Neil with his dog, Winsten Dan
"Six years have passed since my undergraduate studies, but they have been the most transformative and enriching of my life. I was born in Youngstown, Ohio, to blue-collar Slovak and Italian American lineages. My parents raised my three brothers and me in Houston, Texas, through the energy boom of the 1980s and 90s. These rather enjoyable years in suburbia familiarized me with tales of middle-America yet coaxed my mind to dream of exodus.
"In 2003, I graduated from the University of Texas as a film major, but a ramble through Europe after high school had convinced me that the world was vast, complex and in need of my explorations before I could adequately write about it. Since then, I have been a night porter in Yellowstone, a log home chinker, plumber, hospital chef and wildland firefighter in Montana, a foreign language instructor in the Czech Republic and South Korea, a sailor through the New York canal system and a ranch hand in Hawaii. During these years, I recorded the many people and places in tales of fiction and nonfiction.
"Montana, its wild spaces and culture, rooted in my heart the moment I stepped into its borders. I married here last summer to Jessica, who is a grower of organic produce and involved in local agricultural movements. We explore the forests and rivers together with our Australian cattle dog, Winsten Dan.
"Through my graduate work, I hope to establish myself within the professional world of journalism. I believe that UM’s J-School is uniquely positioned to influence the shape of our emerging media channels and to help guide the success of our future press. After six years away from academia, I am happy to be back in its halls.
"There are countless stories to scribe."
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