The Duck Stops Here: University of Oregon

Today, we're excited to welcome Sunny Rubenstein, a true Duck with deep family roots at Oregon. Both her parents and all three sisters are proud UO alumni. Sunny has had an incredible career in sports and entertainment marketing. At AEG Live, she was Vice President of Marketing and Special Events where she helped to revive the concept of Las Vegas residencies and worked with key stars like Elt...

In this episode we explore the revival of "The LastDragon," a UO musical sensation from the 1980s. Alumni John Mansfield andJean Robison join us to talk about the process of bring this fantasy rockmusical back to life. With performances on August 8th, 9th, and 10th in Portland, this revival is not just a trip down memory lane—the show’s proceeds will support scholarships for UO’s theater...

This week we talk to Karin Elstad Wholey, an industry leader with over 25 years at HBO, now part of Warner Brothers Discovery.  Join us as Karin shares her insights and experiences navigating the ever-changing landscape of the entertainment industry. From her time at the University of Oregon, to her various roles at HBO, Karin offers valuable lessons on seizing opportunities, overcoming challenges...

In this episode we're thrilled to bring you Barbara Blangiardi ('79, Journalism). Her adventure began in the fast-paced world of television marketing, leading her to impactful roles at major networks like NBC and Fox Sports. Her story is all about grabbing opportunities and building meaningful connections along the way. Barbara spills the secrets of successful networking, sharing stories f...

Join Tom Goldman, former NPR global sports correspondent and UO School of Journalism and Communication alum (’79) as he sits down with SOJC instructor Charlie Deitz, for a lively conversation about Tom’s path from UO to the living rooms of millions of people. From his early days as an associate producer for sports at NPR, to becoming the network's first full-time sports correspondent, Tom'...

In this episode of The Duck Stops Here, we sit down with Brian McCarthy, a seasoned entrepreneur and industry expert, to explore his path to success. Brian shares his invaluable insights on navigating the world of entrepreneurship, drawing from his own experiences and challenges.   Join us as Brian delves into the strategies and mindset required to thrive as an entrepreneur in today's competit...

As a student in the University of Oregon Lundquist College of Business (‘02) Matt Thomas never dreamed that a simple prompt in class senior year would turn into a $50+ million business. As the founder and CEO of Brew Dr. Kombucha, Matt is a massively successful beverage entrepreneur who leads with a growth mindset. Assigned a straightforward student project -- develop a business plan for an unders...

Today we're joined by Soledad Hurst '88. If her voice sounds familiar it’s probably because she spent years on-air, covering the New York Stock Exchange for Bloomberg Television. She’s also spent time as an attorney and an investment banker, but these days she’s best known for her transformative philanthropic work. As the board member of several charitable nonprofits, she works to help pro...

 Today’s show features the Lerner twins: Andrew, a divorce lawyer and Mike, a marriage therapist. And they work across the hall from each other! Throughout the episode, the brothers discuss the symbiotic nature of their professions, despite the initial humorous contrast. They emphasize their shared goal of helping people through tough times and highlight the advantages of their collaborative appro...

Today’s guest is Gurdeep Singh Pall (’89, MS Computer and Information Science), Corporate Vice President for Business AI at Microsoft. He is an "intrepreneur," a product strategist, and an enthusiastic technologist. Having spent more than three decades at Microsoft, Gurdeep is now focusing on creating scalable and ethical Autonomous Systems. His tenure at Microsoft began during the adven...

Mark Twain once said, “Too much of anything is bad, but too much good whiskey is barely enough.” Today’s guest knows a little something about whiskey. Alex Chasko is the Master Distiller and Blender and was employee number one at Teeling Whiskey, which was built in 2012 and was the first new distillery in Dublin for over 125 years. However, Alex didn't start there. His passion for brewing can be s...

Describing himself as a “serial entrepreneur and investor” Eugene local Chad Barczak got his start in business at the age of 14 and never looked back, that is, until he decided it was time to take an “adult gap year” in his early 50s. Along the way he founded a massively successful snowboard company, earned a BS (’98) and MBA (’99) from the UO Lundquist School of Business as a non-traditional stud...

While some of us spent the long days of the early pandemic cleaning out the refrigerator or adopting a puppy, others – like Dr. M Jackson – spent it searching for a hidden hoard of pirate gold in Alaska. The adventure, filmed in summer 2020 and chronicled in the hit 2022 Netflix series Pirate Gold of Adak Island , is but one of many far-flung locales that this UO grad has traveled in her exciting...

