By Byron Garcia, Jaeden Langenberg & Hailey Oskey
The newest addition to UWGB and everything that it has to offer for students and faculty.
One of the latest additions that was implemented to the UWGB communication department was the new Media Center. The Media Center is stated to be a state-of-the-art facility that will hold future classes for not only communication majors but for all different kinds of majors to use. As of October 10, 2022, spaces in the new media center on the campus were dedicated and made in honor of certain individuals, the most recent room to be dedicated was to Frank Wood. Wood and his family-owned Brown County Publishing, the Green Bay News-Chronicle, and other weekly papers in the area. Now that most of the rooms have been dedicated, the university is set for phase two for their plans to move forward.
Professor Justin Kavlie, a communication professor, stated, “The media center will have a positive impact on the comm department by increasing the media production opportunities through first-hand experiences.” This plays a huge role in what the communication program at UWGB is already currently doing with its applied learning classes and hands-on experiences that are offered through its classes. The use of a media center will give students a chance to learn more about the communication field and what some careers might operate like after college. Professor Kavlie also made a comment on what students should expect when it comes to classes, saying, “The classes students should expect are mainly production and skills-based courses like news, video, and radio production.” Referring back to the applied learning that the new Media Center will offer to students.
Upon the walls around the new media center are framed newsletters highlighting key moments in history for the University of Wisconsin- Green Bay. One includes David Letterman being appointed as Chancellor of the university.
The media center is a 5.7-million-dollar renovation that coincides with the rebirth of student-run media at UW-Green Bay — including radio, television, and digital journalism platforms. It was made possible through a combination of state funds and donations from local businesses and individuals, including Multimedia Channels and Sinclair Broadcasting, the parent company of WLUK Fox 11.
One of the media center rooms where courses will be conducted by professors either virtually, in person, or even hybrid style.
As for the specifics of what the rooms and spaces will be used for, the university has discussed and vocalized a plan for the rooms. Firstly, WGBX Radio – this new radio station space will be a streaming service and allow students to engage in the form of media with a long history in contemporary and future technological and content-driven contexts. Multiple spaces with live media equipment, video recording, and streaming capabilities, audio production booths, and media recording. For those that don’t share a pursuit for communications but enjoy technology, the Center for Games and Interactive Media will provide the most cutting-edge media technology, including streaming, gaming, augmented reality, and virtual reality.
Professor Bryan Carr showcasing the new student ran radio station room, WGBX Radio.
Plenty of the rooms and spaces, such as this one, have video recording abilities with advanced cameras and direct power lines to display live footage back to the monitors.