Abbey Zelko is awesome; here’s why.
An Indiana University of Pennsylvania senior and Robert E. Cook Honors College student, Abbey is the definition of a Campus Celebrity.
Abbey, 21, of Harrisburg is a journalism major at IUP with a minor in Spanish. When she isn’t studying, you can find her behind the news editor’s desk at the office of IUP’s campus newspaper, The Penn. This position includes “generating story ideas, assigning stories, editing and laying out pages,” according to Abbey. The journalism doesn’t end there. Abbey is also a television recap writer for Harrisburg’s online newspaper PennLive.com.
At PennLive, Abbey writes recaps of shows including “Best Ink” on Oxygen, “American Horror Story: Coven” on FX, and “Once Upon a Time” on ABC. She also writes feature articles for the Indiana Gazette.
Abbey said that her love of journalism stems from her dislike of math and science.
“All of my friends in high school went to school to become engineers, and I knew that I wanted to get as far away from science and math as I could,” Abbey said. “I knew I liked to write, and I thought journalism would be a lot of fun because I’d have the opportunity to learn and write about a lot of different topics.”
Over the years, Abbey has grown as a journalist and her hard work paid off when she won second place in the Pennsylvania News Media Association Keystone Award and the Pennsylvania Women’s Press Association scholarship.
Abbey said she has many inspirations including her parents, her sister, and her coworkers. However, in her career as an entertainment journalist, her main inspiration is Julia Hatmaker whom Abbey worked with during the summer of 2013 at PennLive.
“Julia was a great mentor during my internship,” Abbey said. “She is a very friendly and outgoing person who has great communication skills, especially with those that she interviews. She’s also very creative and a great writer, and she helped me become a better reporter.”
Upon graduation in May 2014, Abbey plans to work for a newspaper as a local entertainment reporter. However, she leaves advice for current students:
“I would advise current students not to limit themselves in college,” Abbey said. “My biggest regret is not studying abroad. I’m a Spanish minor, and I would have loved to spend a semester in Spain. But I was afraid to be away from my family and friends for such a long period of time. College only lasts four years, and students should take advantage of every opportunity they get.”