Join a panel of College of Media alumni to learn about their careers in sports media and how they got from the University of Illinois to where they are now. Students will need to register in order to participate. Come prepared with questions to learn and connect with these alumni.
Panelists include:
Dave Kissel
Dave Kissel is currently a Global Business Lead at Doyle Dane Bernbach Worldwide, one of the world's most creative advertising networks. As a partner to McDonald’s in 44 countries, the world’s largest restaurant company is DDB's biggest multi-national client. Dave is responsible for the global leadership and coordination of the agency's McDonald’s relationships, helping each office deliver high-impact strategy, content and experiences to measurably grow the McDonald’s brand and business. Dave is a member of DDB Worldwide’s Executive Leadership Team, as well as a member of Omnicom's Global Client Leadership Team.
In addition, Dave is currently a Strategic Advisor to, and the former CEO of, InStadium, a national Nielsen-measured media network consisting of 450+ pro and college teams. Under Dave’s leadership, he helped transform InStadium into a multi-media video and gaming platform for major brands. Prior to InStadium, Dave helped create the award-winning agency Zócalo Group, Omnicom’s first dedicated social media agency, a division of Critical Mass.
A frequent speaker on sports marketing, advertising and social media, Dave has more than 25 years of accomplishments and awards in sports media and marketing. Dave is a graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign's College of Media, where he earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism, and is currently a director on the College’s Executive Board. He lives in Chicago's northern suburbs with his wife and three daughters.
Taylor Rooks
Taylor Rooks is a sports journalist and broadcaster. She is the host of Take it There with Taylor Rooks on Bleacher Report and appears regularly on Turner Sports programming. Prior to joining Bleacher Report and Turner Sports, Taylor served as report and anchor for SportsNet New York and as a host, reporter and correspondent for the Big Ten Network.
Carol Voronyak
Illinois alum (’04) Carol (Mayer) Voronyak is in her 17th year working for ESPN. She currently serves as Director of Talent Recruiting and Negotiations. After making connections as a student-athlete (golf) member of the Illinois Athletic Board, Voronyak secured a position as a production assistant at ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut, in 2004. She has since worked her way up the ladder, relocating to ESPN's Chicago offices in 2010, and recently to a suburb of Nashville, Tennessee. The Richmond, Illinois, native is responsible for recruiting on-air talent and negotiation of contracts for all ESPN platforms (ESPN, ESPN2, SEC Network, ACC Network, Snapchat, etc.) nationwide. Voronyak married her husband, Nate, in 2014. They have three small children: a daughter, Hope (5), and sons, Valor (3) and Lion (1).
