UWRF students win 5 awards for broadcast projects
March 18, 2023
Students at UW-River Falls were presented a total of five awards during this year’s Wisconsin Broadcasters Association Student Seminar in Middleton, including two first-place honors.
The seminar took place Saturday, Feb. 25, and brought together students and educators from across the state. The seminar was capped by presentation of this year’s Student Awards for Excellence.
Michelle Stangler, a journalism and agricultural marketing communications major from Watertown, Wisconsin, earned first place in the news series and documentary category for her summer 2022 long-form radio story, “Dairy Farming Not as Simple a Life as it May Seem.” The documentary, which aired on the student-run radio station WRFW, was produced with support from UWRF’s Donovan E. Rasmussen Broadcast Journalism Fellowship. The documentary may be heard online at uwrfjournalism.org.
Stangler along with fellow WRFW members Emily Marsolek and Jacob Jensen won first place in the live special category for the radio station’s October 2022 program leading up to the inauguration of Chancellor Maria Gallo.
Stangler also earned second place for her radio air check. An air check is a demonstration recording that showcases an announcer’s abilities.
In addition, Stangler was one of four university students awarded WBA scholarships. She received the $1,500 David L. Nelson Scholarship.
Students in the Music and Stage and Screen Arts Department won two awards in the special television programming category for short films produced during 2022 as part of the Advanced Field Production course.
Austin Albright, Tyler Buss, Sevki Cevik, Matthew McCarthy, Wesley Papp and Kat Peine earned second place for “Ghost Light,” a film about a young woman dealing with the death of her mother. “Ghost Light” may be viewed on Vimeo.
Third place went to Ben Brannon, Zoe Palmer, Bradley Horwath, Cam Wallace, Irene Yoshizumu and Logan Carlson for “Consequences,” a comedy about bullying in school. “Consequences” may be viewed on YouTube.