THOUGHTS ON SPACE

The last post focused on staffing and equipment needed for developing this podcast program. There are some things that I haven't given thought to. I planned for there to be a total of two meeting spots: one in Jackson and one in Memphis. Then I realized that it may be difficult. If I involve high school students in the process or working students, location is key. Not everyone that has interest in participating in this project in Memphis or Jackson will be able to travel.

I know I could probably use skype as a way to bring interested persons in contact without having to travel. However, I feel that it's best to have these meetings with everyone in person while assigning positions and creating shows. Once volunteer positions are set, then I can communicate with volunteers via email, internet forums, and in person.

I haven't considered meeting places up until lately. Meeting rooms on school campuses and coffeeshops are possibilities. However, many libraries with meeting rooms used for study are small and the meeting rooms at the libraries cost. The college campuses offer less costly options. I could use rooms that are not in use for at least an hour. The rooms are available for larger size groups.

As far as coming up with a times, I realize that if there are high school volunteers involved, it would have to be late afternoons during weekdays or mid-mornings on Saturdays. Which makes me realize why meeting at libraries would not work: limited amount of meeting spaces and hours of operation.

In order to find meeting rooms, I would classroom schedules at certain buildings. In Memphis, I realize that there are many Universities such as University of Memphis, Lemoyne Owen, Rhodes, Christian Brothers, and Union University. Because of its central location, I prefer to the facilities at the University of Memphis. For meetings in Jackson, I prefer to have meetings at Union because of their facilities and its easy access off the interstate.

Of course, after finding out what rooms are available for use, I will contact the hall that the room is located and see if there are any special protocols for reserving the rooms.

That is all I have for today. It will probably a month or two before you hear from me. I am having major surgery on Monday and will need time to heal up before being able to type.

STAFFING & EQUIPMENT

First off, before I begin, I hope you had a wonderful holiday and awesome new years. I am still waiting to find out whether or not I will need surgery. I had a wonderful Christmas and New Years.

I have been thinking about the staffing. I figured that it would be best to find volunteers. Recruitment will be directed at college students(all levels-undergrad, grad, etc.) and high school students involved in organizations such Future Educators of America or foreign language clubs within in the Southwest Tennessee area (Shelby, Tipton, Fayette, Haywood, & Madison). I had thought about including college students in Northwest Mississippi and Central & Northeast Arkansas. I think it would be best to just start with West Tennessee, to see how the program development progresses.

As far as recruiting, I will send emails to local Universities and school boards. Emails will also be sent to private schools and homeschool programs.

When considering students and their interests for staffing purposes, I will be looking for students in the following areas of study: Education, Education Research, foreign languages/foreign language education, Teaching English as a Second Language, Intercultural Studies, Sociology, Broadcast Communication, Teacher Education, Psychology, Journalism, Advertising, Economics, Arts, Linguistics, Graphic Design/Multimedia, Literature, and History.

For the consideration of high school students, I will rely on recommendations from the high school teachers.

All students will have the opportunity to create their own reports for the program and website.

Staff Positions
Web Administrator
Researchers
Interviewers
Hosts
Program Schedulers
Advertisers
Editors
Translators
Transcribers
Program Director
Audio tech

That's just a rough sketch of the staffing ideas that I have. As time progress, I will elaborate more in detail on the roles.

Equipment
Laptop (I own one but it is on its last leg)
Audio Recorder
Recording software
Video Camera (?) I'm not sure that I will include videos with the podcast program or website

That is all for right now. Please feel free to post opinions, thoughts or ideas.