Alumni Profile

Capturing Campus Life

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:34:02 +0000

Capturing Campus Life Anna Tolette Mon, 11/10/2025 - 11:34

Julia MacLean

Glenn Asakawa (Jour’86), 1986 �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder yearbook editor, took this photo his senior year during move-in day. Now a Pulitzer Prize-winning photojournalist, Asakawa serves as the university’s lead photographer and multimedia producer.

Looking back, he recalls the unique spirit of �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder in the mid-1980s.

“�鶹��Ѱ��Boulder was its own universe, where legendary throwdowns like the Trivia Bowl, Alferd Packer Days or any of the amazing Program Council con - certs mattered more than politics,” Asakawa said.

He recalled big changes, too, such as Coach McCartney taking the Buffs to the 1985 Freedom Bowl football game versus Baylor, Gordon Gee becoming the university president and the loss of astronaut Ellison Onizuka (Aero’69; MS’69; HonDocSci’03) aboard the Challenger space shuttle.

“Still, the campus was brightening up,” Asakawa said. “Boulder had more open space and quirky local spots, like Naoki’s on The Hill or the LA Diner, where you could get liver and onions, which I actually ordered from time to time!”

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Photo by Glenn Asakawa

Glenn Asakawa reflects on his senior year in 1986, recalling the campus spirit, iconic events and local Boulder culture.

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Art, Science and Polar Bears

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:32:16 +0000

Art, Science and Polar Bears Anna Tolette Mon, 11/10/2025 - 11:32

Julia MacLean

Lianna Nixon is an educator who blends science and art.

As a wildlife photographer and conservation storyteller, the Arctic is Lianna Nixon’s (Class’17; MEdu’21) second home. What began as a college expedition evolved into a career that blends art, science and education. From drifting on sea ice to counting polar bears, her adventures are as fascinating as they are meaningful.

Tell us about some of your Arctic adventures.

I first went to the Arctic in 2017 with Sea Legacy, a nonprofit organization run by two National Geographic photographers. Perhaps my most transformative Arctic photography and film experience was working on the MOSAiC Expedition (the Multidisciplinary Drifting Observatory for the Study of Arctic Climate) while at CU. I was able to create connections about the Arctic climate system we see today, the experiences of scientists and the prowess of intersectional storytelling through visceral art-science narratives. While out on the ice floe, we were also visited by quite a few polar bears!

What are some things you work on now in the Arctic?

Six to eight weeks out of the year, I guide on expeditions out of Svalbard, a Norwegian archipelago, photographing arctic wildlife. It’s not just about posting on Instagram — it’s being able to create conversations and share the beauty, vulnerability and importance of this region. My work is taken further into the scope of science and conservation outreach to be used in citizen science projects that observe wildlife behavior and other communication needs.

What do you want people to take from your storytelling work?

My work focuses on applying new-age media, which includes photography, film, immersive 360-degree film and storytelling. When we humanize and bring different perspectives to abstract, difficult or polarizing topics, which is essentially the premise of climate science.

What motivated you to return to school for an education degree?

I always wanted to be a scientist, but my brain is programmed for art. That’s why I chose education — it’s a fantastic mediary space to bring those two together.

What are you doing when you aren’t in the Arctic?

I mainly do graphic design. My job has had to be very flexible with guiding, because I also hold my own BEAR Expedition a couple of weeks a year in Alaska, which allows people to view brown bears. The flexibility of my job is also due to the work of my husband, Casey VanCampenhout (Class’17), who is an F-15 fighter pilot. We’re stationed here in Vancouver, Washington. I’m also director of Tsé Bii’, a nonprofit which works with the Diné of the Navajo Nation located in Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park to bring sustainable off-grid electrical and water resources to their homes.

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Photo courtesy Lianna Nixon

Lianna Nixon turned her college Arctic expeditions into a career as a wildlife photographer and conservation storyteller.

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Saving Colorado Landmarks

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:30:51 +0000

Saving Colorado Landmarks Anna Tolette Mon, 11/10/2025 - 11:30

Julia MacLean

Preservation planning for Florence, Colorado’s Orecchio Block.

From iconic hotels to community landmarks, the Colorado Historical Foundation works to protect the state’s most meaningful places — and Catherine Stroh (Art’95) is leading the effort. A Colorado native and longtime Boulder resident, Stroh blends an appreciation for design and architecture with a passion for Colorado history as the foundation’s president and CEO.

How do you best describe the Colorado Historical Foundation?

We have many different tools to preserve historic places in Colorado. One of the ways we do that is through conservation easements on physical buildings, structures and cultural landscapes. This prevents them from being demolished or severely altered, so that they can essentially look the same as they did during their significant period of history. We also operate a low-interest loan program to help people repair and revitalize historic buildings. We also operate a low-interest loan program to help people repair and revitalize historic buildings.

What are some of the foundation’s projects right now?

