COLLEGE PARK — Master’s alum Maria Reeve ’92, the Minnesota Star Tribune’s executive director of culture and careers, and graduating senior Eddy Calkins have been selected as the University of Maryland Philip Merrill College of Journalism’s 2026 commencement speakers, Dean Rafael Lorente announced.
Merrill College’s commencement ceremony will be held at 1 p.m. on May 20 at Reckord Armory on the UMD campus. No tickets are required. It will be live-streamed on the college’s YouTube page.
Reeve, a Merrill College Hall of Famer, has built a career as a newsroom leader at the Houston Chronicle, Star Tribune and St. Paul Pioneer Press. She was recently named to her new position after returning to the Star Tribune as managing editor for news in 2023.
Reeve was one of the managers overseeing the coverage of the shootings of elected officials in Minnesota last summer, the mass shooting at Annunciation Catholic School and the federal government's Operation Metro Surge in the Twin Cities that resulted in the deaths of two Minneapolis residents.
She previously was the Houston Chronicle's executive editor and Hearst Texas' vice president-editor for content initiatives. She was the first person of color to be named top editor at the Chronicle.
Before leaving to become a managing editor at the Chronicle in 2019, Reeve was assistant managing editor/news at the Star Tribune, where she worked for eight years, also leading a features team and serving as deputy metro editor.
Reeve worked as a reporter and editor at the Pioneer Press for 19 years before joining the Star Tribune. She has also served as a juror for the Pulitzer Prizes.
Calkins is a Howard County, Maryland, native, who studied journalism with a minor in linguistics. From the first day of his freshman year, he found his passion for broadcast journalism. He spent numerous semesters with Merrill College’s Capital News Service TV as a reporter, producer and member of the technical crew.
Calkins traveled to London with The Shirley Povich Center for Sports Journalism in January. Over the 10-day study abroad trip, he produced multimedia content for CNS. He also served as the executive producer for Terrapin Sports Central over the last year.
Outside the college, Calkins is wrapping up a yearlong internship at NBC4 Washington. He also worked as an intern for FOX 45 Baltimore, Baltimore Fishbowl and University of Maryland Athletics. After graduation, Calkins looks forward to contributing to local TV news to make a difference in his community.
For more information, contact:
Josh Land, Communications Manager
joshland@umd.edu