Lindsey Gispert—a junior film, TV, and media major—participated in a radio internship last summer in Rockville, Maryland. She worked for Washington’s Gateway to Service (WGTS) as a leadership development associate, meaning she assisted with promotions, concerts, press releases, and community outreach.
It was a different experience every day for Lindsey; some days she was going on “ice cream tours,” handing out ice cream while promoting the station, and others she was setting up for concerts or playing cornhole with Christian music artist Toby Mac. She found Washington, D.C., was a very culturally diverse place with foreign ambassadors, tourists, and in general a lot of different people which made it an interesting place to live.
Lindsey said if she could do it again, “I would go in with more confidence, because I did start out intimidated and I didn’t really need to be. I wish I was calmer, everyone was so excited to meet me. Going in with enthusiasm instead of fear, that’s what I’d change.”
Getting to serve ice cream for free to community members was particularly fulfilling for Lindsey. She specifically recalls one afternoon where a little boy came up to her and asked how much the ice cream was. When she told him it was free, he was confused, Lindsey responded “I don’t want your money, I just want to see your smile.”
The audio production class along with her job at Positive Life Radio on-campus prepared her well for the internship. Other university classes, specifically media writing, were helpful in preparing her to write press releases, articles, and even office emails.
To learn more about the film, TV, and media major or other programs offered by the Department of Communication and Languages, go to wallawalla.edu/commlang.
Posted Oct. 20, 2022