The Fort, a well-known restaurant in Morrison, is modeled after Bent’s Old Fort (a fur trading post built in 1833) in Southeast Colorado and protected by one of our conservation easements. We also have an easement on the Stanley Hotel in Estes Park. And in Boulder, we provided a low-interest loan to help support the rehabilitation of the Mary H. Galey Cottage within the nationally landmarked Colorado Chautauqua property.

What should Buffs know about Colorado history?

There is so much history centered in Colorado. The story of the state is really a convergence of so many different stories, from indigenous populations who were here originally to the pioneers who came in when it was a Spanish Territory. There are many different influences throughout the state and a lot of history to continually uncover.

What’s your favorite historic place you’ve worked on?

The old Smiley Junior High School in Durango has been turned into a commercial space with a lot of unique offices, creative spaces and even apartments. On the first floor, there’s a coffee shop and an art market retail area. To see that building activated in such a new way while still retaining its schoolhouse properties, is really cool.

How have you seen Colorado change over time?

I think the biggest change that we see is just the continual population growth and how that influences the shape of towns, especially the merging and blending of communities along the Front Range. We are losing some of the open space that I think a lot of us grew up with, but this also brings in a lot of new and interesting people and opportunities.

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Photo courtesy Colorado Historical Foundation

Catherine Stroh leads efforts to preserve the state’s historic buildings and landmarks.

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�鶹��Ѱ��Alum is the First American To Win the Tour de France

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:29:55 +0000

�鶹��Ѱ��Alum is the First American To Win the Tour de France Anna Tolette Mon, 11/10/2025 - 11:29

Heather Mundt

Marianne Martin, second from left, in 1984.

Greg LeMond is credited as the first American winner of the Tour de France in 1986. But two years prior, 26-year-old Boulder cyclist Marianne Martin (Rec’80) claimed the coveted “le maillot jaune” — yellow jersey — as winner of the inaugural 1984 Tour de France Féminin. The race, which ran for five years before being discontinued, closely mirrored the men’s race: The women completed 18 stages in about 22 days along the same course as the men. (In modern equivalents, women bike racers now complete nine stages in about nine days.)

In October 2024, Martin suffered serious injuries in a road bike crash — but after extensive rehabilitation, is back riding.

How did you start racing?

I grew up dancing in Fenton, Michigan, but phased out of it during college. So I found other ways to stay fit, like trail running and cycling. I started riding with friends around 1980 who encouraged me to race. I finished fourth in my first one and started winning after that. Others asked me to join their team, and what I heard was ‘barbecues’ and ‘parties.’ I only cared about socializing.

What fueled your rapid rise to elite racing by 1983?

Once you win and feel that power in your body, it’s addictive. I never consciously said to myself, ‘I’m going to do this seriously.’ It just kind of came together. I was training consistently, and I had a solid network of friends and cyclists like Joy Yule, who took me under her wing. I didn’t do it all on my own.

Did your parents encourage your cycling career?

My dad didn’t at first. But my mom supported any crazy idea, even when I told her I wanted to be among the first women to ride in the Tour. She said, ‘Honey, that’s great!’

Any training secrets?

I met Tim Kelly, who helped boost my mental game with visualization, a new concept back then. And training with Andy Pruitt, a sports medicine pioneer whose philosophies were simple yet effective: Ride with a purpose — no wasted miles! — and rest, which I did way more than my competitors. That was also key to coming back from severe anemia throughout early 1984.

What got you on the U.S. team?

In June, just weeks before the Tour, I felt strong enough to race again. I knew one team spot was still open. When I told my friend Steve Tilford, a champion cyclist who knew cycling coach ‘Eddie B’ Borysewicz, he said, ‘We’re driving to Colorado Springs!’ He drove me to the Olympic Training Center the next day, and I managed to snag the spot. I promised Eddie, ‘You won’t be disappointed.’

How did you tune out critics (highlighted in the 2023 documentary Uphill Climb)?

Sure, we had people telling us we couldn’t finish the race. But I was just happy to be in France and compete. I didn’t care about going into debt to do it because I’d have my whole life to pay off my credit card. I just did it for the pure love of the sport.

What helped you win?

The French didn’t think we as women could finish, so that was my only goal. And when we reached the French Alps, my strength surprised me. I thought about riding with Steve back home while I recovered from anemia, how he’d teased me about my poor climbing skills. But they were my superpower, and I wanted that polka-dot jersey (awarded to the mountain-classifications leader). ‘I’ll show him!’ I joked to myself. After summiting 10 minutes ahead of the next riders, it finally registered that I could actually win this thing. It still reminds me that we can do so much more than we think.

What was it like to see your dad at the finish line?

As I came down the Champs-Élysées, I heard someone call my name. My father had flown over to surprise me! I grew up in a small town and was always known as ‘Dr. Martin’s daughter.’ After I won the Tour, he was suddenly ‘Marianne Martin’s dad!’

It’s been nearly a year since your bike accident in Sunshine Canyon, which included several days in the ICU. How are you?

Recovery has been both good and challenging. The surgeon did a remarkable job putting me back together. I don’t rebound as quickly as I used to, and can’t push myself too much yet, so it’s a great lesson in patience. At least I can get out and ride.

