Love for weather leads alumnus to chief meteorologist, adjunct faculty roles

From tornadoes and hurricanes to more than 50 inches of snow in one month, meteorologist John Zeigler has seen it all.

"I loved it," he said. "All meteorologists are kind of a sick mind, because we love chaos."

Zeigler knew from a young age which career path he wanted to pursue and that he'd get that educational foundation from St. Cloud State University.

"I had this plan pretty much when I was 16 that I was going to go to SCSU and work my way up into UTVS," he said. "I genuinely loved my time at St. Cloud State."

Zeigler earned his bachelor's in meteorology from SCSU in 2014, before starting his career with Fox 21 in Duluth, Minnesota. He spent about a year and a half there as a weekend meteorologist before moving on to cover "Tornado Alley" for CBS affiliate KOLR 10 in Springfield, Missouri. He worked there as a weekday morning meteorologist and saw his fair share of tornadoes, including covering an anniversary of the EF5 tornado that hit Joplin, Missouri, in 2011.

"That was just breathtaking and scary to see the scar that went through that town," he said.

From Missouri he moved on to North Carolina to work as chief meteorologist at a Fox affiliate.

"Forecasting for hurricanes Irma and Maria — I did not like that. I got scared," he said. "The hurricanes definitely threw me off a little bit because I wasn't used to it."

Zeigler then spent about six years as a chief meteorologist in Madison, Wisconsin, before returning to Minnesota to work for NBC affiliate KARE 11 in the Twin Cities as a morning meteorologist. He was promoted in 2026 to chief meteorologist with the station.

"I just love weather. I love the fact that I genuinely get to forecast on my own or in a small team. We get to nerd out every day as a team and just talk about the weather. You get to focus on what you want to focus on," he said. "Being part of something I love so much and being a voice for people in something they really don't know much about — I think weather's an interesting thing."

Looking toward the future, Zeigler said a big part of his job is working to get even more information to people in a shorter timeframe.

"I think what we do is changing rapidly. What we know is people really want to consume weather information. We know that, but I think over the next few years my goal is trying to find where to reach these people. You have to give people the weather right now and always be there for people," he said. "I went Facebook live at midnight when there was a tornado in Waconia because I wasn't at the station. You've got to be there, even if you're in your pajamas. What I think the world is changing to is more raw footage. They'd rather have information now than it looking polished."

For Zeigler, working as a broadcast meteorologist is a team effort.

"Having people's back and always showing up for the people around me, that is what got me to where I am today. Putting a smile on my face every day and not complaining about other people are the two most important things. People always ask me, 'How did you make it here?' I say, 'I show up, I'm loyal and I smile,'" Zeigler said. "I was a 20- or 21-year-old intern at KARE 11 at one time. I was this little pipsqueak and I was in awe of Belinda Jensen. Fast forward 16 years later, and Belinda Jensen has my back and she's the one who's pushing me to be chief meteorologist and take her position. Think about how wild that is — you're a kid sitting there interning for somebody who you idolize, and then 16 years later, she's the one handing you the baton. Talk about relationships are everything."

Following in one of his mentor's footsteps is one full-circle moment for Zeigler. Teaching at his alma mater is another.

"I teach a class now that Sven Sundgaard used to teach, and it was called broadcast meteorology. That class changed my life. It was the most important thing I ever did. Now I'm trying to give back and I teach that class every other year," Zeigler said. "I know how important it was to me, so I hope it's important to them. A class that offers a real-life example; not only that, but you get to actually see what forecasting is like. When you're in college, you can just have a busted forecast and take a C on a quiz or something and move on. But in real life, you have to explain it to the viewers and humble yourself and it's a different animal. Being able to have that one-on-one, real-life experience that St. Cloud State taught, that was what changed me."

He encouraged students to follow their passions and look for mentors in their fields of interest. That's what helped Zeigler.

"I look at college as almost like a different era. There are two eras, two different races. You race in college and then you restart your race in real life. In college, when I was running that race, the most important person in my life was Tony Hansen. I wasn't the best at learning in large settings, but that didn't hold me back in the meteorology program. He met with me one-on-one weekly. He believed in me. I didn't have the best grades; I was probably bottom of the class in grades, I assume," Zeigler said. "(Professor Hansen) believed in me because I loved what I did. Tony knew I loved weather. If you have passion for something people love, people love to be around others who love what they're doing. Whether you're working at McDonald's or you're a meteorologist on TV, I do not care. If you love what you do, people want to be around you and you will move up in this world."