 2025 – present
Stephanie Orellana
Stephanie Orellana is a senior journalism major from Chicago, IL. She joined the Illinois Student Newsroom in 2025 focusing on local community issues. She is also a feature writer for the Daily Illini covering profiles and businesses of community members. She frequents the gym in her free time and has three adorable cats.
Reporter | 2025 – present
Sam Rink
Sam Rink is a sophomore journalism major from Tolono, IL. They joined the Illinois Student Newsroom in 2025, and they follow stories involving environmental science and LGBTQ+ issues. Outside of the newsroom, Rink is the senior photographer for The Daily Illini and Illio Yearbook, and they are constantly pursuing new projects in all forms of media. Rink is passionate about bringing accessible news to underserved communities.
Reporter | 2025 – present
Adrien Reetz
Adrien Reetz is a sophomore journalism major from Washington, Illinois. He joined the Illinois Student Newsroom in 2025. Outside of the newsroom, he enjoys writing, music, dance, and Dungeons & Dragons. He loves exploring different ways multimedia journalism enhances storytelling.
Reporter | 2025 – present
Kaitlyn Devitt
Kaitlyn Devitt is a junior student in journalism from Lemont, IL. She joined the Illinois Student Newsroom team at the start of 2025. Devitt is also an anchor and reporter for UI7 Newsroom and the Program Director of WPGU 107.1. She has also published articles for the Daily Illini and C-U Citizen Access. When outside of the newsroom, she studies history and communications.
Reporter | 2025 – present
Giuliana Means
Giuliana Means is a freshman journalism major from the Bay Area in California. She joined Illinois Student Newsroom in the spring of 2025. Outside of IPM, she is the Assistant Program Director at WPGU 107.1 and features reporter for the Daily Illini where she is perusing music journalism. In her free time, she can be found at a live music event or reading. Means is excited to see where the journalism world will take her in the future!
Reporter | 2025 – present
Layli Nazarova
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Reporter | 2025 – present
Michael Sweeney
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Student Newsroom alumni
Anulika Ochuba (2024), Farrah Anderson (2024), Nour Longi (2024), Piotr Fedczuk (2023), Jacqueline Barba (2022), Ariyelle Edwards (2022), Sydney Wood (2023), Owen Henderson (2023), Piper Pascarella (2023), Lillie Salas (2023), Mae Antar (2023), Hannah Lonergan (2022), Emily Richie (2022), Miranda Zanca (2022), Carolina Garibay (2022), Eunice Alpasan (2022), Eva Bein (2022), Neshmia Malik (2022), Zainab Qureshi (2022), Emilio Reyes (2022), Gwyn Skiles (2022), Vivian La (2021), Marissa Plescia (2021), Cesar Sanchez (2021), Mona Alrazzaq (2021), Haley Bickelhaupt (2021), Charrice Jones (2021), Sydney Justin Malone (2021), Olivia Vamos (2021), Gavin Good (2020), Tatiana Perry (2020)
Chris Evans | Founder and Executive Producer (2020-2023)