A Northwestern Life, with MaryAnn Ihejirika Marsh ’85

Frishman is an author and former news reporter and editor. She has written human interest and medical health articles and recently began writing children’s books. Her recent book, Nina Allender: Suffrage Cartoonist, illuminates the life and work of an underappreciated hero in the women’s suffrage movement. Join us as we discuss how she helped tell the story of one of America’s first female political cartoonists and what Women’s History Month means to her.

Marsh has served the University in countless meaningful ways, including as president of the Northwestern University Black Alumni Association (NUBAA), a member of the Northwestern University Leadership Circle (NULC) Chicago Regional Board, and a host of alumni events at her jazz club, M Lounge, in Chicago’s South Loop. She was an importer-exporter of American blue jeans in Europe before returning to Chicago to become an art gallery owner and now a real estate broker. Join us as we explore her fascinating career trajectory and the incredible story of how a Northwestern professor helped reunite her Nigerian family in Chicago.

McCollough Seletzky was a litigator before becoming an award-winning writer and memoirist with work featured in the Atlantic, O Magazine, and the New York Times. Join us as we discuss her memoir, The Kneeling Man: My Father’s Life as a Black Spy Who Witnessed the Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., and her journey to discover her family history.

Hahn and Sandler met on campus and have been a Northwestern power couple ever since! Their careers have included acting and producing credits on some of Hollywood’s most memorable productions, from New Girl and Meet the Robinsons to WandaVision and Private Life. Join us as they discuss their time at Northwestern, finding their way in Hollywood, and working together in the industry. 

Gallagher is a television producer and author based in Los Angeles. She worked on MTV’s wildly successful The Real World and went on to become an executive producer for several major reality TV shows, including The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Snoop Dogg’s Father Hood, and Married at First Sight. Join us as she talks about her time in Hollywood and how she found the inspiration for her Twist My Charm young adult book series.

Jackson is an author, playwright, and poet currently serving as the Illinois Poet Laureate. She is a Chicagoan through and through, having grown up on the South Side, and uses her experiences in the area as inspiration for her poems and novels. Her works have been awarded major literary honors, including the Pushcart Prize, Carl Sandburg Literary Award, and American Book Award. Join us as we talk through her creative trajectory and the sights, smells, and sounds of Chicago that influenced some of her most recognizable projects.

Lord is a Peabody and Emmy Award–winning journalist, an author, and a Vietnam War veteran. He went from a career in television news management to writing the book, 50 Years After Vietnam: Lessons and Letters from the War I Hated Fighting, in 2018. Lord has reported in several major American cities, including Nashville, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Washington, DC, and was also a correspondent for NBC News. Join us as he discusses breaking news, pursuing the truth, and sharing your own story.