If you get your early morning news from KOLN-10/11 NOW, or enjoy the feature program “Pure Nebraska,” you are seeing the work of a Northeast Community College alumnus.
Daulton Thomas is a technical media producer for KOLN. He graduated from Northeast in 2019 after earning a degree in media arts, and certificates in media production and broadcast production.
His day starts at 3:45 a.m., and his daily responsibilities include preparation for 5 and 6 a.m. newscasts on KOLN and KSNB and the hour-long “Pure Nebraska” program, along with weather cut ins used by CBS and NBC during their national morning shows.
“I’ve been doing this for about six years,” Daulton said. “My job includes lots of master control, directing, all behind the scenes stuff. I would recommend this kind of job to anyone interested in the production side of media.”
Daulton graduated from Norfolk Senior High in 2016. He said the Northeast hands-on approach to learning appealed to him.
“There was a little bit of time in the classroom,” he said, “but the learning was mostly hands on and I knew the instructor at the time, Brian Anderson, so that kind of helped me make that decision.”
Daulton said he really enjoyed all the live sports the Northeast broadcast students got to cover.
“Directing games and getting into the radio portion of things were my favorite activities,” Daulton said. “It felt like you were actually working at a real radio station, doing broadcasts. I really enjoyed learning those kinds of skills.”
Daulton said he uses the skills he learned at Northeast in his current job.
“The concepts are the same,” he explained, “but the technology is different. Everything is a lot more automated with robotic cameras. I learned to direct manually with a switcher, and now we code everything.”
At Northeast, Daulton was a TRIO student. TRIO SSS is federally funded and includes eight programs targeted to serve and assist low-income individuals, first-generation college students, and individuals with disabilities.
Daulton said school, especially math and science, had always been difficult for him.
“It was good that I had the resources at Northeast,” he said. “I always went to the math learning center. They were so helpful. I could do my homework, and if I had a question, there was someone I could ask for help.”
TRIO students interested in transferring to a four-year institution after graduating from Northeast receive additional support from the program. Daulton said he was thinking about transferring to UNL at the time.
“They got me connected with that and helped me understand the process,” he said. “And they got me set up to visit the university.”
Daulton’s career path changed his education plans, and he started working for KOLN right after graduation. But had he decided to transfer to UNL or any other four-year school, TRIO would have been there to provide continuing support.
“Anybody in high school who is unsure of what they want to do, or maybe struggling with class work, I would recommend Northeast Community College,” Daulton said. “It might be tough. You just have to grind through it, but you can do it.”
Any student interested in learning more about Northeast Community College may visit northeast.edu/admissions.
ID: Daulton Thomas
Please Note: This article is part of a series of features dedicated to sharing the significant success of students through Northeast Community College’s federally-funded TRiO Student Support Services (SSS) program, a program that is currently facing elimination in President Trump’s proposed FY 2026 budget.
A program for low-income, first-generation students and individuals with disabilities, Northeast’s TRiO SSS program stands as one of the most successful in the nation, boasting a 98% fall-to-fall persistence rate. In addition, 88% of Northeast TRiO SSS students graduate, compared to the national average of 39% for all community college students. Additionally, 98% of Northeast’s TRiO students maintain a GPA of 2.0 or higher.
Members of the public are asked to consider contacting their Congressional offices to voice their concerns about cuts or elimination of important higher education programs such as TRiO and Pell grants.
To view all the stories, graphics and photos in this series, please click here to be linked to the Northeast website. https://northeast.edu/giving/feature-stories
