Fort Worth ISD unveils student-run radio station

by Laura Seewoester

While the media industry is proverbially pissing in its pants trying to find a new way to profit, Fort Worth ISD is training the next crop of media folks to take over when they figure it out. The district unveiled its student-run radio studio, the final piece of their Advanced Media Program (AMP), Tuesday at the district's Professional Development Center in Fort Worth.

AMP is a two-year old program that is available to students at Southwest High School, Polytechnic High School and now Trimble Technical High School. The program gives high school students working experience in media-related industries, such as broadcast television and now radio. Students in the program learn a variety of skills, from working behind the scenes to in front of a camera. They start out taking classes their first year in high school as part of their curriculum and by their junior or senior year they get to participate three times a week off campus in putting together a newscast and or radio program.

"We learn Final Cut Pro, DVD Studio, Soundtrack, a lot of the stuff that big companies are using so we get that under our belt and we get comfortable with being on air and being in front of the camera," says Madison Campbell, a sophomore at Southwest High School involved in the program. "I am enjoying all of this stuff and I would enjoy being in a career in this or something along with it."

The radio program, AMP Cafe, focuses on issues within Fort Worth ISD and issues important to students today. The program consists of interviews, reporting and even a little music and airs on Charter Cable Channel 30 or AT&T U-verse channel 99 and, in a few weeks, online.

After the official unveiling, a team of enthusiastic students started their first radio show without a hitch. They almost seemed like old pros in the studio. For their first program, Southwest High School student Lindsey Ledbetter interviewed Fort Worth ISD Superintendent Melody Johnson. While the radio station is the final studio space dedicated to the program (at least for the near future), there is still room for growth.

Senior Communications Officer Barbara Griffith says there will be a natural evolution towards growth. "We are discussing more on-site live programming," Griffith said, meaning the students will likely be attending events and reporting in the field in the near future.