Class of 2025: Sarah Hagen shines in mass (and brass) communications

By Brian McNeill

In January this year, Virginia Commonwealth University student journalists Sarah Hagen and Andrew Kerley traveled to Washington to cover President Donald Trump’s inauguration, a Trump rally and the anti-Trump People’s March.

Reporting for VCU’s Capital News Service, a program of the Richard T. Robertson School of Communication in which journalism students cover politics and policy, Hagen and Kerley braved temperatures in the 20s, winter storm conditions and multiple days of topping 20,000 steps while interviewing Trump supporters and protesters alike.

“It showed me what I was capable of,” Hagen said. “I felt like I was going to get trench foot, but we got great interviews and wrote great articles. I’m really proud of the coverage that we did. One of our articles, on the People’s March, was published on the front page of the Richmond Free Press. I have that hanging on my wall.”

Hagen, a mass communications major and political science minor in the College of Humanities and Sciences who will graduate this month, devoted much of her time at VCU to learning journalism, both in the classroom and at the Commonwealth Times, where she serves as managing editor.

“A lot of journalism is learning on the job and being thrown into the fire,” she said. “I like to think I’ve come out of the other side stronger.”

Hagen was inspired to pursue a career in journalism while taking an AP government class at Cosby High School in Chesterfield County.

“I had an epiphany while we were learning about Watergate,” she said. “I was like, ‘I should major in journalism.’”

Within the first two weeks of her freshman year at VCU, Hagen signed up to cover news for the CT. Just days later, her first article, also co-bylined with Kerley, now the CT’s executive editor, and former news editor Jack Glagola, was published on the front page.

“It was kind of a wreck because all three of us were writing for the first time, and we were trying to merge our voices together. … In the first round of edits, there were like 100 comments from the editors. I was like, ‘Oh my God. This is so embarrassing,’” Hagen said. “But I stuck with it. And it was so cool to see my first byline to be a front-pager. Yeah, and I just, I stuck with it. My dad actually framed that article. He was like, ‘If you have an office one day, you can hang this up in your office.’”

Her most challenging yet valuable experience as a student journalist came in spring 2024 when she covered a pro-Palestinian protest outside Cabell Library. Hagen, Kerley, Glagola and sports editor Thai Wilson covered the protest until 11 p.m., and then wrote a roughly 2,000-word article at the Student Media Center until around 4 a.m. Local TV station CBS 6 shared Hagen’s videos from the protest, and her videos also were picked up by Reuters, the New York Times and ABC News.

“It was very valuable to see the power of community and the power of student journalism in that coverage,” she said. “I was doing live coverage on Instagram the whole night, and I had like 50 people reach out to me after to say, like, ‘You’re the reason I knew it was happening.’”

Last spring, Hagen covered the General Assembly as part of Capital News Service, which also sent her to Washington for her capstone project. Alix Bryan, an assistant professor of digital journalism in the Robertson School and director of CNS, said that while Hagen was herself learning new methods of reporting, she was also a mentor for several students who were shy.

“Sarah is definitely the type of reporter who will run after Speaker of the House Don Scott when I point him out and ask her to get a quote from him on a piece of legislation,” Bryan said. “She had the rigorous persistence needed to land an ‘A’ in the course. There was never a time where she missed a deadline or had an excuse for why she could not do something. She reported important stories with balance, ranging from regulating invasive plants to how families of students with disabilities were concerned over cuts to the Department of Education.”

In addition to the CT and her journalism classes, Hagen has served in VCU’s chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists since her freshman year, rising through the ranks to become president. Among her accomplishments in that role, she facilitated networking between students and professional reporters, and she organized events such as an election panel with Richmond political journalists.

Hagen’s dream job is to cover education in local news. Studying journalism at VCU, she said, has been one of the best decisions of her life, but “even if I don’t end up being in journalism, the experiences I’ve had in college have been so valuable that it’s all been worth it.”

Bryan said Hagen is a “person who, without any reservations, deserves a spot in a professional newsroom or at a publication.”

“She is certainly more seasoned than most college graduates – and I would argue more than many entry-level professionals,” Bryan said. “The news industry needs reporters like her, who understand the commitment to inform their communities and won’t stop until they have the story. It is always an honor to teach students, but even more so to collaborate with students – which is what I have done with Sarah over the years. I wish her all the best and can’t wait to have her back to VCU for our signature portfolio event.”

Hagen’s time at VCU was not just focused on journalism. She has been a stalwart trombone-playing member of the Peppas Pep Band since her freshman year.

Having played trombone since sixth grade, Hagen wasn’t sure at first that she wanted to join the Peppas. “I was like, ‘I’ve been a band kid all my life. In college, I’m not going to be a band kid.’ But then I immediately became one again.’”

A friend took her to a rehearsal, and she was struck by how much fun it was playing hits like “Africa” by Toto and “Where Have You Been” by Rihanna.

“Peppas has just been the best time,” Hagen said. “My freshman year, we were going to basically every home game – volleyball, women’s basketball, men’s basketball. I got to go to Brooklyn for the A-10 tournament. It was incredible.”

Last year, Hagen again went to the A-10 tournament in Washington, which VCU won.

“D.C. isn’t as cool as Brooklyn, especially if you’re from Virginia,” she said. “But our final game was against George Mason, and their band was there. We’re like the two best pep bands, but we’re better. The energy in there – it was the best atmosphere. The whole band, we were revved up to a thousand. We were out for blood.”

Looking back on her three-and-a-half years at VCU, Hagen is grateful for what she learned and is hopeful she’s made her mark.

“Thank you. I mean, really thank you, VCU, for everything,” she said. “As much as I’ve wanted to pull my hair out sometimes during late nights at the library or an article that I literally just could not figure out how to write, I’ve always found my way to the end. And it’s been just a great place to live, to work, to report. Also, I love VCU basketball. Go Rams!”