Student Media leaders and volunteers are fiercely groomed to succeed after graduation. They build portfolios, develop skills and hone their craft while working for any of the media platforms available on campus. No matter where you go, these students can be found excelling on their chosen path, both in school and beyond. 2018 graduate David Schiele knows this very well. While at Georgia State, he was actively involved with Neo Network (NeoN)- first as a volunteer then as a Team Lead for Primetime Sportz. While on staff, he was able to develop his skills and was responsible for training other students.
David Schiele in his days as a Georgia State student, reporting on Panther football
In 2018, David uploaded his NeoN sizzle reel and it received an overwhelming response: over 82,000 likes and 63,000 retweets including an encouraging tweet from Robin Roberts. The newfound attention earned him a lot of fans and supporters, as well as a position at WBIR. He just received an award from the Tennessee Associated Press Broadcasters and Media Editors for Sports reporting in April.
Schiele now covers college sports for WBIR, an NBC affiliate in Knoxville, Tn.
Schiele loves traveling for his job, especially attending SEC basketball games and working for a station that encourages creativity. His advice for students? Be consistent. He also encourages getting critiqued by industry professionals to keep your skills sharp: “You have to be better than just ‘good enough.’”
You may not see the results now but think of it like a seed. Be patient.
~ Schiele
Not all students are waiting for graduation to receive honors: Even as the world was beginning its COVID-19 shutdown, The Signal staff collected top honors at the College Media Association Spring Conference in New York in March. Each year, the convention closes out with the honoring of students from across the country with the David L. Adams “Apple” Awards. This year, The Signal received the following honors:
Staff from The Signal in Times Square during the Spring 2020 College Media Convention
First Place- Best Podcast
Third Place- Best Tweet, Best News Delivery (SGA coverage)
Second Place- NYC20 Design Contest, Best Newspaper (4-year more than 10,000)
Honorable Mention- Best Print Ad
With honors in the Tweet and Podcast categories, you can see The Signal is innovating and but with Package and Design honors, we continue to do well in areas we’ve always done best.
~ Wood
No special skills or experience are needed to join Student Media. All you need is to bring is the willingness to learn and succeed. You can find out more about the various platforms on the Panther Involvement Network (PIN). To learn more, visit the Student Media portal on PIN.