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On the Air:
UWM Broadcast Club takes off with help from Sarah Scarpace and Mark Zoromski
By Andrea E. Westgor
News Graphic Correspondent
For Port Washington native and University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee junior
Sarah Scarpace, broadcast journalism is the perfect major, encapsulating her
love for radio, television and the written word. "I can't imagine not being
involved with mass media," she says. Unfortunately, UWM lacked a club that
offered a routine, hands-on studio experience in TV production. For Scarpace
and her fellow students, this was a challenge too tempting to resist. With
hard work, the club became a reality, and last November, the UWM
Broadcasting Club was founded.
Scarpace found a valuable ally in fellow Ozaukee County resident, Mark
Zoromski, Senior Broadcast Journalism lecturer at UWM. Zoromski, of Grafton,
majored in journalism and political science at the UW-Eau Claire. Twenty
years of TV news experience followed, including work at WITI-Channel 6 in
Milwaukee, where Zoromski worked for 13 years as News Manager and "loved
every minute of it."
However, a longtime interest in education prompted Zoromski to pursue his
Master's degree at UWM, where he accepted a position as lecturer in 1996. A
huge influence on his teaching philosophy is a former college professor.
"His view was, 'Walk into my classroom, walk into my family,'" recalls
Zoromski of the teacher.
Zoromski's own willingness to reach out to his students is a key reason why
Scarpace sought him out when inquiring what clubs to join to further her
broadcasting experience. While Zoromski offered at Television Reporting
class that featured a newscast broadcast, UWM Panthervision, aired on
Time-Warner Cable, there was nothing else. Zoromski himself was always
dismayed that the university didn't offer a club open to all majors that
taught hands-on television production. "How do you get good at it unless you
practice it?" asks Zoromski.
Through a little investigation, Zoromski discovered that the university had
well-equipped studio space available to use. However, due to internal
policies, the space was only permitted for use to create videos for UWM
departments. However, after fundraising, hard work by the students and
assurances that the students would be trained and well-supervised in the
studios, the club was approved, and a partnership was formed between
Zoromski and John Grozik, director of Instructional Media Services (IMS) and
former head of Marquette University's Broadcasting Club for 13 years.
Currently, the club is a "pilot program," with its renewal depending on its
success. However, all involved can't imagine it not becoming a permanent
fixture at UWM. At the first informational meeting, students from majors as
diverse as music, engineering, art and math came to learn about the club.
"It was so rewarding to see I wasn't the only one at UWM craving a club like
this," says Scarpace. Currently, the club has approximately 45 paid members.
Every Friday, club members will meet to produce three shows: A "Student
Showcase," a profile on a UWM student and their notable work; and, switching
each week, either a sports program or a currents affair-focused show. (At
the moment, the show will only be shown on campus cable channel.) Technical
training involving audio-visual equipment, as well as interviewing and
writing tutorials are only a few of the production skills club members will
learn.
Eager students should expect an exciting, but a challenging road ahead. "I'm
going to run [this newsroom] just like I ran Channel 6,"says Zoromski. In
addition, he hopes to instill in each student the importance of portraying
the truth of a story. "Content is King," says Zoromski. "Audiences are going
to watch for stories that are interesting and compelling."
For her own part, Scarpace can't express her gratitude for Zoromski's help
enough. "Mark is the backbone for this club," she says. "It blows my mind
that a man with his strength and talent in the field lived in Grafton, and I
lived so close by in Port . . . I'm so glad I got to know him."
Thus far, the Broadcast Club has exceeded the wildest dreams of both
Scarpace and Zoromski. "We can only go up from here," says Scarpace, who
next year will act as president for the club, and hopes to add additional
shows the club's production slate. For Zoromski, the pleasure lies in seeing
so many students with an eagerness for the field he holds so dear. "When we
had our first training session, the kids kept saying, 'I just can't believe
I'm doing this in college!'" recalls Zoromski. "Just watching their
enthusiasm-I couldn't talk; I had tears in my eyes."
Yet, in the end, Zoromski is most excited for the opportunities the
Broadcast Club will open up to UWM students. "There's more to broadcasting
than being a reporter or anchor," says Zoromski. "By learning
behind-the-scene skills, a whole world of newscast producing will open up to
them. Watching them learn, it's more rewarding than I can tell you."
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Originally posted in the March 15, 2004 edition of the Ozaukee County News Graphic.
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