University of Iowa students don’t just appear in and provide the voice for this year’s national TV spot. Their experiences and perspectives helped shape the story it tells.
Story: Emily Nelson
Photography: Justin Torner and courtesy of Tye Miller
Videography: UI Office of Strategic Communication
Published: Sept. 1, 2026
When the University of Iowa’s new national TV spot airs during Hawkeye sporting events this year, viewers will hear a student talking about what makes the college experience valuable.
And the voice — and the ideas behind the words — come directly from a Hawkeye.
Tye Miller, a fourth-year mathematics education student from West Liberty, Iowa, provides the voice-over for the new spot. Meanwhile, recent Iowa graduate and current College of Dentistry student Nick Ascher makes a memorable appearance at the end.
Their involvement reflects a priority for the Office of Strategic Communication team that creates the university’s annual commercial: If you want to tell people what it’s like to be a Hawkeye, current UI students need to be part of the conversation.
“Students are closest to our target audience: prospective students,” says Clarity Guerra, video coordinator in OSC. “We consult with them to make sure messaging rings true, language sounds authentic, and imagery doesn’t fall flat.”
The team recorded podcast style conversations with small groups of students, listening to them talk about their experiences at Iowa. Those conversations reinforced an important theme: While students care about the outcomes of a college education, they also place tremendous value on the people they meet, the relationships they build, and finding a community where they belong.
Participating students get a glimpse into the intensive process required to take an idea from an initial brief to a finished product. That includes the exciting moments as well as the difficult decisions when favorite clips, concepts, or lines ultimately must be cut to make the whole piece stronger.
“The PSA is the most visible piece of creative the video team works on, and I hope students feel a bit of a thrill being able to be part of that process,” Guerra says.
Learn more about the Hawkeyes behind Iowa’s new game-day commercial.
Tye Miller’s Iowa experience has included music, education, game-day traditions, and now a national audience as the voice of the University of Iowa’s new TV spot.
Finding his place — and his voice — at Iowa
Tye Miller’s journey at Iowa has been a winding one.
He began as a neuroscience major on the pre-med track, switched to engineering, and eventually found his way to math education working toward a master’s degree in teaching through the undergraduate to graduate program.
“My mom is an educator and is now a principal, and my dad works in the school district as a librarian,” Miller says. “So, I always knew education was something that I might end up in. I decided I would give it a try, and I have loved the TEP (Teacher Education Program) and College of Education here.”
He says the changes along the way helped him learn about himself while introducing him to people he may never have met had he stayed on a single academic path.
“I got to meet a lot of people from different backgrounds,” Miller says. “We’re all walking very different paths now, but we still make time to see each other and hang out.”
Miller has found community outside the classroom as well.
He joined the Hawkeye Marching Band and played alto saxophone his first two years before successfully auditioning for the drumline and switching to cymbals. This year, he also serves as an undergraduate staff member for the cymbal line.
Many of his favorite Iowa memories involve Kinnick Stadium, from experiencing his first Hawkeye football game as a member of the marching band to participating in the Hawkeye Wave. He also is involved in Dance Marathon, giving him another connection to the children and families supported by the game-day tradition.
These experiences — the unexpected turns, friendships, mentors, and communities he has found — made Miller a natural fit for a commercial built around what students gain from their college years.
Miller became involved with the project through his summer work on the university’s orientation executive team. He and other students sat down for a recorded conversation with members of the Office of Strategic Communication about Iowa.
“Some of the phrasing he used in the recorded conversation helped shape the language in the final script,” Guerra says.
Miller’s role then grew beyond inspiring part of the script. He became its voice.
“I got an email asking me to audition, and I thought, ‘Why not? It can’t hurt to try,’” Miller says.
Picture yourself at Iowa
From game-day traditions to student organizations, classrooms, and campus communities, Hawkeyes find countless ways to explore who they are and who they want to become. See what life at Iowa has to offer.
Miller says he has been telling friends about his role, and his mom is especially excited to tell people that her son is the voice of the University of Iowa’s TV commercial.
For Miller, the words feel particularly meaningful because they reflect his own journey.
“I took a lot of what I said in the commercial very close to heart,” Miller says. “I was an 18-year-old three years ago now — holy smokes! — choosing where to go to college.”
It’s a student story that helped shape the university’s story — and it’s one that Miller is proud to share with a national audience.
“I have grown to find Iowa City and University of Iowa my home,” Miller says. “It’s very fitting, I think.”
Nick Ascher, a 2025 University of Iowa graduate and current College of Dentistry student, appears in the university’s new national TV spot. His path at Iowa combined business, health sciences, and a goal of one day practicing dentistry in a small Iowa community.
A fun celebratory moment frames the final shot
While Miller provides the voice of the new TV spot, Nick Ascher helps put a face on the Iowa experience.
Ascher, who grew up in Grundy Center, Iowa, graduated from the UI in 2025 with a degree in enterprise leadership while completing the coursework necessary for dental school. His Iowa experience stretched well beyond what he expected — including his cameo in the new TV spot.
The footage featured at the end of the commercial shows Ascher sitting next to his friend, Rhett Kline, during the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences’ commencement ceremony. Ascher remembers the moment being filmed: His friend noticed the camera and began waving and pointing at it, catching Ascher off guard.
“I was just surprised,” Ascher says. “I wasn’t ever expecting this to come out of it.”
When he learned the footage would be used, Ascher immediately told Kline, who, along with other family and friends Ascher has told, is excited for the commercial to start airing.
And while Ascher admits he had a moment of hesitation about being featured so prominently, it didn’t last long.
“It’s such a cool opportunity,” he says. “Why would I pass it up?”
Now in his second year at the UI College of Dentistry, he says Iowa appealed to him because of its health sciences, strong business programs, and sense of community.
Coming from a high school class of just 45 students, Ascher remembers feeling anxious about arriving at a much larger university.
“But once I got here and settled in, I made friends and found a really nice community,” Ascher says.
Ascher says that when he got to Iowa, he was teeter-tottering between pre-med and pre-dental. It was his hometown dentist who suggested he shadow a few dentists to see what they do and get their thoughts.
“After I shadowed a handful of dentists, they all agreed that dentistry was a really great calling and great way of life, so I decided to go for it,” Ascher says.
He paired his pre-dental studies with an enterprise leadership degree because he hopes to own his own practice one day. A capstone project during his studies required students to start a mock business.
Students: Get involved!
The Iowa experience is shaped by the people you meet, the communities you join, and the opportunities you pursue. Discover student organizations, leadership programs, service opportunities, and traditions that help Hawkeyes make Iowa their own.
“My group decided to open a dental practice, and it was cool to do that and see what the costs are and what the profit margins are and stuff like that,” Ascher says. “It really opened my eyes a lot.”
After graduating from dental school, Ascher plans to return to his roots and practice in a small town in Iowa.
“You get to know people a little bit more,” Ascher says. “And I grew up seeing my hometown dentist donate a lot to the schools and stuff. You can really be a cornerstone in your community by helping out and making a difference.”
