It’s difficult to get a straight answer out of Sean Whalen. Ask him, for example, what his profile should be about and he’ll respond with a laugh.

Sean Whalen in front of the Nebraska Coliseum.

“Say I love singing opera,” he said. “They won’t know (I don’t) – tell them I do it because it makes me feel good.”

That’s the news-editorial major’s typical attitude and the same one he uses when interacting with fellow students, his teachers and even with the athletes he covers for the Daily Nebraskan sports section, where he has worked for three and a half years.

Press him, though, and a totally different side emerges. Whalen is actually a private person, best evidenced by the fact that his Facebook has no pictures on it, not even the profile, nor does it have any other personal information. No birthday, relationship status or status updates. His last wall post was Aug. 25. It was from his sister, asking him to text her back.

Some people keep their personal lives off the Web from the fear that future employers might see something undesirable. But that’s not why Whalen’s Facebook is so sparce.

“Who cares about (any of the personal stuff)?” Whalen asks. “It’s just ego-boosting. If it’s that important, then the people who really care about you know. It really boils down to people thinking ‘look at me, I exist.’ I know I exist, and I don’t need Mark Zuckerberg or Jack Dorsey’s validation.”

When asked what he wants to do after he graduates in May, Whalen quips that he wants to be a Somali pirate.

It may be a long time before that straight answer ever comes.

Twenty-two-year-old Ross Benes has a lot on his plate. The William H. Thompson and McNair scholar is majoring in new-ed, economics and psychology and is doing research as part of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s UCARE program, which matches faculty and undergraduates in research projects.

As a Thompson scholar, he joins other UNL students who have been awarded the Buffet scholarship. The McNair Scholars program aims to increase underrepresented students in PhD programs.

Ross Benes relaxing at the City Campus Union.

But even though he’s busy, Benes said he still manages to finds time to pursue a rather unusual hobby: dumpster diving. Benes and his friends enjoy searching for treasures in garbage bins.

“A lot of people were moving out of apartment complexes, and we saw some stuff and took it and we kept doing it,” Benes said.

His apartment is brimming with stuff.

“We’ve got TVs, dressers, vacuum cleaners, cables, couches, DVD players and a futon frame,” he said.
Writing also is something he enjoys.

“I like to get my thoughts out there and let them react how they well. And writing is one way to do that.”

He’s interested in a possible career of writing for the web and newspapers, but he also is considering continuing his education in the psychology field.

“I would like to write books and do stand up comedy,” he said. “But what is more likely is I will go to grad school and major in something that I am content with doing.”

An inquisitive little girl wanted to be an actress.  Then she found out it wasn’t her thing.

After trying the theatre with unfulfilling results, Alisha Tesfalem applied her wits to journalism and hasn’t looked back.

“I’m always been really curious so journalism was the next best thing to entertainment,” she said.

Tesfalem forsees broadcasting or activism in her future

A senior with majors in broadcasting and sociology, social justice drives Tesfalem.  Her passion for equality is what inspired her to embrace sociology.

“Everyone should major in sociology,” she said.  “It talks about life.  It makes you understand people and why the world is the way it is.  It helps you understand systematic oppression.”

Even if Tesfalem doesn’t directly use her sociology major to obtain a job, she believes sociology will always be valuable to her.

“With sociology you cannot be content with not doing anything.  My [sociology] degree will be a great asset in what I’d talk about in my job.  It will do me well, and I will continue to use it in how I think.”

Although Tesfalem is undecided about life after college, part of her would like to pursue broadcasting and eventually become a host.  The other part wants to be an international activist and help the world.  Like most kids her age, there remains much uncertainty.

But there’s one thing she’s sure about, she said.

“I don’t want to go back to school.”

Nothing terrifies Rosemary Vestal quite so much as the calendar. Each time she looks at it, a sense of dread creeps over her as May 5 approaches, the day she truly leaves childhood and enters the much-maligned “real world.”

Rosemary Vestal, a journalism major, is having a hard time deciding what to do after she graduates in May.

Her issue: She really has no idea what she will be doing two months after graduation, much less the rest of her life. While Vestal knows this is a common issue among soon-to-be college grads, she’s no less determined.

“If you hear of any opportunities, I’m open to suggestions,” Vestal said. “I don’t know what I’m destined for, but I know it’s something great.”

Her “something great” appears, at the moment, to exist in the world of television production. The Denver native got a taste of production from August through November when participating in a student-run television station via the Star City News course. Her production experiences under Professor Trina Creighton have given her something to shoot for.

“I like knowing when things are supposed to happen, and what those things will be,” Vestal said. “Which is exactly what producing is. That’s also why I hate not knowing what will come after May.”

Vestal now realizes that knowing what you want and getting it are two different things entirely. But until her destiny unfolds, the 22-year old plans to have a grand old time.

“I won’t say I’m not worried,” she said. “But I also won’t say I’m not having fun right now.”

How many people can say they saved someone’s life when they were 8 years old?