How did it feel to be inducted into the U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame in 2021?

It was a huge honor, and I’m proud of my win. But it’s something I did — not who I am.

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Photo by Graham Watson

Marianne Martin became the first American woman to win the Tour de France Féminin, and still rides today.

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Honoring Outstanding Buffs

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:25:17 +0000

Honoring Outstanding Buffs Anna Tolette Mon, 11/10/2025 - 11:25

April Driver

�鶹��Ѱ��Boulder’s Alumni Awards celebrate the university’s most inspiring leaders and changemakers.

Dave Sheanin guides individuals with disabilities in triathlons.

Dave Sheanin (MBA’99), receiving the Alumni Recognition Award this spring, is among the next slate of standout Forever Buffs.

A longtime coach for the University of Colorado Triathlon Team, Sheanin helped lead the team to seven consecutive combined and 15 individual national championships. In 2021, he was named the USA Triathlon Community Impact Coach of the Year. Whether working with elite athletes or teaching beginners to swim, his inspiration comes from the students.

“I fell in love with the students’ spirit and enthusiasm,” said Sheanin. “I love seeing young people reach their potential.”

Outside of the university, he volunteers with Athletes in Tandem, guiding individuals with disabilities in triathlon competitions.

“Helping athletes with disabilities experience the same racecourse as the elite competitors has been one of the most meaningful parts of my journey,” he said.

Even with his many contributions and successes, he remains humble.

“I feel like I get back more than I give,” he said. “I’m built to want to make an impact; that’s the kind of life I want to lead.”

Sheanin’s story joins the larger history of alumni impact across generations. Eight other outstanding alumni, faculty, staff and students will be recognized at the Alumni Awards Ceremony as part of Alumni Weekend, April 10–13, 2026. (The event previously was held during Homecoming Weekend.)

The winners include Susan Taylor Mayne (Chem’82) for the George Norlin Award, Russell L. Moore and David Martinez for the Robert L. Stearns Award, Dave Sheanin (MBA’99) for the Alumni Recognition Award, Stephen Kissler (ApMath’14; MA’14) for the Kalpana Chawla Outstanding Recent Graduate Award, Dale Farrand (AeroEngr’93) for the Leanne Skupa-Lee Award, and Camden Dempsey (Fin, Mktg’25) and Aaditya Pore (AeroEngr, CompSci’25) for the Forever Buffs Student Award.

Award honorees represent the breadth of Buffs excellence, and, for many, �鶹��Ѱ��is at the heart of their stories.

Learn more at colorado.edu/alumni/awards.

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Photo courtesy Dave Sheanin

�鶹��Ѱ��Boulder’s 2026 Alumni Awards celebrated outstanding alumni, faculty, staff and students.

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Spruce Gulch: Grounds for Discovery

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:23:57 +0000

Spruce Gulch: Grounds for Discovery Anna Tolette Mon, 11/10/2025 - 11:23

Jess Winterley

It was a hot summer day in the early 1990s when Linda Holubar Sanabria (A&S’67) spied the enemy. Tall and deceptively pretty, bearing its hallmark lavender-colored, black-tipped flowers: the spotted knapweed. This noxious weed had quietly claimed Holubar’s family ranch as its home, and she soon discovered it was taking up residence on at least 50 acres of the sprawling 493-acre property — of which 476 acres are now known as the Spruce Gulch Wildlife and Research Reserve — which Holubar inherited from her family in 1994.

For the next 15 years, Holubar dedicated the quiet of dawn and the cool of dusk to eradicating the invasive plant, which arrived via contaminated batches of grass seed dispersed by the U.S. Forest Service after a 1988 fire. Leaving the knapweed unchecked was not an option for Holubar and her spouse, Sergio Sanabria (A&S’66; Arch’70; MArtHist’75), as they knew this would result in soil erosion, displaced vegetation and overall devastation to the land. So, for thousands of hours, Holubar labored over the acreage.

“At first, I felt very small as I began removing one plant after another from an endless sea of them,” said Holubar. “They ranged from taller than me to tiny seedlings.”

Though she made substantial progress, the effort needed a boost — not from harmful herbicides, which would contaminate the water and land, but from a more creative (and hungry) solution: weevils.

A Symbiotic Friendship

In 2001, during the thick of her weeding efforts, Holubar learned about a successful experiment at �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder’s Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR). The project demonstrated that biocontrol insects (in this case, weevils) could greatly reduce densities of an invasive knapweed — similar to the unwelcome foe on Holubar’s land.

Putting her hope in these knapweed-eating weevils, she called the lead scholar of the experiment, ecology and evolutionary biology professor (now emeritus) Tim Seastedt.

“Field ecologists don’t pass up opportunities to leverage a new field site, and Spruce Gulch is special,” said Seastedt. He noted that the innovative insect approach, in addition to preserving good vegetation, could save landowners thousands of dollars in management costs.