Today we are joined by John Pooley, an '82 graduate of the business school. John is a food production industry expert who recently became CEO of Stir Foods, a custom sauce manufacturer based in Orange County, California. As if he didn’t have enough on his dinner plate, John keeps busy through his board memberships in the following companies: Tropicale Foods, American Nuts, McClancy Foods & Fla...

Today we are joined by Jen Bell, BA '94 (Journalism/Advertising). Jen is Partner and Strategy Director of Bell+Funk, a marketing and advertising agency in Eugene, Oregon. Jen began her advertising career in San Francisco. With renewed appreciation for the joys and opportunities of small-town life (Jen grew up in rural Oregon), she returned to her home state 15 years ago to build her successful fir...

Corey duBrowa is Google’s Vice President of Global Communication and Public Affairs. He’s here to talk to us about his incredible career path, what it’s like to be a top executive at one of the world’s most innovative and influential companies, and give us a glimpse into his weekly 1:1 meetings with Google CEO Sundar Pichai . Corey also talks about why he’s remained deeply involved with UO and wha...

This is a University of Oregon Women In Flight takeover for their Go Do Anything campaign celebrating Title IX’s 50th anniversary. Sports Illustrated voted Jackie Joyner-Kersee the Greatest Female Athlete of All-Time. Her lengthy athletic accomplishments are remarkable, but it’s her work in philanthropy, children's education, racial equality, and women’s rights that she’s most proud of today. Jack...

Tiffany Kimmel BA ‘09 (Electronic Media Production) took the story of a family trauma and turned it into an award winning stop-motion short film. She grew up in a tight-knit Christian homeschool community in rural Oregon before making her way to the UO. Today, she’s the owner of Nihil Delcarandum, a Los Angeles creative company and has done writing for brands such as Apple, YouTube, and FX. ...

Right now, millions of people across the country are currently awaiting The United States Supreme Court decision on the future of DACA. It took a senior year college application for Briselda Molina (BA Journalism ‘11) to learn that she was a Dreamer. Here at the UO, a “Dreamer” refers to Undocumented, DACA-mented, Tuition Equity, and students of mixed status families. Briselda shares how her undoc...

What's it like to coordinate thousands of journalists at one of the world's largest sporting events? Today's guest, Jeff Oliver BS '02 (public relations, political science) is about to find out! Jeff is the media experience manager for the July 2022 World Athletics Championships Oregon22, a biennial global sporting event bringing together the world’s most elite track and field athletes. This summe...

The Washington post called Ashton Eaton '10 one of the greatest track and field athletes the United States has ever produced. Today he’s here to talk to us about his journey to the Olympics, life after being a professional athlete and what his favorite junk food is now that he’s no longer competing. Ashton is being interviewed by May Wu '15, a Duck with an amazing podcast called TBD (To Be Discuss...

Today we are joined by Stephen Greene CBE, co-founder, and CEO of RockCorps. RockCorps produces concerts, but you can’t buy tickets. Only community volunteers can earn them. RockCorps has worked with over 250 artists to put on concerts for over 180,000 youth volunteers in 10 different countries. Concert headliners have included global superstars such as Rihanna, Maroon 5, and Lady Gaga. Stephen Gr...

Today we are joined by Dr. Sarah Brady, PhD ‘13 (Chemistry) who holds the position of Deputy Director at the California Council on Science and Technology (CCST). CCST’s core mission is to ensure that California policy is strengthened and informed by scientific knowledge, research, and innovation. She’s being interviewed by SOJC Professor Mark Blaine, MS ‘00 (Literary Nonfiction). Mark’s work focus...

Today we’re joined by California-based alumna, Dr. Parneet Pal. Parneet attended medical school in India at the age of 17 and has followed her passion for learning and teaching throughout her time at the University of Oregon and beyond. Parneet is Chief Science Officer of Wisdom Labs, a Bay Area based company focused on lessening stress, burnout, and loneliness in the workplace. She says research...

Today’s guest has had a hand in shaping some of the funniest shows on television. Kent Alterman got his start in the world of political comedy working with Michael Moore on a show called TV Nation. He worked his way up to become the President of Comedy Central, and has recently launched a brand new production company called Good Walk Entertainment. He was our featured commencement speaker in 2016,...