A free radio and podcast camp is available this summer for Prince George youth who has an interest in broadcasting.
CFUR 88.7 FM at UNBC is offering its Youth Academy from June 5 to July 28.
Station Manager Ian Gregg says they have a simple motive for the course.
“What we wanted to do with this camp was to be able to offer it to youth for free and give kids the option to be able to do something after school or during the day that they could have on their own and build up some skills that they can take with them wherever they went in life. You don’t need to be in a radio station to do a podcast but we want to give them the option.”
Gregg believes the second instalment of the course will go much smoother than the first.
“Last year, we had absolutely nothing to put it together with and we managed to scrape it together and really make something out of it so we could put it through a trial run and see how it went.”
Despite those challenges, a lot of good came out of year one. “We had some really positive results and had some great radio content come out of it and we actually had the youngest radio host in Prince George for a while at 12 years old,” says Gregg.
The program received a financial boost in 2017 thanks to the Community Radio Fund of Canada awarding them $49,805.
Are more kids leaning towards a career in broadcasting because of this initiative?
“It’s something that maybe a whole lot of people haven’t considered yet and then all the sudden the light bulb goes off and say ‘Hey this what I want to do.’ The people that have been involved in it have really embraced it,” says Gregg.
The course takes place at UNBC’s Student Centre and runs from 1 to 4 pm.
If you wish to apply email [email protected] by submitting your phone number and applicant’s name.
The winners will be drawn from a hat.
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