High school TV students gain experience helping produce the Chicago/Midwest Emmy Awards

Today’s forecast: The future of television is going to be just fine.

Four Bremen High School District 228 seniors and a junior at Andrew High School recently helped produce the 65th Chicago/Midwest Regional Emmy Awards. The coolest person they got to meet? There is a good chance it was soon-to-retire meteorologist Tom Skilling.

“I was really excited,” said Jade Cross, a Tinley Park High School senior.

Cross joked about the possibility beforehand, then saw Skilling on the screen and went out of the way to try to meet him at the show. Cross and the other students accomplished just that.

They also gained some great experience to put on their resumes after joining the production crew for the live broadcast of the show in November. Talea Carter, a senior at Bremen High School who hopes to one day work in the industry, was among those who joined Cross.

“It was great to learn what goes on behind something professional,” Carter said. “I learned to be patient and quickly problem solve.”

That was the name of the game for the students, mostly from the district′s communication arts and technology course. Ronan Morrisey, an alumnus of the BDTV228 program, was the executive producer of the show. Morrisey invited student involvement this year through Michael Lynch, faculty adviser for the course.

“It’s what we do in the class,” Lynch said. “It’s a multimedia course where the kids learn how to write, produce, shoot and edit every form of media. One of the aspects is doing a live production, so this was the opportunity to take the things we learned in the program and put it to real life.”

Lynch said there were Zoom meetings to prepare for the show and keep students in the loop. But up until the event, he thought the students might simply be shadowing professionals in those roles. Instead, they were assigned cameras, graphics and other duties.

“They were put to work right away,” Lynch said. “They produced the show.”

Carter worked as a camera operator and edited the YouTube livestream near the end of the show.

“It was a little nerve-wracking toward the beginning, but once we did it for a while it felt more comfortable,” Carter said. “It’s not as hectic as it seems.”

Lakayiah Thomas, a senior at Bremen High School, edited clips of award speeches to post on YouTube.

“I felt like I was taking control of this show,” Thomas said. “I learned a lot. It was fun.”

Oak Forest High School senior Matthew Angone worked cameras during the preshow, spending time on the red carpet before bouncing between graphics and camera setup. Angone was glad the experience was so hands-on and enjoyed seeing how much planning goes into such a show.

“It needs a lot of coordination, a lot of teamwork, a lot of effort,” Angone said. “Everyone that’s involved plays a major role in it.”

Cross, who sees the lessons learned as something that can be applied to a hopeful public relations career, was tasked with making clips of each award presentation for YouTube.

“I was definitely feeling the pressure at some points, but I tried to calm down and get in the zone,” Cross said, noting the pros welcomed the students. “They were super helpful. It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be, and I learned a lot. … It broadened my horizons a lot and taught me the behind-the-scenes of YouTube itself.”

Brody Lynch, Michael’s son and a junior at Andrew High School, also took part, working on interviews. He said he learned valuable lessons.

“It’s very fast-paced,” Brody Lynch said. “It’s not always going to go very smoothly. Sometimes you have to adjust things; you have to adapt to different things.”

Michael Lynch said his students talked about the experience in class, including examining how what they discussed in class applied in the real-world situation.

“You can always teach them, as far as production goes, whatever you want,” Lynch said. “The reality is that things always happen. The course and the industry is more about solving problems and figuring things out. … That’s what we do.”

Michael Lynch said the students represented the program and themselves well. He received feedback that the team was both professional and flexible, and District 228 has been invited to participate again next year.

Students said their friends and families were proud of their involvement in the show, too — especially after their shared stories of their celebrity encounter.

“My mom and dad were so excited, especially once I mentioned Tom Skilling,” Cross said.

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