BVZ radio shows have started up for the Spring semester with 40 people involved and 28 different shows, the largest number of shows in a semester to date.

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Rachel Cotton, a senior communication major, is the student station manager for BVZ and says that the increase in student involvement came after the implementation of the fast track program. The fast track program was made for students who want to get involved with the BVZ, predominantly those who are not studying communication, but also those who have not, or are not planning on taking the radio class, COMM 003.

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The fast track program was started by Cotton in Fall 2016 and can be completed in only a day or two. The first step is training, where students learn how to properly run a full radio show, which typically lasts an hour. Next, the student gets to shadow other students running a show so they can get a feel for how a show will run. Finally, the student is to meet with Cotton to discuss any further details.

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COMM 003, taught by professor Tom Deau who is also BVZ adviser, covers basic techniques of radio broadcasts including intros, outros and guest speakers. Students learn about remote deejaying, setting up broadcast equipment around campus for events deciding to use BVZ for music. Overall, the class teaches the proper was to do a radio show.

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John Olevnik, a senior mechanical engineering major, started with the fast track process in Spring 2017. “I wanted to get into the radio because I really like music,” he stated. Olevnik chose to start with the three-step fast track process due to the lack of exposure to communication classes in the engineering action plan. He said that with the time he has to commit to his engineering studies, the fast track process offered a route with less time commitment, while still allowing him to get involved. “It’s easy and it’s fun,” Olevnik started “and it doesn't even have to be all music. If you have something else you want to talk about, you can do that as well. And it's really easy to get involved because of the fast track program.”

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The schedule of shows changes with each semester, although some students choose to keep their show for multiple semesters. Cotton has had her show “Next in line”, where she talks about new and upcoming music, since her freshman year. Many show has a theme, such as junior communication and PR and advertising director Nick Crandall’s show titled “Knockout radio” where he plays hard rock and metal, or junior MIS major and communication minor Andre Mosley’s show titled “The harder hour” where he plays hard style music.

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The BVZ community has bondage with other organizations around campus such as Women Today, Relay for Life and greek life affiliates. In general, the community is strong and very involved in the Behrend community in general.

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“BVZ is probably one of the greatest organizations I have joined.” said Cotton. Besides the commitment to setting up and running a show, the only other time to make room for while involved is the monthly staff meetings that everyone involved must attend. According to Crandall, “Music allows you to express yourself, and you can really show Behrend who you are.”

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To get involved, a student can talk to Cotton or Professor Deau, or sign up on the BehrendSync page.