Paige Dimakos says she was in “the right place, at the right time” when she rescued a toddler who was drowning in a motel swimming pool in 1998 while her family was on vacation. While Dimakos barely remembers the incident, her mother, Laurie, vividly recalls how calmly her daughter pulled the child out of the water.

Paige Dimakos is a senior broadcasting major. This summer she will intern for Fox Sports in Phoenix, Arizona.

Having nerves under pressure seems to be a common theme for Dimakos. She spent 13years competing as a synchronized skater, and her team, the Chicago Jazz, racked up five national championships during that time. For seven of those 13years Dimakos was the team captain.

Now she is pursuing a degree at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and hopes to be a broadcaster in the stressful world of journalism.

When Dimakos isn’t busy at school, she is an active member in her sorority, Alpha Chi Omega, where she was named “sister of the year.” She is also very proud of her Greek heritage, and if you doubt it, she’ll be quick to point that her father’s name is Plato.

Story and Photo by Nicole Konen, NewsNetNebraska.

Who would have thought Aaron Keith’s hobby of selling high school football highlights in his hometown of Beatrice would set him on track to a broadcasting degree? While he mostly sat on the bench during his football career, selling DVD’s of the games for $10 apiece allowed him to build a sort of video portfolio of his work. Four years later, Keith is a senior broadcasting major at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln with an associate degree in theater.

“I love that broadcasting’s a huge mess. It’s kind of fun because everyone’s pushing for the deadline,” he said. “It’s chaos.”

His ultimate career goal is to film and produce NFL games for a network like FOX, but until then he said he’s content playing Madden.

Apart from broadcasting, Keith enjoys music – he may be the only person you ever meet who likes metal just as much as he does show tunes. For two years he rocked out in a death metal band, but some of his favorite music comes from the movie musical “Hedwig and the Angry Inch.” When he’s not watching musicals, he enjoys spending time with friends at the Press Box sports bar.

Story and Photo by Kelly Morris, NewsNetNebraska

Matt Haron dreams of working as a sports reporter. As a senior at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Haron has been working hard to make that dream a reality.

“I’ve enjoyed sports ever since I was young,” Haron said. “And what would be a better job in life than reporting about them (sports)?”

The broadcasting and advertising major from Sioux Falls, S.D. started his interest in sports journalism when he worked production for KELO-TV in high school in his hometown. Since then, he has had a news internship with KOLN-KGIN in Lincoln and a sports internship at KELO-TV in Sioux Falls.

“The internship last summer in Sioux Falls was a great opportunity and gave me real-world experience,” Haron said. “I interviewed many famous athletes and was able to have many of my stories put on-air.”

When Haron isn’t busy with his full class schedule, he likes to watch sports and spend time with friends. He is a member of Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity and will graduate in May.

Story and Photo by Matt Haron, NewsNetNebraska.

UNL news-editorial major Kelly Morris is a Dave Matthews fan.

“I am borderline obsessed with Dave,” Morris said.

The Elkhorn, Neb. native said she dreamed that the musician would one day read her work.

Morris’ dream came true in 2010. She wrote an article on Matthew’s lyrics which was published in “The Odyssey” a student newspaper that reports on the Greek system.

“So when my cousin met him a couple of years ago and read him my article I couldn’t stop smiling for a week,” Morris said.

Morris currently has a paid internship with EnjoyLincoln.net. She manages the website which promotes downtown area events.

When Morris graduates this August she hopes to find a job writing feature stories. Her ultimate goal is to work for Rolling Stone Magazine.

“The Rolling Stone mixes my two favorite things, writing and music.” Morris said, “Right now that’s my idea of a perfect job.”



“So…what are you?”

When people meet Mekita Rivas, this question inevitably sneaks its way into the conversation.

“I typically want to respond with my trademark sassy sarcasm and say something to the effect of, ‘Well, I’m a person,’” Rivas said.

The senior journalism and English major stops herself, though, and feeds the answer she knows the individual is looking for.

“My father is from the Mexican border town of Nuevo Laredo,” she said. “My mother is from Cebu, a province in the Philippines consisting of more than 160 islands.”

And Rivas is their only child, a first-generation American.

Rivas balances two jobs and a full academic schedule. She is an online news and editorial assistant at University Communications. She is also the corporate communications intern at Olsson Associates, a regional engineering firm.

“I definitely like to stay busy,” she said. “When I have free time, ironically enough, I get overwhelmed.”

Rivas is slated to graduate this May, on Cinco de Mayo, which also happens to be her father’s 60th birthday.

“It’s going to be a very meaningful day,” she said. “I think my father will feel his life coming full circle when he sees me walk across that stage.”

Beyond the fifth of May, Rivas hopes to be hired  full-time at Olsson Associates and transfer to one of the firm’s out-of-state offices. Her eyes are set on a warmer climate, like Phoenix, Ariz.

“I’ve lived in Lincoln all my life so I’m ready for a fresh environment,” she said. “If I can go somewhere new, still work for a company I love and have a couple of friends along for the ride, I’m set.”