Antonio Cen Wu is interviewed by Shamari Ridley

WNYC’s Radio Rookie program has come to CDI! Students at Manhattan Comprehensive Night & Day High School are getting a first-hand glimpse of what goes into radio journalism, broadcasting and production.

Since 1999, Radio Rookies has been working with students across the city helping them to think critically about their experiences and providing them the tools needed to produce their own radio show. After applying to the program by answering questions about their background and what kind of stories they’d like to tell, students attend a group orientation introducing them to the program. Then each student is paired off with a producer who guides them through the entire production process – from story conceptualization, to script writing and interviewing, to learning ProTools and audio editing.

Stories explore complex topics that are reflective of the issues many of our students face: applying to college as an immigrant, how gender affects the school experience and asking what it means to be an older student in high school. “We’re interested in teaching young people how to tell a story,” said Kaari Pitkin, Senior Producer of Radio Rookies at WNYC. She said that the Radio Rookies at MCNDHS are particularly unique because many of our students are recent immigrants. “Their navigation of school life, New York, everything – it’s all so new. These stories bring us closer to understanding something we wouldn’t otherwise know about.”

Our students are currently hard at work on their stories – we’ll update you in the spring on air dates!