Through a combination of hungry weevils and volunteer weeding efforts, the project proved successful over time and demonstrated the effectiveness that non-chemical methods can have on an invasive plant species.

The experiment also opened the door for additional ecology projects on the property — marking the start of what would become a 24-year symbiotic friendship between the university and land, and what would eventually result in a landmark gift.

Volunteers from a co-sponsored U.S. Forest Service event remove invasive spotted knapweed from an upland meadow on the Spruce Gulch Reserve.

Inheriting a Legacy

Holubar’s connection to the wildlife reserve began nearly a century ago, when her maternal grandmother, Irma Freudenberg, purchased part of it in 1927. With the help of her children, Freudenberg established a ranch on the picturesque land that Holubar’s parents, Alice (A&S’33) and LeRoy Holubar (ElEngr’36), later expanded in 1962.

Boulder’s mountainous terrain fostered the family’s passion for the outdoors. Holubar’s parents were pioneers in developing and sourcing climbing and expedition gear through their business, Holubar Mountaineering (which an interim owner later sold to The North Face). LeRoy Holubar, a �鶹��Ѱ��mathematics professor, also helped establish the Rocky Mountain Rescue Group and the first Boulder climbing school.

Upon Freudenberg’s death, Holubar’s parents inherited part of the land and expanded it to what is now the Spruce Gulch Reserve. The site has been sculpted by history — from serving as hunting grounds for Indigenous peoples like the Arapaho, to sustaining mining and logging operations, grazing and agriculture, plus wildfires and floods.

“Having grown up on this land and having it be a part of my family for almost a century, I view it as my heart and soul and want nothing more than to protect it,” said Holubar.

Her love for the reserve and dedication to conservation meant diligently seeking out its next caretaker — a role that, after withstanding weeds and weevils together, �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder was ready to undertake.

Acres for �鶹��Ѱ��

Primed to steward Holubar’s family legacy of environmentalism into the future, �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder assumed ownership of Spruce Gulch in June of 2025. Holubar’s generous 476-acre land donation was accompanied by endowment funds, as well as a conservation easement with Boulder County.

The site and funds, valued at a combined $10.4 million, are managed by INSTAAR and support studies across the sciences, humanities and fine arts. From biologists to visual artists, the reserve and its endowment will enrich and support studies by academics from many departments, opening new educational possibilities across disciplines.

“Sergio and I wanted to discourage an inevitable disciplinary blindness by opening the site to as many different worldviews as possible,” said Holubar.

For her commitment to conservation and ensuring the protection of the wildlife reserve, Holubar received Boulder County’s 2025 Land Conservation Award. And, for their outstanding community partnership and collaboration on the Spruce Gulch project, Boulder County Parks & Open Space was awarded the Blue Grama Award by the Colorado Open Space Alliance.

A living laboratory, Spruce Gulch features canyons and cliffs intermixed with forest, savanna and prairie meadows. Its abundance of research opportunities has already aided �鶹��Ѱ��faculty and students in producing 29 scholarly publications, plus chapters in six doctoral dissertations, three master’s theses and four undergraduate honors theses.

“The acquisition of Spruce Gulch allows us to pursue essential science relevant to the grasslands and foothills region, where most of us live,” said Seastedt, director of the reserve. “Therein lies the magnitude of this gift.”

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Photos courtesy Tim Seastedt

Ecology and evolutionary biology professor (now emeritus) Tim Seastedt.

Linda Holubar Sanabria gave a $10.4 million donation to �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder, creating a 476-acre wildlife and research reserve.

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Blazin’ Joe: Brewing a Sustainable Startup

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:20:32 +0000

Blazin’ Joe: Brewing a Sustainable Startup Anna Tolette Mon, 11/10/2025 - 11:20

Julia MacLean

Maddie Cataldo and Maya Nefs with their Blazin' Joe firelogs

In 2019, when freshman Maddie Cataldo (Mgmt’23) showed up to her first �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder club hockey practice, she didn’t know anyone. But a spontaneous locker room conversation about skydiving ignited a friendship.

Maya Nefs (Mgmt’23), then a sophomore and fellow Leeds School of Business student, didn’t hesitate: “What are you doing next week? Let’s go.”

They went, tumbling into the air over Longmont, Colorado.

Years later, that same adventurous spirit fuels their company, Blazin’ Joe, which transforms coffee waste into sustainable firewood alternatives. Their business started in a college oven and now operates out of Nefs’ garage in Golden, Colorado.

Cataldo and Nefs’ journey as business partners is rooted in their shared �鶹��Ѱ��experiences: business classes, a love for the outdoors and hockey.

“Being teammates really helped us work together,” Cataldo said. “We’re both super competitive, and there’s a level of bluntness that’s good and healthy to have. You could yell at each other on the ice and grab a beer right after.”

They’re also candid about the challenges of going into business together.

“I wouldn’t say it’s super easy going into business with a close friend,” Cataldo said. “We have a contract that tells us we need to spend a certain number of hours not talking about Blazin’ Joe, but just hanging out.”

