#RaidersStandOut
Success starts at Northwestern. Our grads prove it.
Read about 10 alumni featured in the Classic for leading lives of significance
Meet some of our latest graduates
Alex Yoerger
Veterinary student, Iowa State University
With the help of Northwestern's science professors, Alex is on her way to her dream career as a veterinarian.
Taylor Sun
Assistant director, Joy House
Taylor landed her dream job right after college when she began working at the Joy House, a housing program for women and children escaping domestic violence.
Osiris Ordaz
Counseling and art therapy graduate student, Adler University
Through the encouragement of her professors, Osiris found that her passion for psychology and art can lead to an interesting, interdisciplinary career.
Andrew Currier
Freelance music producer, SoundReserve
Andrew founded SoundReserve, a music production company in Nashville, Tennessee, after graduating from Northwestern. In addition to composing and producing music, he also plays keyboard for a classic rock band that performs onboard Holland America cruise ships.
Brianna Petrauskas
Consultant, Communications Strategy Group
Brianna found her niche through the many “real-world” experiences Northwestern's public relations program offers.
Stephan Sanford
Physical education teacher and coach, Storm Lake Elementary
At Northwestern, Stephan found a connection to youth he didn't know he had. With the help of professors, he became a teacher and coach who shapes the next generation of students and athletes.
Steven Clark
Graduate student, Princeton Seminary
A Christian and a scholar. That’s the label Steven is aiming for, so he’s building on the strong start he got at Northwestern as a divinity student at Princeton Theological Seminary.
Courtney Van Beek
First-grade teacher
As a freshman at Northwestern, Courtney was already spending time in school classrooms as part of her education classes, which helped confirm her desire to become a teacher and coach.
Evan Schuler
Staff accountant, Gronewold, Bell, Kyhnn & Co.
Evan's success on the golf course parlayed itself into a job as an accountant in his hometown.
Kaitlin Hoogeveen
Pediatric dentist and owner of Children’s Dental Centre
An NAIA All-American and Scholar-Athlete in volleyball while at Northwestern, Kaitlin has returned to her hometown and opened its first pediatric dental clinic.
Josh Hornstra
Service and retention consultant, University of Denver
Josh turned his love for sports into a career.
Rachel Kinsinger
Child life specialist, Seattle Children's Hospital
Rachel uses her therapy skills and knowledge of child development to help kids cope with the stress of being hospitalized.
Jonathan Van Zweden
Applications programmer, Interstates Control Systems Inc.
Jonathan employs his computer science skills to help build control systems for a wide variety of industrial facilities, designing and building interfaces for operators to use in their businesses.
Sarah Allen
Oncology nurse, University of Iowa Hospital
As an oncology nurse, Sarah cares for patients' emotional and spiritual health as well as their physical needs.
Alison Schutt
Medical student, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine
Alison's action-packed academic career was filled with opportunities to think critically about biology and chemistry, which has served her well as she transitions into life as a medical student.
Jenelle Dunkelberger
Geneticist, Topigs Norsvin
A summer research experience with a Northwestern professor sparked Jenelle’s fascination with genetics. Now she oversees all of the U.S.-based research trials for the world’s second-largest swine genetics company.
Tyler Janota
Director of basketball sport performance, East Tennessee State University
As a student volunteer, Tyler designed training programs for the Raider men’s basketball team. Now he works with the University of Texas Longhorns.
Jerel Kyles
Assistant family teacher, Boys Town
Jerel works with at-risk children and families, providing them with the support and education they need to succeed.
Shanell Nieuwendorp
Security administrator, U.S. State Department
Shanell's semester in Washington, D.C., and internship with the U.S. State Department led to a capital job offer.
Graham Kinsinger
Digital marketing specialist, Seattle Seahawks
A Chicago internship with a sports PR firm jump-started Graham's marketing career in professional athletics.
Ali Dietrich
Social media coordinator, Lutheran Church of Hope
Ali has always had an eye for design, and with a little encouragement from Northwestern’s art professors and Career Development Center, she chose to pursue her creative passions as a career.
Collin Ten Haken
Police officer, Urbandale Police Department
Collin's Northwestern education, paired with an internship with the Urbandale, Iowa, Police Department, launched his career in law enforcement.
