Jacquelyn Jeras Ellis 2006

Jacquelyn Jeras Ellis

BA Journalism and Mass Communication '92
Marietta, Ga.

Jacquelyn Jeras Ellis has chosen a career path in one of the country’s most competitive fields. And in less than 15 years, she’s gone all the way to the top. As weather anchor and meteorologist for the Cable News Network (CNN), Ellis communicates daily with millions of people in thousands of communities across the world about issues that affect human safety, and ultimately, human lives. Her outstanding contributions to CNN’s coverage of Hurricane Katrina last fall helped earn the network the prestigious Peabody Award.

Colleagues say Ellis has worked throughout her career to improve her own learning and advance the meteorology profession by advocating for new and more innovative approaches. She has been an active member of the American Meteorological Society for seven years and the National Weather Association for nine years, earning both organizations’ seals of approval.

After graduating from ISU in 1992 having already worked for the Iowa State Daily and WOI-TV, Ellis went on to work for KCAU in Sioux City, WEHT in Evansville, Ind., and WHO-TV in Des Moines. She received a Certificate of Broadcast Meteorology from Mississippi State University in 1998 and joined the CNN team in 1999. Her excellent on-air presence and knowledge of meteorology have allowed her to continually rise at the network. In addition to her work at CNN, Ellis has mentored many interns, including ISU students and local Atlanta high schoolers, while raising two children of her own: Aurora and Ashton.

Ellis and her husband, Michael (aerospace engineering ’92), are annual members of the ISU Alumni Association.