By Jules Russo
I first got involved with WRGW when I learned that a sustainability professor, Scott Sklar, lived in a completely off-the-grid house in Northern Virginia. I wanted to find an outlet at GW where I could pursue stories I found most interesting – like one about Professor Sklar and his house – so I met with the then WRGW Talk Director, Emily Venesky. During the org fair in the first few weeks of my freshman year I put my email on the WRGW newsletter and read that the Talk Department was taking stories for their blog. I met with Emily in the station and pitched her my idea. Looking back, I don’t know if it was my finest idea to travel to Northern Virginia alone and interview a professor that I never met at his house, but I am so glad that I did. Professor Sklar gave me a tour of his home and then I interviewed him for over an hour in his office/garage/greenhouse while his parrot flew around and squawked the entire time. I loved interviewing him and putting together the blog post, but most of all, I began to love WRGW.
In another meeting with Emily, I learned that WRGW was looking to develop their own podcast department and I was so eager to get involved. I stayed in touch with Emily during my fall semester and when internship applications came around in the spring, she invited me to intern on her talk show, What’s Up GW? I had listened to old episodes of their show on Soundcloud in my West Hall dorm room and was so excited to have the opportunity to get involved with it. However, during my first show I was so spooked that I wouldn’t speak unless someone asked me a direct question; but throughout my experience on What’s Up GW? Emily, Max, and Liz took me under their wing. Not only did they teach me how to operate the board and give me the confidence to share my own thoughts during our talk show, but they brought me into the WRGW community with open arms. In order to learn how to edit the interviews we recorded for the show, Emily invited us all to her dorm room, cooked us dinner and taught me the editing process. In this moment, I finally felt like I had a place at GW – and WRGW was my place. Throughout my entire time at GW, Emily has continuously invited me into her home, or has come over to mine with groceries in hand, and made me meals and supported me through anything and everything – thank you, Emily.
At the end of my freshman year, amid the beginning of the COVID pandemic, I was elected to be the director of the Podcast Department on WRGW’s E-Board. This decision impacted me in terms of my involvement in WRGW and in my own personal development. Creating the WRGW Podcast Department from the ground up took a lot of time, dedication and countless meetings via Zoom; however, through this experience I learned that no matter how hard the work was, this was a field I wanted to pursue after graduating.
Nonetheless, throughout my entire time at WRGW, the most meaningful part will always be the relationships I built. WRGW has been a community I could always count on. From sitting in the station in between classes, to meeting new people at radio events, to watching the Bachelor together every Tuesday night, to board bonding parties and everything in between – I am eternally grateful for the WRGW community. I wish nothing but the best for everyone graduating this year and I’m so excited to see what the future holds for the station.
A special thank you to Maxine Fuselier, Noor Jehan, Hannah Krantz, Kendall Larade, Emily Venezky, Max Greenhalgh, Max Cohen, and Shree Venkataraman. Your continued support and friendship have been monumental – I appreciate you all endlessly.
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