Members of the Chikasha Apihchi Ikbi (Leadership Chickasaw) program toured a tribal radio station, a community newspaper and learned about song composition during the group's monthly session Saturday, Feb. 13, in Ada, Okla.
During a tour of KCNP, the Chickasaw Nation's public affairs radio, members of the youth leadership group had an opportunity to record the station's call letters and get a first-hand look at the station's equipment from station manager Brian Brashier.
The day also included a tour of the Ada Evening News, conducted by publisher Lone Beasley
Beasley explained the process of composing, printing and distributing a newspaper during the tour.
Dana Lance, tribal Media Relations Specialist, also shared writing tips prior to giving the group assignments to interview one another and compose short articles.
Throughout the day, the importance of writing, regardless of your profession, was stressed.
Leadership member Paige Wilson, who travels from Glenpool, Okla., each month to attend the session, said the program opened her eyes to a few things.
"It made me realize there are a lot of job opportunities out there when I choose a career," she said.
To close the day, award-winning Cowboy and Western songwriter Gary Pratt led the class in creating a song entitled "Bad Love," to illustrate the process of composing.
"It was fun and the kids got a kick out of it," Mr. Pratt said. "It was interesting to see how attentive some of them were."
A tour of the University of Oklahoma, a Sooner basketball game and a trip to the Sam Noble Museum is planned for the group's "College Day" March meeting.