Rebeca Wagner
Interpreter/translator, Children’s Hospital & Medical Center
Rebeca serves Spanish-speaking patients and their families, helping them communicate with the medical providers at Omaha Children’s Hospital so they receive the best healthcare possible.
Natalie Te Grootenhuis
Communications outreach manager, Iowa Corn
Natalie works for the Iowa Corn Growers Association and the Iowa Corn Promotion Board, marketing Iowa Corn to the public and encouraging Iowa farmers to join the association.
Thomas Westerholm
Sportswriter for MassLive.com
Thomas worked as a sportswriter for an Iowa newspaper before he was picked up by MassLive.com, the second largest online news outlet in New England.
Devin Jorde
RN, post-surgical unit, Mayo Clinic
Devin works with some of the world’s best surgeons and teams at the Mayo Clinic.
Vito Maffei
Minor league athletic trainer, San Francisco Giants
A former football player, Vito is pursuing his passion for sports as an athletic trainer, treating injured athletes and getting them back on the field.
Sara Edwardson
Exercise physiologist, Duke University Health and Fitness Center
Sara scored an internship with Duke University during her senior year at Northwestern, which led to a full-time job offer at a clinically based fitness center through the university's health system.
Emma Wynja
Medical student, University of South Dakota Sanford School of Medicine
Emma is a medical student at USD, where she received the prestigious South Dakota State Medical Association Foundation Freshman Scholarship.
Zach Landhuis
DNA specialist, Kansas Bureau of Investigation
Zach completed a master’s degree at Michigan State University and has now begun a career in forensic science.
Krissa Hetletvedt
Third grade teacher, Catlin Arts Magnet School
Krissa’s classroom passion for students and their learning earned her recognition as Rookie of the Year from the Omaha Education Association.
Jodi Stahl
Lead account executive, Click Rain
A successful internship experience at an advertising agency launched Jodi's career in communications.
Olivia Iekel
Volunteer Coordinator, Nicaraguan Council of Protestant Churches
Olivia has a passion for missions. At Northwestern, she was supported, encouraged and equipped to pursue that dream and follow God’s call to Nicaragua.
Joseph Tolsma
Genetics graduate student, North Carolina State University
Joseph says Northwestern's integration of science and faith deepened his faith while in college. It also prepared him for graduate study in genetics and stoked his interest in career as a research scientist.
Derefe Chevannes
Professor, University of Memphis
Derefe is a political science professor at the University of Memphis. And because of the influence Northwestern’s intercultural office had in his life, he’s also hoping be involved in his university's diversity efforts.
Brody Van Roekel
Executive director, Atlas: Lincoln
Taking what he’d learned about the impact of listening to peoples’ stories, Brody pursued a career focused on community development.
Abigail Thompson
Graduate student, Embry-Riddle University
Abigail is pursuing a master’s degree in security and intelligence studies as preparation for a career in counterterrorism.
Joshua Roorda
Registered nurse, emergency department, Genesis Health System
Thanks to an internship during his junior year, Josh was offered a scholarship and a contract for full-time employment before he even started his senior year at Northwestern.
Laura Jonker
Graduate student, Western Theological Seminary
A student student in Western Theological Seminary’s Master of Divinity program, Laura hopes to continue ministering to families in the church, just as she did during and after college.
Connor Shaull
Law student, University of Minnesota
Connor’s Northwestern education led to a verdict of “accepted” at six law schools.
Emily Griese
Director of population health, Sanford Health
With strong encouragement from her professors, Emily earned master's and doctoral degrees in psychology and is now a healthcare administrator, research scientist and university professor.
James Rucker
Graduate student in mathematics, University of South Dakota
With a love of theatre, music and philosophy, James found that Northwestern’s humanities major enabled him to learn anything and everything about anything and everything.
Meredith Yorchak
Software engineering analyst, Accenture
Meredith's summer internship with Accenture gave her confidence in her decision to begin a full-time career there.
Jordan Reinders
Entomology graduate student, University of Nebraska
Jordan is combining two passions—insects and the outdoors—as he pursues a doctoral degree.
Jesse Baldwin
Director of fine arts, Boys and Girls Clubs
Jesse directs fine arts programming for several Colorado Boys and Girls Clubs and works as a freelance artist through the Downtown Artery in Fort Collins.
