EIU student wins radio production contest
CHARLESTON – a routine class assignment recently earned anEastern Illinois University student top honors in a statewide radioproduction contest – and a few extra spending dollars, to boot.
Korey Adkins, a senior communication studies major from Mattoon,was one of more than two dozen students in Mike Bradd’s “BroadcastAnnouncing” class, assigned the task of producing a radio publicservice announcement promoting the Cell Phones for SoldiersProject.
The project encourages the public to donate their old cellphones, which are then converted into calling cards that aredistributed to military members serving around the world.
“It was a class assignment first and foremost,” Adkins said.”But we were given the option of submitting it into thecontest.”
That contest – the Fall 2011 Best new Ad Radio Competition – isa partnership between education and business communities. Companiesassign projects in which students are challenged to create the”Best new Ad.” this year’s competition challenged students fromaround Illinois to produce radio public service announcementspromoting the Cell Phones for Soldiers Project.
Upon receiving the assignment, Adkins began by researching theorganization, identified his target audience, then wrote the copyand chose the music/sound effects he wanted to use.
“It took a few attempts,” he admitted, noting that he wrotethree or four different scripts before he was satisfied with hiswork. in fact, he developed the version he was happiest with thevery day the assignment was due in class.
His hard work and dedication paid off.
A few weeks later, Adkins was notified that his 30-second radiospot was chosen from among 33 entries collected from more than 22colleges and universities. in addition to the first-place prize of$300, Adkins may have his radio PSA used by Cell Phones forSoldiers during its 2012 national campaign.
(His project can be heard atbestnewad.com/ProjectModule/viewsubmissibon.php?file1320998489_.mp3&assignid37&catid3&mem_id1840&subid823.)
Adkins, who has gained practical experience by working atHit-Mix 88.9 (WEIU Radio) for the past three years, has also beenenrolled in several radio classes as part of his major. and he’senjoyed the experience, he says.
“However, I haven’t really committed myself as to what I’ll bedoing after graduation,” he said. “But this award affirms that Ican do well at radio production should that be what I choose topursue.”
Bradd, too, was pleased with the announcement of his student’saward. the news was especially pleasing, given that it’s the secondconsecutive semester in which an EIU student has been a finalist ina Best new Ad contest. in Spring 2011, Monica Becker of Bartlett,Ill., was a finalist for her radio public service announcementpromoting the Donate Life Illinois organ donation program.
“We’re fortunate to have some pretty talented students enrolledhere at EIU,” Bradd said.