Nefs added: “We’ll go play tennis or grab a happy hour drink. One of the most important aspects of the business is keeping our friendship healthy.”

It’s a priority that pays off personally and professionally.

“I wouldn’t be doing this with anyone else,” Nefs said. “Maddie has such a positive attitude, and I definitely find myself aspiring to carry the same positivity.”

The idea for Blazin’ Joe began in Cataldo’s senior capstone course, the New Venture Launch, taught through the business school’s Deming Center for Entrepreneurship. Her class project pitch centered on a fire log made from used coffee grounds, which was inspired by her father’s entrepreneurial research in biofuels.

Blazin' Joe firelogs

“I remember using the oven in my college house 24/7 to dry coffee grounds,” said Cataldo. “My roommates were awesome because the house always smelled like coffee — even our clothes.”

Cataldo’s professor, Brad Werner, saw something unique in her.

“She wasn’t just presenting a business idea — she was sharing something she truly believed in,” Werner said. “I look for students who demonstrate genuine customer obsession — not just talking about their product, but showing they truly understand their customers’ pain points.”

Cataldo’s team won the pitch at the end of the capstone class, impressing Werner with their compelling presentation, and walking away with first-place recognition.

After graduation, Cataldo tried running the business alone until Nefs stepped in.

“She was thinking of putting it on pause,” Nefs said. “I told her, ‘Don’t do that. I’ll work on it with you.’ The company had so much potential, and people were buying the product; it just needed two people behind it.”

Today, Blazin’ Joe makes fire logs and fire starters from coffee chaff — the light, flaky skin of the coffee bean discarded during roasting. It burns clean, hot and efficiently, without the toxic chemicals found in traditional fire-related products.

“We started out using coffee grounds,” Cataldo said, “but realized drying them used too much energy. Chaff was the game-changer: it’s dry, burns well and it’s a huge waste stream in the industry.”

They now collect chaff from local Colorado roasters like Sweet Bloom Coffee, Otis Craft Collective and Copper Door Coffee Roasters. They use about four pounds of chaff per log, Cataldo said, and grind it down and press it to shape in Nefs’ garage.

“I’m grateful for the setup,” Nefs said. “We’re not paying rent on a space, and for a small startup, that’s critical. We’re growing sustainably, on our own terms.”

Since launching into retail in January, Blazin’ Joe has found traction in farmers markets and local stores like McGuckin Hardware and Lucky’s Market. In May, they also won the Next Cycle Colorado Pitch, which supports companies repurposing waste streams in Colorado.

Cataldo is eager to grow the business more.

“Our ultimate goal is to work towards making the coffee industry circular,” she said. “We’d love to partner with bigger roasters on a larger scale and repurpose as much waste as possible.”

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Photos courtesy Graham Gardner (Sparrow Creative)

Maddie Cataldo and Maya Nefs turned a shared love of adventure and entrepreneurship into Blazin’ Joe, a sustainable startup that transforms coffee waste into firelogs and fire starters.

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Dan Carlin Is the Ultimate Time Traveler

Anna Tolette — Mon, 10 Nov 2025 18:19:22 +0000

Dan Carlin Is the Ultimate Time Traveler Anna Tolette Mon, 11/10/2025 - 11:19

Tori Peglar

Dan Carlin (Hist’89) is 4 minutes and 41 seconds into an episode of his Hardcore History podcast when he pauses to catch his breath. Alexander the Great has just watched his father, King Phillip II, get assassinated. It’s a milestone moment that Carlin likens to the 9/11 attacks, where anyone watching knew in those terrifying moments that everything would change.

Beyond the walls of his podcasting studio, Carlin’s millions of listeners wait expectantly at the edge of their proverbial seats. Was Alexander a victim, innocently watching the assassination of his royal father in the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon? Or was Alexander a traitor who orchestrated his father’s death to seize the throne? Carlin’s audience ponders this question as they drive through their neighborhoods, prepare dinner in their kitchens, and jog through parks, all while listening to Carlin.

“Dan Carlin is one of the world’s greatest storytellers, and anyone who has spent any time listening to his audio, even for a few minutes, understands that this is the case,” said Clint Kisker, an entrepreneur and former president of MWM Interactive, an entertainment company that has collaborated with Carlin.

A trailblazer in the podcasting space, Carlin was part of the early crowd of people in 2005 to tell stories about history via the Internet in an audio format. In the 20 years since, more than 100 million people have tuned into his tremendously popular shows. In Common Sense, Carlin, a self-described politically independent pragmatist, looks at events shaping the world. Hardcore History delves into riveting historic moments, and Hardcore History: Addendum features interviews and material that don’t make it into the main program.

For Carlin, who’s disarmingly gregarious and humble, a knowledge of history and its cast of characters is essential for understanding the present moment. Moreover, he said it enables us to see how groups of human beings tend to behave, especially under pressure.

“Life, as someone once said to me, is like living inside a television soap opera,” Carlin recalled. “If you don’t go back and watch the previous episodes, you’ll never understand what’s going on — or why — in the story currently.”

