Alicia Roman was born and raised in a small town north of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Alicia became interested in the weather from a young age. In an interview with Chicago's Blowtique, she stated "When I was younger, my father worked construction and relied on the Weather Channel and forecasts from local meteorologists for the day's weather. If it rained, then there was no work for dad. He fell in love with the weather and taught me all about it. I would wake up early in the morning - at 3 years old! - and watch the Weather Channel with him. Since then, I have always loved, and wanted to learn about, the weather so I became a meteorologist!"
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Alicia earned a Bachelor's Degree in Broadcast Journalism from Penn State University, and also studied Broadcast Meteorology at Mississippi State University.
She first worked for WHIZ-TV in Ohio, and after several failed employment opportunities landed in Indianapolis working for WISH-TV as a weekend evening meteorologist. She remained there for three years. She was accepted into the American Meteorological Society and received their Seal of Approval in 2009. After years of experience on small stations, she was finally hired by NBC Chicago in 2011. "I had a magnet of the Chicago skyline on my fridge", she told Michigan Avenue Magazine. "I'd look at it every day." Roman had lived in five different states by that time: her home state of Pennsylvania, Mississippi, South Carolina, Indiana, and Ohio. "Now that I'm here [in Chicago], I'm never going back."
Alicia became engaged to Nick Scafiezzo in December 2014. Nick is a national sales account executive for Univision TV Network. When it came time to plan a proposal, he wanted it to be unique. "I had a friend who worked with the City of Chicago", he remembered in an interview with Chicago's SPLASH. "who helped me ... to set up the ice rink in Millennium Park." While Alicia was distracted by a friend at the Park Grill nearby on Michigan Avenue, Nick set up a grand surprise with Alicia's friends and family all wearing Santa hats and waiting for her on the ice. "He drags me on the ice and it finally hit me", she said. "We went to the middle [of the ice rink] and he proposed."
They were married on November 28, 2015 at the Old St. Patrick's Church in Chicago. The presiding Reverend, Tom Hurley, even included a nod to Alicia's career, stating "You can never predict anything, but we're predicting a perfect wedding." The reception was held at the Hyatt Regency Chicago where the Chicago Bulls Drumline performed a surprise rendition of Kanye West's Power. "It took a lot of planning", Nick remembered. "But it was the best thing ever." There was also a magician performance and a lip-sync battle where Alicia sang the B-52's Love Shack and Nick performed "You're the Best Around" from the movie The Karate Kid. "We both have such huge personalities and we wanted our wedding to be different than everyone else's and entertain our guests from the start", Alicia stated. "We wanted to win the crowd." Pictures of the ceremony, as well as all of the businesses who had a part in the venture, were posted publicly online.
On August 27, she announced her pregnancy via her Twitter account, stating "Whelp..... Figured since I've hid the bump the last several weeks with bigger dresses... May as well wear this dress (and a few others) now before I can't anymore!" She also posted pictures of her birth announcements on her Instagram account. She is due with her first child in February 2019.
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When asked about her heroes, Alicia was quick to mention her parents. "My mother battled two kinds of cancer and survived", she explained to Michigan Avenue Magazine. "And my father left Puerto Rico at a young age and started his life over in the United States. His passion and drive are amazing." Alicia shows homage to her mother with her support of Bright Pink, an organization that aims to save women's lives from breast and ovarian cancer by encouraging them to love proactively from a young age. Their website states that they focus on health, not cancer, to inspire women to practice prevention. They target the 52 million women between the ages of 18 and 45, as well as their families and their physicians.
Alicia herself has suffered from two semi-concussions, and thus supports the Brain Injury Association of Illinois (BIA of IL) as a member of their Board of Directors. It is a non-profit organization comprised of those who have been impacted by brain injuries. Their website states they are "dedicated to providing information, resource, advocacy, and support."
Alicia also proudly supports the Chicago Children's Choir (CCC) which serves 5,000 students across the City of Chicago. 4,000 of those students participate free of charge and eighty percent are from low-moderate income homes. Their purpose is to inspire and change lives through music, and they were founded in Chicago's Hyde Park as a direct response to the 1956 Civil Rights Movement. Since their founding they have impacted the lives of more than 50,000 youth.
When she isn't involved with charity, Alicia told Revealed Studios "I like to wake up, watch the news, do a little work on the internet (emails and such), go to the gym, and then come home to make a wonderful dinner followed by either binge watching Netflix or TV! That is a perfect day off for me!"
Alicia says she stays grounded because she grew up humbly. "I was taught to be grateful for everything you have, even if that includes beauty", she states. She added that she has never been comfortable in the spotlight, but she enjoys being able to help educate others about the weather and protect them in times of danger. "In this day and age with social media, magazines, photoshop, etc..." she tells Revealed Studios, "it is extremely hard for us to focus on what really matters, which is looking inward and realizing that we are so much more than what we see in the mirror. Be yourself and be happy - that is the real beauty in life!" "Knowing that I am loved and I am happy with myself and what I am doing in this life, makes me feel beautiful."
Her official NBCChicago biography states that in her free time, Alicia enjoys spending time outdoors, reading, cooking, and traveling, and is always looking for a good book or new recipe to try.
Alicia's Twitter, @AliciaRomanNBC, has over 10,400 followers. Her Facebook, @AliciaRomanNBC5, has over 20,000 followers. Her Instagram, @aliciaromannbc, has over 8,200 followers.
Last Modified: Mar 7, 2020
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