Graduate Profile: Matt Stoneback
Though Matt Stoneback ’04 studied music education at Alma College, his interest in new media studies was so huge, it could have been measured in petabytes.
“I was very interested in music technology, so I really pushed new media studies,” he says. “I actually wrote the program of emphasis for it that many students went on to use.”
Matt Stoneback ’04 and his wife, Alice Sova-Stoneback ’04
sit in the Stoneback Multimedia Studio in the renovated
Eddy Music Center.
For the past six years, Stoneback has worked as a deputy sheriff in Colorado, but his techie days are hardly over. He’s also the department’s multimedia specialist, creating content for both web and print.
“I’m the ‘make things pretty’ guy,” he says, laughing. “I made sure our multimedia studio rivals what Alma has. I think my department owned the first Mac in the entire county!”
In addition, Stoneback owns a private technology business named Eddy Sound—yep, inspired by his time at Alma! He says his best memories involve sneaking into the lab late at night and hanging out with his classmates—sometimes to the surprise of faculty members.
“We would show up, and Dr. Riley would still be working,” he says. “The faculty members at Alma are phenomenal at what they do, and they’re so invested in it. Their availability, along with hands-on experience, is what sparked my interest in new media studies.”
