SCOOBA — English students from East Mississippi Community College will be featured on Mississippi Public Broadcasting’s Rural Voices Radio program this week.
In all, 19 students will be featured reading their stories about life in Mississippi. The first segment airs today on MPB radio stations. The essay, called “Birthday Party,” was written by Brianna Pinion of Meridian.
During the recording session last month, Pinion said she was prepared.
“I’m more excited than nervous, but the nerves are kicking in now,” Pinion said.
“When you’re on the spot, you realize there’s a lot of preparation that goes into it. You have to be focused on what you’re doing.”
Pinion’s segment will be followed on Wednesday by Antoine Watts reading his essay, “Born in Meridian.” And on Friday MPB listeners can catch Indigo Tillman of West Point as she reads her essay, “Costume Characters.”
All Rural Voices Radio segments air at 3:28 p.m.
How did it happen?
EMCC instructor Shannon Pendergrass contacted Rural Voices Radio after her students expressed an interest in taking their work to the next level.
“We talked about living in Mississippi, whether you’ve lived here all your life or whether you’ve just come to Mississippi for the first time to attend EMCC,” Pendergrass said.
“We talked about what those experiences are like and then the students started writing. The essays went through several drafts, first with instructors at EMCC and then Dr. Sherry Swain met with each student writer on the night the essays were recorded.”
Swain is a senior research associate with the National Writing Project.
“Rural Voices Radio is a program of the Mississippi Writing/Thinking Institute and it has been our privilege to partner with MPB on this program since 2003,” Swain said.
“We have research to show it has an impact on students’ academics and an impact on the quality of their writing, so we’re very excited to be able to be here. This is our first time to partner with a community college on Rural Voices Radio. We’re breaking new ground, and working with these students has just been delightful.”
What’s next?
More EMCC stories will air later on Mississippi Public Broadcasting’s Rural Voices Radio. The complete list of featured writers includes:
■ Tyler Cumberland, Brooksville
■ Amber Franks, West Point
■ Chelsea Griffin, DeKalb
■ Ka’daisa Jones, Macon
■ Charles Langley, Camp Hill, Ala.
■ Alexander Lipscomb, Columbus
■ Jaylin Miller, Weir
■ Haden Patterson, Shuqualak
■ Brianna Pinion, Meridian
■ Diamante Pounds, Guntown
■ Amber Robinson, Emelle, Ala.
■ Keona Robinson, Prairie
■ Danesha Seales, DeKalb
■ Cole Steward, Philadelphia
■ Kristina Telano, Maben
■ Keiown Terry, Columbus
■ Indigo Tillman, West Point
■ Antoine Watts Jr., Meridian
■ Kaleb Wilson, Porterville
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