Contact Us - Staff Staff Students | |
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| Karen Holp General Manager |
manager @ kgou.org |
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| Patrick Roberts Chief Engineer |
engineering @ kgou.org |
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| Jim Johnson Program Director Weekend Blues Host |
programming @ kgou.org |
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| Scott Gurian News Director |
news @ kgou.org |
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| Jolly Brown Manager of Development |
underwriting @ kgou.org |
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| Kathy Hawkins Business Manager |
business @ kgou.org |
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| Laura Knoll Membership Director / Webmaster |
membership @ kgou.org |
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| Kurt Gwartney Operations Manager / Public Service Announcement Director |
operations @ kgou.org |
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| Susan Shannon Office Manager |
office @ kgou.org |
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| Chad Mitchell Global Jazz Wire Host |
producer @ globaljazzwire.com |
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Address:
KGOU Radio
Copeland Hall, Room 300 University of Oklahoma Norman, OK 73019-2053 Phone: 405-325-3388
Visitors are more than welcome during
regular office hours |
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Note: To contact us by e-mail, copy and paste address into your e-mail message, and remove spaces on either side of @ symbol. We've removed the e-mail links to reduce spam. |
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Contact Us - Students Staff Students | |
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| Grace Fredrickson Operations Assistant |
assistant @ kgou.org |
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| Will Prescott News Assistant |
assistant @ kgou.org |
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| Bianca Ferrer Development Assistant |
assistant @ kgou.org |
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| Brian Hardzinski News Assistant |
assistant @ kgou.org |
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| Cara Bailey Student Intern |
intern @ kgou.org |
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| Lisa Janssen Student Intern |
intern @ kgou.org |
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| Ashley Southern Student Intern |
intern @ kgou.org |
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Address:
KGOU Radio
Copeland Hall, Room 300 University of Oklahoma Norman, OK 73019-2053 Phone: 405-325-3388
Visitors are more than welcome during
regular office hours |
|
Note: To contact us by e-mail, copy and paste address into your e-mail message, and remove spaces on either side of @ symbol. We've removed the e-mail links to reduce spam. |
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 Karen Holp General Manager Karen has her Master (1974) and Bachelor (1972) degrees from the University of Akron in Ohio, and has worked as Program Director at WMRA-FM, James Madison University in Harrisonburg Virginia and WUIS-FM, University of Illinois at Springfield. She moved to Las Cruces, New Mexico in 1979 to become General Manager of KRWG-FM. Karen became an Oklahoman in 1988 when she came to the University of Okahoma. In addition to being General Manager of KGOU Radio, she is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the School of Journalism, teaching a course each semester that tends to alternate between broadcast management, broadcast ratings and audio production. Karen is very active in public radio affairs: she has served a six year term on the Board of Directors of National Public Radio from 1988-1994, and has been a participant on a wide variety of panels and committees for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, NPR and others. Karen is the current President of the Rocky Mountain Corporation for Public Broadcasting and a Past-President of Rocky Mountain Public Radio. In Norman, she is a board member and program chair of Jazz in June, Inc. and serves on the board of Neighborhood Alliance, Inc. in Oklahoma City.  Patrick Roberts Chief Engineer A Sapulpa native who grew up in the Oklahoma City metro area, Patrick Roberts serves as KGOU’s Chief of Engineering, maintaining the technical aspects of both stations. Previously, Patrick worked with KOMA-FM, KMGL, and 50,000 watt KOKC (formerly KOMA-AM) for 14 years and served as KRXO’s Chief Engineer. As one of the newest members of the KGOU staff, he currently spends most of his time under consoles, at transmitter sites, at the workbench, and in front of the computer screen trying to solve problems. Patrick enjoys FM Broadcast DX (distant station listening) and holds Amateur Radio license KA5ZYM.  "Hardluck" Jim Johnson Program Director & Host of the Weekend Blues Born November 18, 1968, I have happily spent most of my life in Oklahoma. I am a Midwest City High School graduate of the class of '87. From there I settled in Norman where I attended the University of Oklahoma. Somehow, I found my way to the Journalism Department and decided upon a career in radio. Much of this inspiration was due to KGOU/KROU (then just KGOU) and those I met while serving as a volunteer for the station. In 1992, I became host of what is now the "Weekend Blues" on KGOU/KROU and shortly thereafter completed my degree requirements for the College of Arts and Sciences. By this time however, I had become completely wrapped in the Blues and my devotion for the station...so rather than move on, here I stay...happily enjoying my #1 hobby as host of the "Weekend Blues" each Saturday and Sunday from 1p.m. to 5 p.m.  Susan K. Shannon Office Manager Susan K Shannon was born in Pawhuska, Oklahoma on September 22nd, 1954. She is a member of the Osage Nation and the daughter of George A Shannon and the late Mary Agnes Wagoshe (way-gosh-shee). Her father is also an OU graduate who upon graduation was offered a job in San Francisco, so Susan spent her early years there until the family moved back to Oklahoma. She graduated from Tulsa Memorial High School in 1973. After having attended OU in the mid-1970’s, she returned in August of 1991 and got her degree in Native American Studies in 1996 with a minor in Film/Video studies. She began working at KGOU Radio station fulltime in July of 1996. This enabled her to become staff sponsor for the newly formed Native American Women & Others For Multicultural Preservation. In 1997, NAWOMP began sponsoring the OU Native Art Show and later the “Native Poets and Open Mic Night” at the Jacobson House. She has been the office manager at KGOU since July 1996 and in 1997 did her first story for National Native News. In August of 2001, she was invited to Anchorage, Alaska for training and to meet the staff. Through those contacts she was given a full scholarship to attend the Native American Journalists Association training conference in San Diego. She has been a Ford Foundation scholarship recipient, which enabled her to attend the National Federation of Community Broadcasters Conference in San Francisco, where the first day was devoted to Native American broadcasters. She contributes stories to the locally produced radio show “Oklahoma Voices” focusing on native people and events. Her photographs have been in OU Native Art shows as well as Gilcrease Museum and the State Capitol. She has participated in her tribal ceremonials since she was three years old and received her Indian name from then-Chief Paul Pitts. She is a member of the Deer Clan.  Chad Mitchell Jazz Announcer & Global Jazz Wire Producer Fav. Sax Player: Dexter Gordon Fav. Jazz Artist: Pat Metheny How did you get into radio? I was in the Music building and happened to see a flyer asking for volunteer help at the campus station. At the time, I was bored with my current courses and felt that some experience outside of engineering might be a good idea. I already had some experience with audio equipment from traveling with my high school jazz band and various rock groups, so the station put me on the payroll, eventually in charge of production. Meanwhile, I started doing Friday nights on the air, and now all I do is on-air work. What got you interested in jazz music? To tell you the truth, it was a fairly slow progression. The first encounter I had with jazz-style music was in high school marching band. Yeah, I know, most of that stuff is about as far from jazz as you can get, but a lot of the tunes we played had that undercurrent to them. So my first real involvement was in a big band style format. We played a few standards, of course, but most of the guys were really into more modern arrangements. We used a lot of tunes from artists like Maynard Ferguson and Chuck Mangione. I really became more interested in the Fusion end of jazz, since I still listened to rock music. As a saxophone player, however, I couldn't help but start to pick up on cats like Dexter Gordon and John Coltrane. At first it was just their playing that turned me on, but the more you listen, the more the music hits home. The more time you spend around the music, the more it becomes a part of your life. It always seems to me that many people try to give these narrow definitions to jazz, and I suppose that it can be codified that way. To me, though, jazz is really indefinable by nature. It doesn't mean the use of certain instruments in a certain way. If I had to define it, I'd simply say Jazz is flexibility. It changes in response to not only the musician, but his audience. It's also about openness to the new, the different. A perfect example is the world music that I play on Global Jazz Wire. Initially, most people wonder why this music is on a "jazz" station. Most jazz listeners enjoy hearing something a little different, however, and bringing in music from places like Africa, Pakistan, and Bulgaria really stretches their musical boundaries. Personally, Saturdays have become my favorite night on KGOU for that reason.  