BLOOMINGTON, Ill. - Taiah Gallisath and Kelly Carlson will join the Illinois Wesleyan University athletic communications department ahead of the 2023-24 school year Assistant Athletic Director for Athletic Communications Katie Gonzales announced Thursday, June 1. Gallisath will begin her role as Assistant Director of Athletic Communications immediately, while Carlson will assume her graduate assistant role beginning in August.

With the addition of Gallisath and Carlson, Illinois Wesleyan will boast an all women staff as Gonzales and second-year graduate assistant Meredith Mahoney round out the department. 

"Taiah's knowledge of our conference both in athletic communications and as a student-athlete make her a great addition to our department," Gonzales said. "She is a talented storyteller and will serve as a great mentor to our student workers and graduate assistants."

Gallisath comes to Bloomington following a two-year run as a graduate assistant at North Central College. No stranger to the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin, Gallisath worked with numerous sports during her tenure at NCC. Most notably, she covered the Cardinals men's volleyball team's run to the NCAA Division III National Championship match. She was recognized nationally for her feature story on a student-athlete navigating mental health, which earned her the NCAA Division III Identity Award and a grant to attend the College Sports Communicators Convention later this month.

Prior to joining North Central in her graduate assistant role, she was a high jumper on the track and field team along with a student worker in the athletic communications office.

At Illinois Wesleyan, Gallisath will serve as the primary contact for cross country, women's soccer, men's and women's wrestling, men's and women's track and field, and men's lacrosse.

Carlson, a familiar face around the IWU campus, graduated from Illinois Wesleyan just last month. A four-year member of the women's basketball and women's lacrosse teams over the past four years, Carlson has worked in the IWU athletic communications office since she first stepped foot on campus in 2019. During that time, Carlson did everything from stats to social media, to writing, to video editing. 

"Kelly was the first student worker I hired and has been one of our best student workers since," Gonzales reflected. "She has a tremendous work ethic and brings a great perspective to our department. I am excited to see her continued growth over the next two years as she moves into this new role after balancing so much during her undergraduate career."

In her new role, the Western Springs, Ill. native will serve as the primary contact for the Titan men's soccer, women's bowling, men's and women's swimming & diving, and baseball teams.