When Nancy Copic was young, she and her mom would climb onto the couch to watch the eleven o’clock news. It was their nightly ritual — one that quietly lit a spark.
Years later, that spark grew into a calling. After hearing a news anchor speak at her high school career fair, Copic knew that journalism wasn’t just something she admired. It was something she had to do.
Copic would go on to report the news across the nation — from her first TV gig in Bend, Oregon, to working in Kansas City, Missouri and finally putting down roots in the Pacific Northwest, where she anchored the evening news at KGW and interviewed Oprah not once, but twice.
SLIDESHOW : Click the photos to see pictures of Copic's career through the years.
But after nearly three decades on the air, Copic decided to make a different kind of impact, desiring to find a role that would allow her to pass on her professional and personal wisdom to aspiring journalists.
That job was assistant director of student media at the University of Portland. And for almost 16 years, Copic served as the adviser to UP’s student-led newspaper, The Beacon, shaping the newsroom and the community.
“I wanted to do something different for the next part of my life, and then this job came up,” Copic said. “It was kind of a combination of the things that I love, and I'm so grateful. I didn't really even know this job existed, but I feel like it was a really good fit for me.”
Now, as she steps into retirement, or as she calls it, “inspirement,” Copic plans to let inspiration guide her, a refreshing change of pace after a lifetime of ambition.
“I gave myself permission to have no plans, thinking that it's time to go and I will figure it out,” Copic said. “I just kind of want to see where the wind takes me.”
When Copic first arrived at UP, she had never advised before. So she did what journalists do best — she asked questions.
Copic looks up at paper print issues hanging in The Beacon newsroom.
At a student media conference, one speaker’s advice stuck with her: “Create a culture.”
That became her mission.
Copic built that culture over years of trust, empathy and the occasional karaoke night. Whether it was organizing The Beacon’s annual trip to the College Media Association Conference in New York City or welcoming staff into her home, she made sure The Beacon felt more like a family than just a publication.
Director of Student Activities Jeromy Koffler, who hired Copic and has worked closely with her over the years, reflects fondly on her contributions to The Beacon.
“Part of my appreciation and fondness for Nancy, and the way that she's worked, is that she's a relational leader,” Koffler said. “She's built relationships to the point where students feel included and welcome.”
And despite the lack of a journalism major, Copic became known as the de facto journalism professor at UP, according to Koffler.
“She was interested in teaching students the finer points of journalism and wanted to give back,” Koffler said. “Clearly, she is a very successful journalist, she understands the ethics of the profession, and she just has a really warm, positive way of working with students to help them grow and mentor.”
And many alums concur. Austin De Dios, now a county politics reporter at The Oregonian, believes that he will always be indebted to Copic for all that she taught him during his time on The Beacon.
“The editorial board my senior year used to joke that we'd be getting two degrees: one from UP and one from Nancy Copic's School of Journalism,” De Dios said in an email to The Beacon. “It also had the benefit of being true… Everything I learned about what it meant to be a journalist, I learned from Nancy.”
Copic with 2021-22 Editor-in-Chief Austin De Dios and the rest of The Beacon graduating seniors in April 2022. Photo courtesy of Nancy Copic.
That sentiment was echoed by CNN tech reporter Clare Duffy, who credits Copic with her start in journalism.
“Everyone who goes into journalism does so with the hope of making a positive impact in the world,” Duffy said in an email to The Beacon. “Nancy, of course, did that during her time as a reporter. And then she multiplied that impact countless times by training students to be dogged, sharp, thoughtful journalists. When people ask what I studied at the University of Portland, I often joke that I majored in The Beacon because no one had a greater impact on my college years (and my career since) than Nancy.”
Duffy said one of Nancy’s greatest strengths was that she never handed students the answers — she gave them the tools.
“When a former administration official insisted students not bring recording devices to complicated interviews, she trained us to re-ask the same question in different ways as many times as needed to be confident we'd gotten the correct answer down in our notes,” Duffy said. “She is whip smart and tough… the University of Portland is lucky to have had her — and we are all lucky to have had the privilege of learning from her.”
Copic with former Beacon News & Managing Editor Clare Duffy ('17) in New York at CNN, where Duffy covers tech for CNN Business. Photo Courtesy of Nancy Copic.
There were moments when telling the truth — or empowering students to do so — wasn’t easy. Copic remembers her early years at UP, when the administration sometimes pushed back on controversial reporting.
“Sometimes that pressure was not overt, but I always felt it,” Copic said. “It’s a lot better than it used to be – a lot better – but there were some really hard years, and every day I had to tell myself, ‘do the right thing.’”
Copic's office whiteboard with a "SLAY THE DAY" plaque above it.
One of the hardest moments came when The Beacon reported on UP’s exclusion of sexual orientation from its non-discrimination policy — a stance that, at the time, aligned with Catholic doctrine but alienated many students.
Students protested. The paper editorialized. Copic stood firm.
“The Beacon was just the messenger, and in the history of civil rights, you see, there's always a fight,” Copic said. “There's always a fight to get rights for marginalized people. So I reminded myself of that and that it's not necessarily going to be easy, so I took the heat, and ultimately, the Board of Regents approved sexual orientation about a year later.”
At graduation that spring, NBC correspondent Anne Thompson mentioned the “Redefine Purple Pride” movement in her speech. Copic looked around the stage and saw some of the same administrators who had once pushed back, now applauding.
“And I thought, ‘It’s right to do the right thing,’” Copic said.
With the SPJ Code of Ethics as her guide, Copic challenged authority, and her journalistic integrity is a skill that left lasting marks on Beaconites. For example, alum Rachel Rippetoe, senior reporter for Law 360 in New York, attributes her career to Copic’s encouragement.
“Nancy was fearless and she instilled that in us as well, that we had a responsibility not to any higher authority but to ourselves and to our peers and to the truth,” Rippetoe said. “It’s something I’ve carried with me into adulthood and will, I think, continue to carry with me for the rest of my life.”
Olivia Sanchez('18), Rachel Ramirez ('18), Beacon adviser Nancy Copic and Rachel Rippetoe('18) at a party at The Washington during the 2017 Online Journalism Association conference. Photo courtesy of Nancy Copic.
Many alums like Kate Cuadrado, former editor-in-chief, believe that Copic provided a space for students to grow, not just as writers but also as leaders and people.
“She has this incredible ability to break down whatever is stressing you out in a way that completely disarms the anxiety,” said Cuadrado. “I always felt like I could take anything on after speaking with her.”
Copic likes to say she became the mentor she once needed. But to students, she was more than a mentor. She was a mirror — someone who saw their potential long before they did.
Many former staffers have gone on to pursue careers in journalism at various platforms, including local organizations like The Oregonian, or national corporations such as CNN and ESPN (ABC). To Copic, watching alums launch their careers and succeed in their lives has been the most rewarding part of her job.
But her influence extends far beyond journalism. Over the years, Copic has become a steady support system for Beaconites, navigating not only the pressures of reporting but also the ups and downs of life — and she continues to play that role today.
Copic with Beacon editors visiting former Beacon editor-in-Chief and current host of "NBA Today" and "NBA Countdown" Malika Andrews ('17) on the set at ESPN in Los Angeles in September 2022. L to R: Copic, Chiara Profenna('23), Brie Haro ('23), Kate Cuadrado ('24). Photo courtesy of Nancy Copic.
She remains in contact with many of them, including alum Rachel Ramirez, a former CNN journalist who considers Copic not only a mentor but a friend.
“It’s hard to express my appreciation for Nancy without tearing up, because I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for her,” Ramirez said in an email to The Beacon. “She believed in me, like she did many student journalists. Her impact is so far-reaching that I feel like we don’t appreciate her enough for what she does.”
As Copic embarks on a new journey outside of journalism, her parting advice to The Beacon and her successor is to remember what a beacon is — a light that shines on areas that it needs to be seen.
“I'm just so grateful,” Copic said. “This is the most meaningful job I've ever had. You know, reporting was very meaningful to me, but I just feel like this position was made for me, and I was made for the position.”
Kaylee Monahan is a News Reporter for The Beacon. She can be reached at monahan26@up.edu