Jolly Brown Development Director Jolly Brown has served as KGOU’s Manager of Development since September, 2000. From 1995 to 1998, Jolly was the Morning Edition Host and Senior News Producer for KGOU and was an underwriting consultant from 1998 to 2000. Before her arrival at KGOU, Jolly worked for seven years at commercial radio station KEBC in Oklahoma City, both in sales and as an on-air announcer. She also spent two and a half years at KGMC-TV, Channel 34 in Oklahoma City. Jolly earned her B.A. in Journalism from the University of Oklahoma in 1985, graduating with distinction. She is currently on the board of Jaymac, the alumni association of OU’s Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication. She also has served as secretary of the Norman Arts Council roundtable. Jolly enjoys singing and musical theater. She and her husband, Greg, stay very busy with their three children, Michael, Allison and Tyler.  Laura Knoll Membership Services Director Laura came home to KGOU after a career in radio news at several commercial stations in Oklahoma City. As a Journalism student at OU, she received her early radio experience at KGOU. After graduating, she began her career at KNOR in Norman as a news reporter and anchor. Laura served as morning co-anchor at WKY in the mid-1980's, then worked at KTOK as morning news producer and general assignment reporter. In 2003 she joined the news department at KOMA. Laura has won several awards for news writing from the Associated Press, Oklahoma Association of Broadcasters, the Society of Professional Journalists, and the Oklahoma Education Association. A Norman native and graduate of Moore High School, Laura earned her Bachelor of Arts in Journalism from the University of Oklahoma in 1983. Laura and husband David are kept entertained and busy by daughter Marina.  Kurt Gwartney Operations Manager & PSA Director Kurt began his radio career at 16 as weekend disc jockey at KOLS-AM/KKMA-FM (now KMYZ) in Pryor, Okla. He gradually began doing news work at his home town radio station. Kurt studied journalism at Oklahoma State University, serving two terms as managing editor of "The Daily O'Collegian." He returned to his radio roots while at Oklahoma State, working first as a part-time news producer, then as Morning Edition host at KOSU. Kurt left the station in 1990 returning to Pryor to be a part of a new business, ViaGrafix, that developed computer training videos. He eventually sold his business to attend seminary at The Iliff School of Theology in Denver and Phillips Theological Seminary in Tulsa, Okla. He served as minister of communications for St. Luke's United Methodist Church in Oklahoma City for five years before starting his own media business, Discuss Communications LLC. He has once again returned to radio as the operations manager and Morning Edition anchor at KGOU. Kurt is a certified United Methodist Communicator, member of the Association of Independents in Radio, and Spiritual Directors International. He now lives in Choctaw, Okla. with his wife, the Rev. Charla Gwartney, and daughter, Elizabeth.  Grace Fredrickson Operations Assistant Grace Fredrickson is a senior, majoring in Broadcast and Electronic Media in the Gaylord College of Journalism. She grew up in Oklahoma City and is a graduate of Classen School of Advanced Studies. This semester Grace is also a student intern for Assignment: Radio, and is excited about producing stories for that program. Grace is making plans to study abroad in the fall. Spencer Livingston-Gainey News Assistant  Scott Gurian News Director Scott Gurian has worked as News Director at KGOU since May 2004. He has covered everything from the Oklahoma City bombing anniversary and political wrangling at the State Capitol to tornado season and the annual catfish noodling festival in Pauls Valley. His reporting has been honored with dozens of regional and national awards, including "Best Radio Portfolio" from the Oklahoma chapter of the Society for Professional Journalists, and a national Edward R. Murrow award from the Radio-Television News Directors' Association. Before coming to KGOU, Scott produced a daily, national news magazine program on the Pacifica Radio Network in Washington, DC. He has also produced and reported for a variety of public and community radio stations and programs including All Things Considered, Weekend America, The World, Radio for Peace International and the BBC. Scott attended Emerson College in Boston and studied radio documentary at the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies in Portland, Maine. He loves traveling and hopes to one day work as a foreign correspondent.  