Aspiring media professionals from BCS gained tantalizing insights about communications careers at UNC Asheville’s High School Media Day on Oct 13.
During a series of the instructional sessions and workshops presented by media professionals, high school students from Buncombe County Early College (BCEC), T.C. Roberson High School (TCRHS), and North Buncombe High School (NBHS) joined other students to learn about feature writing, photography, video production, digital and social media, and more. BCS 2023 Teacher of the Year Jenny Zimmerman brought a group of her broadcast journalism and yearbook students to the event. Public and private high school students from across the region listened as Ms. Zimmerman described how to build and sustain a full broadcast show at a school.
“These events are important for students, because they learn about careers that they might not have known a lot about,” she said. “They get a chance to interact on a personal level with presenters and learn about successful media production and storytelling.”
BCS 2022 Beginning Teacher of the Year Anneliese Shreve brought her third year BCEC Yearbook staff to the event to let them experience a professional conference on a college campus.
“I know how incredibly impactful and inspiring professional development can be,” she said. “My students left their workshops feeling invigorated and inspired to create great photography, writing, and design. Students felt connected to a larger community. As an educator, attending an event that creates such passion and connection in my students is incredibly meaningful.”
BCEC student Bailey Wilson decided to pursue a career in journalism because of High School Media Day.
“I never really thought about it before, but everything the speakers talked about was a definition of what I wanted to do,” she said. “I joined my yearbook group at school, mostly because all my friends are there, and I wanted to be a part of something with the school. Being in the yearbook led me to journalism and finding out that I can actually do everything I wanted to do and make a career out of it.”
For the past two decades, these in-depth lectures and workshops have revealed future paths for students like Bailey, thanks to UNC Asheville's Mass Communication Department, in cooperation with UNC Chapel Hill's Scholastic Media Association.
“High school students get a chance to hear about the latest trends and ideas in mass media as well as meet their peers from other schools,” said UNC Asheville Senior Lecturer of Mass Communication Michael Gouge. “We feel supporting young journalists to be a vital role in our community as well as inspiring them to pursue their interests at the collegiate and professional level.”