The Bulldog Beat has been a broadcast that students have watched for seven years — a broadcast produced daily by students, for the students. Within Broadcast Media Workshop (BMW), students conduct interviews and work together for a broadcast that will be viewed by not only people at school, but also those in the community. Some students rely on it for sports results or any upcoming information about the district’s events and deadlines. Typically split into two class sections, one on a Red Day and one on a White Day, students are able to alternate the roles they play in creating a show. The class is taught by Mr. Aaron Fitzpatrick, who also advises the FHS Press and the Shawnee Yearbook. It came as a surprise when he found out he was going to have three sections of Broadcast Media this year. 

This is not the first time there have been more sections of a BMW class. During the 2020-2021 school year, Fitzpatrick also taught three separate broadcast classes. However, being almost entirely virtual, students largely produced content at home and were unable to produce a collaborative, in-studio show but this year the case is different. Having two BMW sections, one on a Red Day and one on a White Day, producing one show a day would not meet the needs of the classes. After much consideration of how to make it fair for everyone, Fitzpatrick decided that creating a new, original, broadcast would be the best option. 

So, “OffBeat” was created to focus on events and topics that are not discussed on the normal Bulldog Beat broadcast. Unlike the Bulldog Beat, OffBeat gives the students more freedom in the topics they talk about and cover. So far this year, the program has featured trivia questions and teachers, as well as,  homecoming court interviews. The new broadcast really helps to better tell the stories of the members of the school district in a fun new light. Students will still take turns in different roles and will all work together to produce each broadcast. The slight difference with this is the schedule of the broadcast. The Red Day classes will alternate which broadcast they produce, and on those days, students will be able to watch both shows during Personalize Learning Time (PLT). However, on White Days, the class will alternate which show they produce each day, and students will watch one or the other during PLT. 

“I am most excited for getting to add new content to a broadcast that we don’t have time for in our normal broadcast,” Managing Editor Brenna McIlvain said.

Many BMW students are coming up with topics they can cover to make OffBeat unique. Having an additional way to incorporate new voices and students’ stories will add many opportunities for never before seen content. Getting more students involved in the production of a broadcast also opens many opportunities for improvement within the program. 

“My favorite thing about OffBeat is that it gives the students a chance to create something new, develop original segments, and control the content and direction of our broadcast,” Fitzpatrick said.