A place that has become like a second home to some students. WKWZ, Syosset High School's community radio station has been up and running for over 35 years. Syosset is just one of a select few high schools on Long Island to have a radio station. It gives students a fantastic opportunity in being able to expierence life at an actual radio station.
For three Syosset seniors Alex Lederman, Jake Hakanson and Syosset Patch's own Jake Asman, it has been especially gratifying. All three of these students have been members of the station since they began their high school career back in 2009.
Alex Lederman loved what WKWZ had to offer. "When I first found out we had a radio station here in Syosset, it was an opportunity I knew I wanted." Lederman will be attending the Midill School Of Journalism at Northwestern University in the fall. "This industry is so competitive that being able to say I worked at a radio station in high school gives all us WKWZ members an upper hand."
Lederman had the opportunity of creating promos and work on production for the station's programing. "Production work was alot of fun, it gave me a chance to really get creative in working behind the scenes." Lederman went on to talk about his favorite part of working at the station. "Hosting the weekly sports shows, that was by far my favorite aspect of the station. It gave us all a great chance to learn how to run a successful on air program."
Jake Hakanson will be attending the University Of Miami in the fall studying broadcast journalism. "Radio will definitely be one of my favorite memories of high school. I'm so excited for college, but I will absolutely miss WKWZ." Hakanson also talked about how much he enjoyed broadcasting Syosset Braves sporting events. "Not many high school students can say they have broadcasted a sporting event, with WKWZ we all had that opportunity."
Jake's brother Max is a sophmore and still has two more years of the station. "He's lucky, he still has his junior and senior year to be part of the station. I hope he continues to take advantage of the unique opportunity he has."
As graduation approaches, Jake Asman also knows how lucky he was to gain this time of professional expierence. "I have had a bunch of career related opporunities in high school." Asman writes for the Syosset Pulse, Syosset Patch and contributes to MSG Varsity. "With that said, WKWZ was where it all began."
Asman is currently the Sports Director at the station, and is enjoying every minute of it. "Being Sports Director for my senior year has been fantastic, I have gained a real grasp for organization." One of the tasks of Sports Director is organizing the schedule for the on air sports shows and broadcasts for sporting events. Asman will be studying Television and Radio at Ithaca College. "WKWZ has played a big role in preparing me to go on and pursue a broadcasting career at Ithaca."
WKWZ is almost like a hidden secret at Syosset High School. Not everyone knows that the school consits the oldest running high school radio station on Long Island. With that said, WKWZ continues to prepare students for the next level in the field of communications.
