Students Gain Experience At MDC TV
As a high school senior, Hellen Rivas was selected as an Al Neuharth Free Spirit & Journalism winner.
The program, an all-expenses-paid conference at the Newseum in Washington D.C., is for aspiring journalists.
However, entry into the program required an edited video of some of her work from her experience in Washington, D.C. because Rivas did not have extensive experience with editing.
So she sought help. She found that help in Ariel Rubalcava, Director/ Senior Producer at MDC TV, a seasoned veteran in the broadcast arena, who helped her with the video.
Soon Rivas became a regular at MDC TV, a cable TV channel operated by Miami Dade College. She spent one year volunteering there. Rivas built her skills conducting on-camera interviews in English and Spanish, editing videos, writing scripts, reading from a teleprompter and operating studio cameras.
In addition, she hosted several shows at the station including “My Financial Aid” and “Spring News.”
“I think people should appreciate this wonderful asset that MDC has given to students,” Rivas said. “Not every college has their own TV station, the opportunities are endless.”
Rivas is like legions of MDC film and broadcast students who have used the station to gain their first significant experience in the field. MDC TV broadcasts seven days a week in English, Spanish, French, and Creole. The station can be viewed on AT&T U-Verse (Channel 99) and on Comcast (Channel 78).
The television station provides programming for more than 1.3 million homes in Miami-Dade county. It can also be viewed via online streaming.
Miami Dade College took the reigns of Miami-Dade county’s community access channel in 2008. It is run through the College’s School of Entertainment & Design Technology.
MDC TV, which incorporates the work of student interns and volunteers, features an array of shows including “MDC In Focus”, “Meet the Clubs”, “MDC In the Haitian Community.” They also broadcast live events such as King Felipe VI’s visit to MDC.
Students provide assistance by writing scripts, operating cameras, editing videos, securing talent, booking shows and providing various other duties.
Rubalcava oversees the day-to-day operations at MDC TV. His background includes working as a technical director/editor at the Miami Short Film Festival, producer and editor at Telemundo, and a director at KPRC TV the NBC channel in Houston, Texas.
“We can all reach new goals that will make us all better in the long run,” Rubalcava said. “MDC TV is helping with this function, and my first undertaking was to give the channel a look and a voice.”
One of those voices is James Pierre, who hosts and produces many of the shows on the station including the popular, MDC in the Haitian Community. Pierre peppers his upbeat personality into the station, sprinkling wishes of “positive energy” to his staff and viewers.
Rivas,19, once was one of those staffers.
She graduated with her associates of arts degree from Hialeah Campus in May of 2014. Rivas used her experience at MDC TV to land an internship as a production intern for Telemundo Channel 51 in May of 2015, while assisting with producing live shows and pre-recorded segments, and writing briefs.
Rivas’ advice to aspiring journalists is to get involved, like she did: “It’s never too early to start and get that experience,” said Rivas, who is expected to graduate with a bachelor of science degree in broadcast journalism from Florida International University in May of 2016.
For more information about MDC TV, contact Ariel Rubalcava at 305-237-1611 or arubalca@mdc.edu
