As digital platforms continue to reshape how stories are told and brands are built, two Canisius University alumni are leading the way in creative services, journalism and digital strategy.
Blending technical expertise and ethical thinking with collaboration and adaptability, the careers of Christopher Hyzy ’12 and Nick Veronica ’13 reflect how a Canisius education prepares students to be both well-rounded and career-ready.
When Hyzy was studying digital media arts at Canisius University, the media world was already beginning to shift. Today, as assistant director of creative services at Buffalo Toronto Public Media, he’s helping lead that transformation—guiding branding and digital content strategy in an increasingly digital-first media environment.
While Veronica followed a different path, he was also thrown into the same evolving landscape. After earning his degree in journalism and communication, he built a career at the intersection of storytelling and technology. Now, as director of digital products at Sports Business Journal, he shapes how audiences discover and experience sports business news across platforms.
Though their careers unfolded into different corners of the media industry, Hyzy and Veronica share a common foundation. Their stories reflect how Canisius graduates combine creativity, critical thinking and adaptability to thrive as the digital media landscape continues to evolve.
Christopher Hyzy ’12: Designing with Purpose in a Digital-First World
Hyzy was drawn to Canisius University’s digital media arts (DMA) program because of its emphasis on close faculty relationships and hands-on learning.
“I had zero interest in being a nameless face in a giant lecture hall,” he said. “Canisius gave me that opportunity, especially in the DMA department, where I built real relationships with both professors and classmates over my four years,” he said. Those relationships and experiences extended beyond the classroom. While at Canisius, Hyzy became heavily involved with Little Theatre, the university’s on-campus theater club, where he designed posters, programs and promotional materials.
“That was my first real experience designing with purpose,” he noted. “Designing for someone else, taking feedback and collaborating with people who weren’t designers.”
The experience helped him understand that design is about more than aesthetics. “I learned design wasn’t just about looking good, it was about helping tell a story,” Hyzy said. “Without even realizing it at the time, that gave me real-world design experience. I left school knowing how to design for people, not just for myself.”
The digital media arts curriculum at Canisius gave Hyzy a well-rounded foundation while allowing him to focus on graphic design. Courses in video editing, audio editing, interactive multimedia, web design and DMA law and ethics all proved valuable. “I came out of the program with a working understanding of how all the pieces fit together,” he said. “That broad foundation has been invaluable and has given me a leg up time and time again.”
One course left a particularly lasting impression. Hyzy points to DMA 384: Digital Typography as a turning point in his development. The capstone took students to the Western New York Book Arts Center to physically set type on a printing press. “It was such a unique, hands-on experience,” he said. “I still have the poster we made, framed and hanging in my office.”
Today, Hyzy’s work is almost entirely digital. “Fast forward 12 years, and probably 95 percent of what I do now is digital-only,” he said, ranging from social media and broadcast elements to web graphics, podcast art, and digital-first branding. Rather than resist the shift, he embraced it. “I didn’t try to fight that shift — I leaned into it.”
Jesuit values continue to inform his approach to creative leadership. “If it’s beautiful but dishonest, it doesn’t work,” Hyzy said. “If it’s meaningful but confusing, it doesn’t work either.” That balance of purpose, honesty and collaboration, he said, shapes nearly everything he creates, particularly in public media.
Nick Veronica ’13: Building Digital Sports Media with Purpose and Curiosity
Nick Veronica arrived at Canisius University already focused on a career in sports journalism. Though he initially thought he wanted a traditional residential campus, his visit to Canisius changed his mind.
“When I finally took the visit, it just felt like home,” he said. “I sought out The Griffin table [Canisius University’s student newspaper] at freshman orientation and never looked back.”
Veronica credits faculty mentorship and hands-on student media with preparing him for the realities of journalism in a digital age. Professors believed in him early, he said, and challenged him to grow. Still, no experience matched his time working on The Griffin.
“Nothing comes close to hands-on experience,” Veronica said. “My time working on The Griffin prepared me for the professional world far more than any other part of my college experience.” Production nights in the newsroom stand out in his memory. “We didn’t have all the answers, but we were determined to figure it out,” he said. “We made plenty of mistakes along the way, but sometimes that’s how you learn and get better.”
Veronica also entered the field during a major digital shift, beginning in the blog era before social media fully exploded. “With a blog, you did everything,” he said. “You were the reporter and copy editor and headline writer and design editor and web editor and photographer and social media team all in one.”
Writing articles during that period gave him confidence and versatility that opened doors early in his career as a sports digital content editor and a Buffalo Bills writer at The Buffalo News; a freelance content producer for the BBC; a sports researcher with the NBC Sports Group and a digital executive producer with WIVB-WNYLO-TV in Buffalo.
Now overseeing digital products at Sports Business Journal, Veronica focuses heavily on user experience and audience engagement. “We live in an attention economy,” he said. “If what you’re offering isn’t interesting enough, you’ll be forgotten.”
Jesuit principles continue to guide his work, too. “Journalism is essentially a public service,” Veronica said. “If you’re not a person for others, you probably won’t get very far.”
A Shared Foundation at Canisius University
Together, Hyzy and Veronica illustrate how a Canisius University education in digital media and journalism prepares graduates to adapt, lead, and create with intention. Looking back, Hyzy says the most important takeaway wasn’t just technical skill. “The biggest thing Canisius gave me wasn’t just technical skills — it was confidence.”
For Veronica, the mission remains clear despite the challenges of modern media: “What you do matters. You can make a difference in the world.”
