A.C. Stelle to open radio station





Eighth-grade students at A.C. Stelle Middle School will soon be hitting the airwaves. The Calabasas school has earned a grant to open its own radio station.

According to Karl Beutel, head of the school’s science department, A.C. Stelle was one of only 10 schools nationwide to receive a 2007 American Radio Relay League grant for radio stations. The grant is funded by the league’s ham radio operators and is awarded to schools with active amateur radio programs, Beutel said.

“This is a tremendous resource for the school and community,” Beutel said. “Not only will students benefit from the station, but the school will be connected via amateur radio in emergencies.”

Beutel launched a novel extracurricular radio project last year. Seventeen eighth-grade students earned their Federal Communications Commission amateur radio licenses through the program, a number Beutel expects to double this semester.

Last year’s successful program was supported by the ham radio community, Beutel said. The league chose A.C. Stelle as a grant recipient because of the school’s commitment to continuing education, he said.

“The station will give the students direct, handson experience with radio and communications,” Beutel said. “We expect these students to play a key role in the community’s volunteer emergency services.”

Members of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Disaster Communications Service and ham operators will install and maintain the radio station and provide ongoing support, Beutel said.

Norm Goodkin, a representative of the Greater Los Angeles Area Radio Group Volunteer Exam coordinator, and the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station DCS unit helped students prepare for the licensing examination and assisted the school in applying for the grant.

“The students we educate and train with this station will go on to become valuable members of the community, using their licenses and skills to provide emergency communications,” Goodkin said. “These are the people who are going to help us deal with the next Katrina.”

Goodkin said the program will also augment science education at the middle school, especially in the electronic and communications fields. “Many of the scientists who developed our space program, and almost all of today’s shuttle and space station astronauts, are ham radio operators,” he said.

“I know personally, and from many of my ham radio associates, that early exposure to this technology can be a decided advantage in school and later in the job market,” Goodkin said. “The services provided by these youngsters are highly valued by college administrators looking for community service and awards- having and using an FCC license at this age sets these kids apart.”

Several members of the community were recognized by the school for their help with the test sessions, including amateur radio operators Naomi Goodkin, Dan Goodkin, Mari Levenson and Murray Kay. The volunteers are all FCC-accredited examiners.


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