Jenny Welch
Scheduler, Alpine Autism Center
Within her first year at Alpine Autism Center, Jenny was promoted to lead therapist, which brings extra responsibilities, like training new therapists.
Jose Sanchez-Perry
Doctoral student, University of Texas
Jose is pursuing a doctorate in religious studies with a focus on religion and Latin American cultures.
Abby Korthals
Senior pricing analyst, Nationwide Insurance
Abby's Northwestern experiences, including an actuarial internship at Principal Financial Group, gave her an impressive résumé and got her a job at Nationwide Insurance shortly after graduation.
Chris Sietstra
Accountant, Ernst & Young
Chris had a job offer from Big Four accounting firm Ernst & Young before he even graduated. His interviewers were so impressed with him, they said they'd send their kids to NWC.
Danielle Straka
Adoption case manager, A Family in Bloom Adoptions
A love for children, nurtured through four mission trips to Haiti, led Danielle to a full-time social work career at Robin's Nest orphanage in Jamaica.
Sarah Graham
Deputy attorney, Douglas Co. Attorney’s Office
Leadership opportunities, a challenging education and an internship in Washington, D.C., helped Sarah gain the confidence to pursue a career as an attorney.
Matthew Hulstein
Staff attorney, Chicago Volunteer Legal Services
The collaboration and performance standards of an NWC theatre degree set the stage for Matthew to find success in his role as an attorney for clients who need someone to be their voice.
Anna Christensen
Lecturer of philosophy, Central College
A freshman course in ancient Greek philosophy sparked Anna's interest and influenced her career path through graduate school to becoming a college professor.
Eduardo Rodriguez
Reformed Church in America leadership and local missional engagement specialist
After gaining experience in Christian community development and youth mentorship, Eduardo now serves as the leadership and local missional engagement specialist for the Reformed Church in America.
Isaiah Custer
Communications manager, Taproot Theatre
Theatre major Isaiah added an arts administration minor and interned at Taproot Theatre in Seattle, which set the stage for his job in communications and promotions for Taproot.
Hans Vander Plaats
Portfolio specialist, Aligned Investors
Hans spent a semester at England's Oxford University and interned two summers in New York City before launching a career in finance.
Lindsey Lopez
Nurse and medical interpreter, Sanford Health
As a Spanish major at Northwestern, Lindsey found learning a language came easy and that she looked forward to her homework. Now she’s a nurse and medical interpreter at a major hospital.
Justin Karmann
Associate pastor of youth, family and social justice, First Presbyterian Church
A double major in religion and philosophy led Justin to ordination and a position as a church leader.
Courtney Hughes
Pediatric nurse, Sanford Children's Castle of Care Hospital
A passion for science and kids led Courtney to a pediatric nursing career at a top children's hospital in the region: Sanford's Castle of Care in Sioux Falls.
Andy Boone
First grade teacher, Thomas Elementary School
Northwestern's emphasis on service and community have helped Andy excel as a teacher and graduate student.
Heidi Ackerman
Mezzo-soprano, U.S. Army Field Band and Soldiers’ Chorus
Heidi is living the dream as a professional singer, touring the country on behalf of the U.S. Army.
Eddie Pantzlaff
Resident, University of Michigan Medical School
Eddie's strong Northwestern education laid the foundation for his pursuit of becoming an oral and maxillofacial surgeon.
Jenna Ripke
Attorney, Brown Immigration Law
Jenna discovered her passion for social justice during her Spanish classes at Northwestern. Now her career is focused on immigration law.
Chris White
English teacher, Sioux Center High School
Chris credits his English education at Northwestern for helping him grow from a non-writer and non-speaker into a confident teacher of high school literature.
Julie Haverly
Team leader, strategic planning & analysis, Renewable Energy Group
Confident in her head for business, Julie is executing the strategic marketing plan for a leading biodiesel producer and thinking of pursuing a Ph.D.
Tetta Askeland
Graduate student, Kent State University
Inspired by her NWC professors, Tetta aspires to be a professor of scenic design after earning her master’s degree.
Victor Mena
Language arts teacher, Akron-Westfield High School
A high school language arts teacher, Victor teaches a variety of English and writing courses.
