Homecoming 2013 Young Alumnus Award - Jasen Wade Nielsen

When he graduated from Bonneville High School in Ogden as Jasen Nielsen in 1992, our 2013 Young Alumnus of the Year was unsure of what career he wished to pursue or just where he might prepare for it. Sandwiched around an LDS mission to Moscow, Russia, he bounced around to all of Utah’s other public universities with such disparate courses of study as psychology, history, forestry, and Russian. He longed for a place where he could find himself.

Fortunately, his brother-in-law had a place in mind, and told him he would love Cedar City and SUU and offered to pay for his gas for the trip if he were wrong. Of course, he wasn’t and when Jasen came to town and campus he immediately felt as if home. He reverted to a childhood hope to become a small-town veterinarian, and his new major at SUU was animal science. However, his plans again changed when presented with the opportunity to live at the entrance to Zion National Park. The only problem was that it involved taking a singing and dancing role in the timeless musical Seven Brides For Seven Brothers at Springdale’s Bumbleberry Inn and Grandma’s Playhouse. When not roaming Zion, he waited tables during the day and performed at night, 83 times. It was his first experience on any stage and, as it has many a fledgling performer, it hooked him. He immersed himself in the University’s acting and film curricula, ultimately earning a degree in communication with a minor in theatre.

He was called upon often for his ruggedness on stage at SUU and strikingly showed his acting chops playing multiple roles in A.R. Gurney’s The Dining Room before making a significant mark as the lead character, the Englishman Charlie Baker, in The Foreigner just prior to his 2001 graduation. His successes here cemented his plan to become an actor and he is now well on his way to a solid film career. His 13 acting credits thus far, with his screen name Jasen Wade, include Treasure in Heaven: The John Tanner Story, 17 Miracles, Amber Alert, and Saints and Soldiers: Airborne Creed. It is Jasen’s continuing desire to tell compelling and inspiring stories. He finds satisfaction from roles that feature strength of character and his work has included portraying individuals who represent those who founded southern Utah and this University.

His diverse SUU training has helped him work behind the camera as well, and he credits Jon Smith of the communication faculty for providing him with a solid technical education. Chuck Metten, then dean of the College of Performing and Visual Arts, was Jasen’s acting mentor and champion.

Today, in addition to his acting career, Jasen teaches a film course at Dixie State, and fights wildland fires for the BLM when free during the summer. He is married to the former Holly Green, who was a member of the SUU gymnastic squad, and they live in Washington County with their two children.