Parkland College holds a hidden treasure: 88.7 WPCD! Parkland College Radio is a student-run radio station that is directed and managed by Adam Porter, Deane Geiken, and Jason Hayes.
COM 141 offers hands-on training in audio production. WPCD allows students to learn how to announce on a live radio station. Students also learn how to produce commercials, public service announcements, promotions, and more through Adobe Audition. A current COM 142 student states, “I think my favorite thing about the class is getting to learn new techniques in Adobe that I didn’t know before. I [am] also really enjoying editing things for class projects and picking out songs I really like to play on the radio.” Not only does the station reach all of Parkland College’s District 505 area, and much of East Central Illinois, but they also have streaming services. You can listen to 88.7 anywhere and anytime!
Before going live on the radio COM 141 students practice announcing in Parkland’s “practice studio.” The practice studio is set up in the same way that the formal studio is, but sessions are sent to a controlled radio tower. This allows students to learn the tools and skills a DJ needs without the pressure of having a live audience.
When asked if students continued to pursue their careers after taking the course, the professor of COM 141/142, Adam Porter states, “… we have numerous former students who are working in the radio industry, as well as other media industries. One of the great things about audio skills is that they can be applied to not only the radio industry, but also music, podcasting, streaming, film, television, video games, and more.” Audio production teaches you many skills that you can apply in several different areas of study.
A previous COM 141 student also commented, “I would highly recommend this class to others, I think that Adam is a really good teacher and I think there is a lot to learn even if you aren’t interested in pursuing audio.” Register for COM 141 next semester through the student dashboard and be the next DJ on WPCD!