Path to Podcasting

In his 20s, Carlin worked in broadcast television in Los Angeles before moving to Oregon and becoming a television reporter, then a radio show host. But when the tech version of the Gold Rush began in the late 1990s, he and five friends formed a startup. The goal was to launch a novel product — amateur content made by the public and hosted on a platform. It would have been something like what YouTube turned out to be. After he left the startup, what Carlin eventually produced was a podcast, but it wasn’t recognized as such yet.

In 2004, the term “podcast” first appeared in print when Guardian reporter Ben Hammerstein used it to describe a new type of audio blogging that could be played on an Apple iPod. The origins of the word? A mash-up of “iPod” and “broadcast.”

Plunging into new territory, Carlin launched his Common Sense podcast in 2005, followed by Hardcore History a year later. The Hardcore History format is unique, even by today’s standards.

“Podcasters doing true crime or sports entertainment are all folks who took an existing medium and adapted it to meet their needs,” Kisker said. “Dan created a medium. There was no prior ‘Dan Carlin.’ It wasn’t a thing.”

Each of Carlin’s Hardcore History episodes is an extraordinarily deep dive into a slice of history — and because he spends an inordinate amount of time researching, he only releases one to two episodes a year. Each one runs between three and five hours.

Carlin’s show takes on a conversational dimension as he doesn’t prepare a written script — his storytelling style is all improv. Episodes include the famous World War II battles that shaped modern naval warfare, the Atlantic slave trade, the Asia-Pacific War of 1937–45 and the Viking sea kings of the 10th and 11th centuries.

“Every show is on a subject I’ve been really interested in, so I have a foundation,” Carlin said. “Then I start reading, so I’m trying to update my knowledge — what’s true, how history has evolved and become clarified over time.”

But Carlin doesn’t just regurgitate important dates on his podcasts. He uses empathy to slingshot his listeners back in time, making people like Alexander the Great fallibly human and their decisions topically relevant. In doing so, his audience stands on the sidelines of pivotal historic moments, cheering and jeering on characters they once knew only by name but now feel a personal connection to.

“Empathy for historical personalities is vital if we want to try to see them more as three-dimensional figures rather than two-dimensional ones,” Carlin said. “Put yourself into the shoes of President Harry Truman having to make the decision about dropping atomic bombs in the Second World War. How could you even begin to assess such an event without trying to imagine yourself in his position?”

Having an empathetic understanding of the human experience is essential to help us navigate our complex world, said William Wei, one of Carlin’s �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder history professors and a former Colorado state historian.

“As historians have demonstrated since time immemorial, history functions as humanity’s collective memory and the means for understanding the consequences of human choices,” Wei said.

Empathy for historical personalities is vital if we want to try to see them more as three-dimensional figures rather than two-dimensional ones.

Dan's Favorite Episodes

“Blueprint for Armageddon”

A six-part exploration of World War I that immerses listeners in the human experience, chaos and unprecedented scale of the first modern global war.

“Supernova in the East”

A six-part chronicle of Japan’s rise and ruin in World War II, tracing how cultural pride, militarism and desperation led to one of history’s most ferocious conflicts.

“Ghosts of the Ostfront”

A look at the Eastern Front of World War II, where Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union waged a merciless fight for survival.

“The Destroyer of Worlds”

An exploration of the birth of the nuclear age and the uneasy moment when humanity gained the power to erase itself.

“Death Throes of the Republic”

A retelling of Rome’s unraveling — from civic virtue to corruption and civil war — as a republic gives way to empire.

History functions as humanity’s collective memory and the means for understanding the consequences of human choices.

At Home in Hollywood

Carlin grew up on the edges of Hollywood’s golden spotlight. His mother earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress in the 1968 film Faces. His father, Ed Carlin, was a movie producer. Carlin spent his childhood in two towns at opposite ends of the San Fernando Valley — first Toluca Lake, then Calabasas. Back then, Toluca Lake was home to celebrities like Bob Hope, Bette Davis and Frank Sinatra. Yet Carlin describes both towns as Brady Bunch-type communities filled with camera operators, production folks and just regular people.

“Neither area was what it is now,” Carlin said. “Next door lived a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force. Bob Hope lived in town, but we never saw him. It didn’t feel glitzy.”

Even so, it wasn’t a big leap for Carlin to get highly involved in his high school’s improv program and plunge deeply into theater classes for a brief stint at California State University, Northridge. And when he decided to finish his studies out of state, �鶹��Ѱ��Boulder felt like the right fit.

“My dad really liked CU. He said it reminded him of UCLA in the 1950s when he was a student,” Carlin recalled. “It’s like [Coach] Bill McCartney said, ‘If you get the recruits to town, they’ll come.’”