Bianca Ferrer Development Assistant A true Texan at heart, Bianca came to the University of Oklahoma by way of Houston. She is a senior, majoring in public relations with a minor in Spanish. She loves public radio and is a regular listener of The Weekend Blues and Global Jazz Wire. She is excited to learn more about the non profit sector at KGOU. Upon graduation, Bianca hopes to pursue a career in public relations and specialize in special events. She gained valuable experience in events during an internship with the City of Houston at the Mayor’s Office of Special Events, where she assisted in planning Chevy’s Freedom Over Texas, the nation’s second largest 4th of July celebration.  Ashley Southern Student Intern, Assignment: Radio Ashley calls Norman her home town, and is a senior in the Gaylord College of Journalism. She first became interested in broadcasting in high school. Ashley spends her free time watching sports, listening to music, or just being in the great outdoors. Jose Miguel Arevalo de Heza Student Intern, Assignment: Radio Jose is an exchange student from Bolivia, and is a junior Corporate Communications major at Universidad Privada Boliviana. Jose's father is a well-known sports journalist in Bolivia, and Jose hopes to follow in his footsteps. He's well on his way, already having attended four World Cup matches, two of them as a credentialed member of the media.  Kathy Hawkins Business Manager Kathy is a life-long Oklahoman, and joined KGOU in July 2006. It's significant that she began work at the beginning of a fiscal year because Kathy's responsibilities include creating annual budgets, planning purchases, reconciling accounts, preparing records for audit, and tracking KGOU financials. Kathy has worked in accounting and business aspects in both the public and private sectors, and has been part of the larger University of Oklahoma family for more than 16 years. She brings her expertise working with the administration, faculty, staff, and students at OU. Kathy and husband Max live southeast of Norman.  Bianca Lopez Student Intern, Assignment: Radio Bianca grew up in Moore, Oklahoma, but her parents came to this country from Mexico and Peru. She hopes to someday work in Spanish-language television, maybe in Miami or Los Angeles, as a reporter or producer.  Brian Hardzinski News Assistant Producer and Host, Assignment: Radio From Flower Mound, TX, Brian is a senior, with double majors in Broadcast Journalism and History. He served as KGOU's Production and Operations Intern during the Spring semester of 2006, and Producer and Host of Assignment: Radio in Fall 2006, Spring 2007, and now Fall 2007. He worked as afternoon news host for All Things Considered this last summer, and also has experience in the commercial side of broadcasting, having worked as an intern with Clear Channel Radio in Dallas. In his free time, Brian enjoys bowling and attempting to cook.  Will Prescott News Assistant Will is working toward his Master of Professional Writing, having already earned a BA in Sociology from Rice University. He's also a former 5th Grade teacher in Atlanta. Will is well-traveled, having spent a year in Oaxaca, Mexico before entering grad school. Will aspires to work for a daily newspaper, freelance for magazines, and then write screenplays and novels.  Kris Akins Student Intern, Production and Operations  Lisa Janssen Student Intern, Assignment: Radio Lisa is a Journalism senior from Oklahoma City, and is also working toward a minor in Spanish. She already has experience in the field, having worked at the student newspaper, The Oklahoma Daily, as well as World Literature Today, the Oklahoma Gazette, and the City of Oklahoma City's public information office. Lisa has worked as KGOU's News Assistant providing afternoon news, weather and traffic updates, and is currently interning at The Oklahoman.  Cara Bailey Student Intern, Assignment: Radio Cara is a Journalism senior with a minor in Spanish. She loves the outdoors and hopes to someday travel and write for a publication such as National Geographic or Backpacker magazine.  Corey Davidson Student Intern, Production and Operations Corey Davidson is a Norman freshman pursuing a degree in Film and Video Studies. He hopes to write movie scripts someday. Grace Fredrickson Student Intern, Production and Operations Grace Fredrickson is a junior, majoring in Broadcast and Electronic Media in the Gaylord College of Journalism. She grew up in Oklahoma City. |