Author: SPMC Staff

High school students or recent grads are encouraged to apply for the 2019 Peter Wright Scholarship. The scholarship, which was created in 2018, seeks to provide one student an opportunity to learn anything and everything about 103.5 FM The Sun Community Radio. The winner of the scholarship will receive a $500 stipend to spend time over six weeks working and learning at the Sun Prairie Media Center. Peter Wright was a 1992 graduate of Sun Prairie High School who passed away unexpectedly on July 24, 2017. Wright was so excited about the news that Sun Prairie was to be awarded its own radio station that he came to the Sun Prairie Media Center several times before the station was even built. “He could not wait to get on the air,”…

The Sun Prairie Media Center, a city of Sun Prairie department and one of the top community media centers in Wisconsin, has an immediate full-time position available as a production manager. This person works closely with city staff and media center volunteers to create local programming for KSUN, KIDS-4, and particularly 103.5 FM The Sun Community Radio. The position involves training volunteers on equipment, teaching students in the KIDS-4 crews weekly, prepping recordings for air, assisting the director in volunteer and business sponsorship recruitment, and scheduling program and event coverage. Some evenings and weekends required. Associate’s degree in Communications, Electronic Media, Journalism or related field preferred. Experience working with and instructing children also preferred. Starting wage: $19.82/$21.82/hr with benefits including WRS. Go here for more information and to apply online.

Do you have children who love to make movies and videos or maybe get on the radio? Then sign them up for the Sun Prairie Media Center’s summer workshops! These workshops are designed for budding journalists, filmmakers, actors, and DJs who want a fun and creative way to express themselves, learn how to make movies, or star in them. In these workshops students will be introduced to media production in a fun, hands-on learning environment. These courses will inspire kids in a creative atmosphere to learn communication skills they will use for a lifetime. More information is available online now at kids4.tv. There will be online registration live at kids4.tv beginning on April 9. There is also more information available in the 2019 Summer Fun Guide published by the Sun…

Coming off a very busy year of covering SPHS Cardinals boys’ and girls’ basketball (over 40 games broadcast including a trip to state), for the third consecutive season the Sun Prairie Media Center will be broadcasting a select group of SPHS Cardinal baseball and softball games beginning Saturday, April 6.   “We have received an overwhelmingly positive response to our previous coverage of SPHS baseball and softball games,” said SPMC director Jeff Robbins. “There is something about the sound of the crack of the bat on the radio that is an irreplaceable and welcoming sign of spring. We are looking forward to more radio broadcasts again this year and hopefully following the Cardinals all the way to the state tournaments both in Madison and Grand Chute.” Calling most games will…

As we move into April, KIDS-4 crew will get ready to wrap up for the crew year. The final live show for Thursday Night Live (TNL) will take place on Thursday, April 11 at 6:30pm. The crews will not meet during Spring Break, the week of April 15-18. In addition, the last week of crew will take place during the week of April 22-25. Finally, the end of the year Pizza Party is set for May 8 and this event is for KIDS-4 kids who have recorded an event outside of crew time. Even though the crew year is set to wrap up soon, the kids can still stay involved over the summer months by participating in the Summer Workshops and/or they can continue to record events around the community…

The city of Sun Prairie is considering producing a video documentary concerning the events of July 10, 2018. The documentary would cover the events between the July 10 explosion and the November 2018 reopening of Main Street. The purpose of the documentary would be to capture the stories from residents most directly impacted by the explosion, from public safety workers and city employees, to displaced residents, business owners, and those who directed relief efforts. The documentary also hopes to encapsulate the resiliency of Sun Prairie and its residents, a fact perhaps represented locally by the #SunPrairieStrong movement. Not included in the documentary will be stories exclusive to any criminal or civil investigations spawned by the explosion. The Sun Prairie Media Center is planning to collect interviews and other footage to…

The Sun Prairie Media Center and its public-affairs program “Talk of the Town” will be presenting a live forum among SPASD school board candidates. The debate will take place in the Council Chambers at Sun Prairie City Hall beginning at 6 PM on Friday, March 22. The public is welcome to attend although there is not expected to be time for audience questions. Five of the six school board candidates are scheduled to be present: incumbents Caren Diedrich, Dave Hoekstra, and Steve Schroeder, as well as challengers Montie Bowie and Bob Jokisch. Tim Fandek is unavailable to attend the forum. “Talk of the Town” co-hosts Don Hooser and Chris Mertes will moderate the debate. The debate carries on The Sun Prairie Media Center and “Talk of the Town”’s mutual mission…

Are you new to town? Have you been so consumed with work, school, family, Celebrity Big Brother, whatever, that you really don't feel you know that much about what the Sun Media Center does? Want to get some free hands-on experience behind the camera, in front of the camera, and in front of the microphone? The SPMC is the best place in town to share your creativity and your passion with friends, family, the city, even the world. And there is no better time to learn more about the Media Center then our Free Media Maker Labs for Kids and Adults held in conjunction with the Sun Prairie Public Library.Be a Radio DJ! Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be a radio disc jockey? Did you…

The Sun Prairie Media Center is happy to announce that effective immediately, it is increasing the number of city meetings that it is covering on its main TV channel KSUN. KSUN has been providing live coverage of the following meetings for years: Common Council, Committee of the Whole, Finance Committee, Personnel Committee, Plan Commission, Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee, and Public Works Committee. Starting in January, the Media Center is adding the following meetings to its broadcast schedule: Business Improvement District, Library Board, Transit Commission, Tourism Commission, Parks Rec and Forestry Commission, Historical Library and Museum Board, Police and Fire Commission, Sun Prairie Utilities Commission, Alcohol License Review Board, and Sexual Offender Residency Board. “This expansion of meeting coverage came from discussions we’ve had with city administrator Aaron Oppenheimer and Mayor…

Did you know that the Apple TV service has, according to a study by research firm eMarketer, 21.3 million subscribers? If you are one of those subscribers, you can now use your Apple TV device to live stream KSUN and KIDS-4 as well as get tons of great on demand content created locally at the Sun Prairie Media Center! This comes hot on the heels of last month’s announcement that KSUN and KIDS-4 streaming and programming is now available on all Roku devices as well, which claims 38.9 million subscribers, according to the same eMarketer research. “In order to attract member producers and end users to our channels, it basically breaks down into two main areas, content and distribution,” said SPMC director Jeff Robbins. “Content isn’t an issue because we…