Boulder Backstory

When Carlin arrived on campus, Coach McCartney was in his fifth season coaching the Colorado Buffaloes, finishing second in the Big 8. It was CU’s best conference record in 25 years. But you were more likely to find Carlin protesting CIA recruitment on campus and CU’s investments in South Africa’s apartheid than standing in line for football tickets. Clad in his Ecuadorian sweater purchased near the Alfred Packer Grill, Carlin pursued his passion for history, with an emphasis on military history. One of his courses was “Sociology of Peacemaking,” which he joked was “a �鶹��Ѱ��way of talking about the military.”

“When I decided to transfer to CU, none of my theater classes transferred,” said Carlin, who initially thought that it was all a wasted effort. “But the great thing is, I’ve used the theater and history stuff every single day in my work.”

Carlin remembered the history department had a pamphlet printed on green paper titled something along the lines of, “What to Tell Your Parents About Choosing History as a Major.” None of the professions he pursued after graduation — journalism, broadcasting and podcasting — appeared on the pamphlet. Carlin addressed this discrepancy in 2020 when he served as CU’s first virtual graduation speaker.

“�鶹��Ѱ��gave me the skills to put myself in a position to be offered these gigs,” he told the graduates. “And [it gave me] the knowledge, not the specific knowledge about how to do those jobs — after all, I didn’t study journalism, broadcasting or podcasting in school — but �鶹��Ѱ��gave me the lifelong ability to know how to keep learning.”

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Illustrations by María Jesús Contreras

�鶹��Ѱ��gave me the lifelong ability to know how to keep learning.

Dan Carlin has pioneered long-form, deeply researched history podcasts like "Hardcore History" to make pivotal historical events relatable.

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Fall 2025

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The Rebuiling of a Family Business

Anna Tolette — Mon, 07 Jul 2025 20:49:45 +0000

The Rebuiling of a Family Business Anna Tolette Mon, 07/07/2025 - 14:49

Julia MacLean

After graduating, Rachel Etzler (MediaSt’22) began to rebuild Business Development Institute (BDI), her family’s events marketing agency, after COVID-19 dismantled the events industry. Etzler took a leadership role alongside her father, Steven, the company’s founder and CEO. As both a strategic leader and hands-on operator, Etzler has played a pivotal role in BDI’s recent success, which has included producing around 60 highly curated events annually and increasing long-term partnerships in the technology industry.

How do you describe your position at BDI?

We serve leading tech companies like NVIDIA, Adobe, Microsoft, HPE, Equinix and AMD. I support our clients directly while working closely with my dad to manage our sales. Because I have a bird’s-eye view of all our client events, I help prioritize tasks and ensure we’re aligned and efficient across every project.

What inspired you to rebuild BDI?

Entering the professional world in a post-COVID environment made me reflect on where I wanted to invest my energy. If I was going to dedicate 40-plus hours a week to a company, I wanted it to be one that truly mattered to me. BDI has played a huge role in my life — it helped make college possible for me — and I saw an opportunity to make a real difference.

What was it like stepping into a leadership role at a company your parents built?

From our earliest conversations, my dad showed a lot of trust in my leadership potential, which was a rare and meaningful opportunity for a 22-year-old. In many ways, it felt like a natural evolution as I grew up watching my parents run the business. I’ve always admired their entrepreneurial spirit, and stepping into a leadership role felt like honoring that legacy, while also building something of my own.

Looking back now, what advice do you have for yourself as you were graduating?

Be patient with yourself. Growth takes time, and it’s important to let your journey unfold naturally. Progress isn’t always linear, and that’s okay.

What else should we know about you?

I am proud of what we’ve accomplished so far — and how energized I feel about where we’re headed. Rebuilding BDI has been a mix of challenge, creativity and deep purpose. I’m grateful every day to work with my family, collaborate with an incredible team and create experiences that connect people in meaningful ways. We’ve hired my sister, Elizabeth Etzler (Edu’23), and two other employees are also Buffs: Matthew Jacobs (CritMediaSt’20) and Emi Veliz (Anth’20). BDI is a CU-powered company!

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Photo courtesy Rachel Etzler

Rachel Etzler stepped into a leadership role to help rebuild her family’s events marketing agency, BDI, guiding its post-COVID comeback and strengthening partnerships with major clients.

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Summer 2025

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The Scoop on Sweet Cow’s Journey to Success

Anna Tolette — Mon, 07 Jul 2025 20:48:50 +0000

The Scoop on Sweet Cow’s Journey to Success Anna Tolette Mon, 07/07/2025 - 14:48

Julia MacLean

Drew Honness opened Sweet Cow in 2010.

A college job at an ice cream shop shaped the rest of Drew Honness’ (Hist’96) life. At age 39, he opened Sweet Cow in Louisville, Colorado. Now with seven locations, Sweet Cow is a beloved Colorado staple with lines out the door and stickers plastered around the state.

What inspired you to start an ice cream business?

When I turned 20 years old, I got a job at a mom-and-pop ice cream shop on The Hill called Josh and John’s. It originally started in 1992 in Colorado Springs by two Colorado College graduates. I worked for them for 13 years. From this job, I learned what a great environment the ice cream industry is and how it builds community.

