2019 Tillman Scholar
Kristi Pelzel
Military Spouse
Georgetown University
M.A., Communication, Culture & Technology
“Passion and confidence move people forward, sometimes in a direction they least expected, but it ends up being the best thing that ever happened.”
Raised in a family where hard work was valued over education brought Kristi experiences of patience, flexibility, and resilience until she realized that she could only grow as much as her environment could support. Education was her bridge to opportunity, but it wasn’t an easy or traditional road. Months after her son was born, her husband deployed. During this time, they discovered their son had a debilitating illness.
Along the way, Kristi found a passion for visual communications and journalism, which have enabled her to support community and volunteer projects parallel to building a career. Her desire for growth in this field led her to earn a B.A. in Digital Technologies from Academy of Art University and an M.A. from Georgetown University in Communication, Culture, Technology.
The thematic purpose of her life of service and education followed her at every stop along the way, leading her into international journalism, enabling her to travel abroad and report from the U.S. Department of State, the United Nations, and The White House in Washington, D.C.