Columbia Student Named Intern of the Year at ESPN Chicago and Lands Job

Campus Communications Staff / Mar 27, 2026

person standing in front of window with espn chicago signage
Alex Leon, a senior at Columbia College Chicago, secures a highly competitive paid internship that leads to recognition for his work and a job.

Alex Leon, a senior at Columbia College Chicago, took a gamble that really paid off. 

Despite having a sure-thing summer internship in hand last spring, he opted to throw his hat in the ring for another, highly competitive internship at ESPN Chicago.  

“I kind of bet on myself to get the ESPN internship,” he says 

That bet proved to be an extremely good one, with Leon securing an internship at the local ESPN radio affiliate, which features local talk shows and serves as the radio broadcast home to the Chicago Bears and Chicago White Sox. 

And the payoffs didn’t end there.  

ESPN Chicago offered him a job this past fall. And Good Karma Brands, which operates ESPN radio affiliates, named Leon an intern of the year.

While the recognition was meaningful, Leon says the relationships he built at ESPN Chicago mattered even more. 

“If I had to give up the award and just keep the tight-knit community, I would do that in an instant,” he says. 

How an Internship Turned Into a Job 

Leon, who will graduate in May 2026 with a degree in Audio Arts and a minor in Marketing, can’t take all the credit for his success, though. He received an important assist from Columbia College Chicago’s Career Center. While Leon submitted his application independently, it was the Career Center’s Tom Joyce who reached out directly to ESPN Chicago on Leon’s behalf to help put Leon’s resume at the top of the application pile and land an interview.  

In the end, ESPN selected only two interns of 450 applicants, with Leon being one.  

During the three-month, paid internship, Leon worked four days a week, immersing himself in all aspects of ESPN Chicago Radio.  

He edited clips for social media, posting and scheduling across Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter as well as attended promotional events and Bears preseason games, running promotions and helping with live broadcasts. 

“It was one of the best internship experiences I’ve ever had,” he says. 

As part of a capstone-style project, he pitched an idea to ESPN leadership on how to engage younger audiences, focusing on short-form content and a live-streamed basketball event featuring local streamers.  

After completing the summer internship, he received a call offering him a position as a digital producer, a role he currently holds as he finishes his last semester at Columbia. And in February, he received news about being named intern of the year. 

Lessons Learned

Leon credits his ESPN Chicago internship experience with shaping his confidence and ability to advocate for his ideas. 

“Being able to communicate what you want in a professional setting — that’s what I learned,” he says. 

Leon says he will carry forward the lessons from ESPN Chicago, especially the value of networking and empowerment. 

For him, the experience reinforced the idea that betting on yourself is often the best move you can make.

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