I discovered some wonderful friendships working there and learned how an upbeat atmosphere can change your life, day in and day out. The uniforms are the best: T-shirts, sneakers, shorts, a hat, and you’re jamming out to great music all day. People come in, and they’re excited to see you.

Within a couple of years, I knew I wanted to do it for the rest of my life. After graduation, I got the opportunity to run two of their shops.

What qualities does Sweet Cow prioritize when hiring staff?

75% of our staff is high school- and college-aged people. We find that the best workers are students who have a decent GPA. They go to school, they go to class, they study and they come to work two to four times a week. They also might play an instrument, sing in the choir or play a sport. The busiest people tend to make time with intention for what they’re doing. It’s one of the things we look for when thinking about location. I usually want a high school and a college nearby to help with our staffing needs.

What sets your ice cream apart?

All of our ice cream, cookie sammies and ice cream cakes are made within the seven shops, so we’re completely self-sufficient. The three key ingredients are high-quality milk, cream and sugar. What differentiates ice cream from ice cream is the percentage of butterfat, the quality of ingredients, the batch freezer or ice cream machine, the freezing process and the temperature of dipping cabinets. Everyone does it differently.

What’s your most unique flavor?

Larry’s Chocolate Peanut Butter Madness, created by my son, is a chocolate peanut butter ice cream with dark chocolate chips and peanut butter chips, along with a fudge swirl and peanut butter swirl. Another fun flavor is Vermont Maple Walnut, made with maple syrup directly from Vermont and walnut pieces.

I’ve seen your stickers all over town. What’s your marketing strategy?

I thought to myself, ‘Alright, what can we do that’s going to be grassroots and budget friendly?’ I was collecting stickers for years, so it just made sense. We had this cool logo, and just let people take these stickers home. And the next thing you know, we would see them on a car, on the side of a building or on a mailbox — they were everywhere.

What’s your go-to Sweet Cow order?

It’s an impossible question. It was Oatmeal Cookie with hot fudge for a while, but I also love the Chocolate Almond, Chocolate Cinnamon, Vermont Maple Walnut, Ginger Snap Molasses — and it just keeps going.

What’s your most popular flavor?

Cookies and Cream, hands down. Most cookies and cream recipes are simply vanilla ice cream with Oreos thrown in at the end. We sprinkle our Oreos throughout, from the first minute, in the middle and again at the very end. If you get a bite without a cookie, it still tastes like a cookie.

What advice would you give those looking to start their own business?

Starting your own business should be something that gives you purpose every day and not about money. A decision based on finances may hinder one’s ability to find success, create the best work environment and service the community and its customers. Be passionate about what you’re exploring in this adventure.

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Photos by Maureen O'Neill

Drew Honness turned a college ice cream job into a thriving Colorado business, Sweet Cow, known for its quality flavors, community focus, and loyal following.

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Summer 2025

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Alumni Profile

Capturing Campus Life

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Art, Science and Polar Bears

Tell us about some of your Arctic adventures.

What are some things you work on now in the Arctic?

What do you want people to take from your storytelling work?

What motivated you to return to school for an education degree?

What are you doing when you aren’t in the Arctic?

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Saving Colorado Landmarks

How do you best describe the Colorado Historical Foundation?

What are some of the foundation’s projects right now?

What should Buffs know about Colorado history?

What’s your favorite historic place you’ve worked on?

How have you seen Colorado change over time?

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�鶹��Ѱ�����Alum is the First American To Win the Tour de France

How did you start racing?

What fueled your rapid rise to elite racing by 1983?

Did your parents encourage your cycling career?

Any training secrets?

What got you on the U.S. team?

How did you tune out critics (highlighted in the 2023 documentary Uphill Climb)?

What helped you win?

What was it like to see your dad at the finish line?

It’s been nearly a year since your bike accident in Sunshine Canyon, which included several days in the ICU. How are you?

How did it feel to be inducted into the U.S. Bicycling Hall of Fame in 2021?

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Honoring Outstanding Buffs

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Spruce Gulch: Grounds for Discovery

A Symbiotic Friendship

Inheriting a Legacy

Acres for �鶹��Ѱ�����

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Blazin’ Joe: Brewing a Sustainable Startup

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Dan Carlin Is the Ultimate Time Traveler

Path to Podcasting

At Home in Hollywood

Boulder Backstory

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The Rebuiling of a Family Business

How do you describe your position at BDI?

What inspired you to rebuild BDI?

What was it like stepping into a leadership role at a company your parents built?

Looking back now, what advice do you have for yourself as you were graduating?

What else should we know about you?

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The Scoop on Sweet Cow’s Journey to Success

What inspired you to start an ice cream business?

What qualities does Sweet Cow prioritize when hiring staff?

What sets your ice cream apart?

What’s your most unique flavor?

I’ve seen your stickers all over town. What’s your marketing strategy?

What’s your go-to Sweet Cow order?

What’s your most popular flavor?

What advice would you give those looking to start their own business?

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�鶹��Ѱ��Alum is the First American To Win the Tour de France

Acres for �鶹��Ѱ��