Asa and Jennifer Pollice Darrow with their son, Brooks, whom they adopted from South Korea in February.

Jennifer Pollice Darrow (‘94) loves to learn.

“I have been able to learn everything from the architecture of historic homes to the world of beauty and fashion to how candy bars and Twinkies are made,” said Darrow, who lives in Denver.

“In my latest endeavor I spent 15 hours a day for five days in a metal-fabricating shop watching a monster barbecue trailer being built. I now know all about plasma cutting, welding and how to smoke up a mean brisket.”

Darrow’s interest in snacks and monster barbecues didn’t happen overnight. Her company produces series and specials for the likes of The Discovery Channel, Food Network and HGTV.

“Currently, I supervise the production of Food Network’s ‘Unwrapped’ series, Style Network’s series ‘Stripped’ and several specials for Food Network. That means I oversee everything from the development of the original concepts through the photography, writing, editing and delivery of the final product,” she said.

“The most fun part of the job is constantly learning new things and meeting all kinds of fascinating, quirky and down-to-earth people. It’s also very rewarding to put together a story or show from initial pitch to fruition. It’s fantastic to piece together the puzzle through your research and field work to see it all turn into a great segment or show.”

Darrow worked her way up through the industry. Her first job was as an assistant in the graphics department at Starz Encore in Englewood.

“I just wanted to get my foot in the door at some sort of television operation,” she said. “From there I moved up to production assistant in promotions and then to producer for their kids' network called WAM."

Soon after, Darrow became a field producer at High Noon Productions where she helped with HGTV’s series “If Walls Could Talk.” She was promoted to series producer of “Unwrapped” and then to executive producer.

She offered thanks to former instructor Don Heider (Ph.D. ’97), now an assistant professor at the University of Texas, and Assistant Dean Steve Jones.

“Don Heider was the instructor who taught us the essentials of storytelling and to never miss a deadline. Also, I appreciate all the support that Mr. Jones gave in working through my internships. The experience I got as an intern at KUSA(Channel 9) and the contacts I made turned out to be invaluable.

“Also, I had a writing instructor named Jim Redmond (MA‘89, Ph.D. ‘93), who was an experiencedTV news reporter. He basically forced me to apply for two journalism scholarships I was sure I wouldn’t get and, well, guess what? I got the scholarships, which not only paid for school, but allowed me to meet key people and gave me much needed confidence.

“It turns out I’ve worked with a few J-school alumni. Molly Finkel Sutton (’94)currently works with me as a field producer on ‘Unwrapped.’ Melissa Kiefer DePew (’92)and I worked closely together at WAM and at High Noon Productions. Teah Syverson (’92)and I were colleagues at Starz Encore along with Cindy Gephardt (’94), who is currentlythe managing producer of promotions for Starz.”

Darrow is married to CU Department of Communications alum Asa Darrow, the production manager at KUSAChannel 9.

asajen@msn.com