Media expert Maricielo Solis ’14 featured in Forbes

pursued minors in psychology and dance.

“It has been really fun being back. I feel like I didn’t miss a beat. It’s nice to see the piece, which has been living creatively in my brain, come to life,” said King, who uses they/ them pronouns.

King is one of several alumni who returned to campus to teach original works for the Wheaton College Dance Company’s main stage production scheduled for April 20 through 22 in Weber Theatre. The event presents a mixed repertory of faculty, guest artists and student works, and include contemporary dance consisting of ballet, jazz, tap and hip-hop.

At Wheaton, King was a fouryear member and captain of the dance company; a member of TRYBE for four years; and a dancer with Tap Out Loud. In recent rehearsals, students have benefited from the alum’s expertise as a dancer—a passion first developed at age 2.

In September of 2022, after a successful audition, King joined Urbanity Dance of Boston. The nonprofit that seeks to inspire, engage and empower individuals and communities through the art of dance and movement.

Among King’s many latest projects is a collaboration with Shura Baryshnikov, a dancer, choreographer, educator and actress. King will dance to Baryshnikov’s choreographed pieces for opera, which will be performed at Arts at the Armory this April in Somerville, Mass.

“It has been so great learning from such an amazing artist and teacher. She is one of the kindest people I’ve ever met,” King said.

Wheaton students said they’ve enjoyed learning from King, especially given their close ties to the dance company. The alum also has been chosen to choreograph the fall musical.

“Having Izzi return to campus to teach us one of their dances is an amazing experience and opportunity. Izzi is such a wonderful, unique dancer and choreographer,” said Jia Fitzgerald ’23, one of this year’s captains for the Wheaton College Dance Company.

—Laura Pedulli

Ranking high in search engines like Google is crucial for businesses looking to grow brand awareness and reach prospective customers. Forbes recently tapped Maricielo Solis ’14, an online media expert and storyteller, for tips on devising a strategic SEO plan to boost visibility in online searches.

Solis owns BLENDtw, a popular online community for Gen Z that covers college life, wellness and culture. By focusing on SEO strategy, she was able to achieve success in a short amount of time.

“We went from having 10,000 readers per month to having 10,000 readers per day. Once we knew how to use it, the website took off,” Solis said in the January 9 Forbes article “3 Key SEO Tips From This Founder Who Used Search Engine Optimization To Grow A 7-Figure Community.”

Solis, who majored in international relations at Wheaton, gained skills in journalism as a student through internships at both Univision and Bolivia Express magazine. She also served as a news reporter for the student-run Wheaton Wire.

The combination of experiences helped her land a spot in the highly selective NBCUniversal Page Program shortly after graduation. She worked in a variety of positions, including as a staff producer