Elissa Nadworny likes to cover higher education because she sees it as a gateway to stories about everything, from housing to transportation to parenting to politics. But that’s not her only interest — she’s been covering the war in Ukraine from the ground and has traveled to Jordan to report on Syrian food aid programs. She’s also covered the White House for Bloomberg.

On this episode of The Lead, Elissa talks about uncovering unique higher ed stories, reporting internationally and interviewing people who have experienced trauma.

Elissa mentions one of her recent projects where she followed a class of kindergarteners in Ukraine to showcase the impact of the war on children and families. It aired on NPR’s All Things Considered and can be found here.

“I think sometimes people are waiting for the job to make the work that they want to make. And I just don’t think you have to wait.”

Guest: Elissa Nadworny, higher education correspondent at NPR.

Jacqueline GaNun is a graduate assistant in the journalism department at the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication.