For Krystal Soto, CSU Pueblo was more than a place to earn a degree. It was where she found her voice, discovered the power of broadcasting, and built the foundation for a career that would take her across radio, television, marketing, professional sports, live entertainment, and organizational leadership.
A 2005 Mass Communications alumna, Soto credits KTSC-FM Rev 89 as one of the most influential parts of her college experience.
“I lived and breathed that radio station,” Soto shared. “It was where I experienced ratings success for the first time and, more importantly, where I really began to understand the power of a microphone and the connection you can create with an audience.”
The year she graduated, Soto received the Silver Mic Award, an honor that remains especially meaningful more than two decades later. Her time at Rev 89 helped her learn to trust her voice, understand her audience, and recognize that broadcasting could become more than a passion. It could become a career.
Today, Soto serves as Vice President of Operations for the Tucson Sugar Skulls, where her responsibilities span operations, marketing and communications, corporate partnerships, community engagement, events, and long-term planning. She was promoted shortly after the team transitioned to local ownership and has helped guide the organization through a new chapter focused on strengthening its operations and connections throughout the community.
Her career has continued to evolve alongside her leadership in professional sports. Soto remains an on-air radio personality in Tucson and works in live sports entertainment, including serving as an in-game host for Arizona Wildcats.
“My career has evolved in ways I never could have mapped out when I was in college, but communication has remained at the center of everything I do,” she said. “CSU Pueblo gave me the foundation to take those skills into different industries, continue growing as a leader, and build a career that allows me to connect people, organizations, and communities.”
Among her proudest accomplishments is helping bring the Indoor Football League National Championship to Tucson, an effort that required collaboration among teams, fans, corporate partners, and the broader community. In 2026, Soto was also honored as the recipient of the Indoor Football League’s John Pettit Person of the Year Award, recognizing work that reflects her commitment to leadership, relationships, and community impact.
When asked what advice she would offer current students and recent graduates, Soto encouraged them not to become too focused on following a single, predetermined career path.
“Careers are rarely a straight line,” she said. “Some of the skills or experiences that seem unrelated today may eventually become the exact combination that sets you apart.”
Her advice is simple: raise your hand before you feel completely ready, build genuine relationships, stay curious, and never let a job title define what you believe you are capable of accomplishing.
“Your career is going to evolve as you do. Give yourself permission to evolve with it and to keep wanting more.”
Although her career and life have taken her away from Colorado, Soto says CSU Pueblo, and especially her experience at Rev 89, remains an important part of her professional story.
“No matter how far your career takes you, there is something meaningful about remembering where it started,” she said. “For me, a big part of that beginning will always be CSU Pueblo.”
