“It seemed like the perfect way for me to apply my interests and develop my skills,” said Sam Knight. Sam is one of the Two Harbors High School students responsible for the weekly production of The High School Show which airs Fridays & Saturdays at 1:30 PM. The young Mr. Knight joined the team as a self-taught audio engineer/editor.
The High School Show, a half hour of music and news relevant to all ages, is part of the Youth Radio Initiative which is funded via a grant from the Northland Foundation. The initiative seeks to promote intergenerational grassroots participation in a variety of endeavors throughout Northern Minnesota. Some of its goals are assisting students in acquiring the production skills and interview techniques required to produce a weekly show, developing relationships with mentors in business, government, and civic organizations, as well as a knowledge transfer from senior to freshmen participants in the program.
The program is overseen by on-air personality Mychele, who spearheaded a similar project while working in radio on the Iron Range. The students describe her as an easy going and accepting mentor who champions and relishes their uniqueness. She speaks glowingly of these young adults when she recounts lessons learned from them and tales of the 120+ hours of volunteer effort the students have contributed to various projects both in and outside the studio.
The credit for the show’s inception goes to THHS student Dale Peterson, who submitted the initial proposal for the High School Show. Dale was already somewhat of an accomplished interviewer and reporter before KTWH went live. He served as Two Harbors Community Radio’s ‘man on the scene’ during a 2015 summer food networking event and has conducted many of the interviews during the H.S.S.’s early days.
The Leon brothers, David & Jackson, make up the other half of the student production team for the show. Jackson, the subject of an interview by Dale, enjoyed himself so much during his time in the station that he joined the team. His brother David soon joined him. Both plan to pursue careers related to radio and audio/visual engineering.
KTWH-LP, 99.5 FM, is a volunteer run non-profit serving the town of Two Harbors and surrounding area with a broadcast range of 10 miles. It streams online at ktwh.org.
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