Students interested in learning about careers in Radio now have an amazing space from which to broadcast in the Student Media radio station KXUA, located in the new Candace Dixon-Horne Radio Broadcast Center.
This is the first time in history that all Student Media outlets have been under one roof. Over the years the radio station and other outlets have been in different buildings across campus.
“KXUA no longer feels like the lost space in Student Media. They are now across the hall from the Newsroom and we love seeing them in action! The new center is full of energy and the student DJ’s are in and out 24/7,” said Robyn Starling Ledbetter, director of Student Media. “It’s so special to see them doing their live shows and to actually feel as if we are all a part of it. We see the faces of their staff, when before they were only known as a name because they were never in Kimpel. They all feel like a part of our Student Media family.”
As a student, Candace Dixon-Horne didn’t initially consider pursuing a career in radio broadcast, but the enterprising University of Arkansas alumna did just that and has been a driving force in the radio field for nearly 25 years.
“I was about to graduate and heard a radio ad talking about jobs at that station, but it didn’t really catch my attention,” Dixon-Horne said. “But then, a week or so later I heard a broadcast about the same opportunity, but this time they described it as a ‘career path’ and I realized there was something there and that word choices matter – that the voices connecting to listeners matter.”
Now, thanks to Dixon-Horne and her husband, John Horne, more students will soon be able to experience this for themselves and perhaps follow in her footsteps to create successful careers in radio.
That’s because the couple decided to support the renovation and creation of the Candace Dixon-Horne Radio Broadcast Center at the school with a gift of $100,000.
“Radio is an incredibly powerful medium that has been around for more than 100 years but is still reaching yet another pivotal moment in how the field moves forward,” Dixon-Horne said.
Thanks to the couple’s gift, the university’s KXUA radio station space was recently fully renovated, and now includes a KXUA recording studio, control rooms, and teaching space, as well as being centrally located to allow synergy and collaboration with the other Student Media outlets such as UATV and the Traveler newspaper.
Dixon-Horne said having all the student media outlets located and collaborating is key to preparing graduates to successfully enter the media field.
“KXUA can do a news update on UATV, or vice versa; we’re on the brink of a whole new era of collaboration,” she said.
Ledbetter agreed, saying “Students are working together, collaborating on stories and special projects. They are learning how each outlet works and how the industry is changing, They no longer feel as if they are competing with each other for news. They are understanding what convergence means and becoming better equipped for the industry. It is exciting!”
“Candace and John really wanted to do something special, that would make a difference, and they’ve done just that,” said Larry Foley, chair of the School of Journalism and Strategic Media. “This gift is a real game changer. It completes our student media center, providing us with facilities that compete or exceed broadcast teaching facilities anywhere.”
A dedication ceremony for the new Candace Dixon-Horne Radio Broadcast Center was held on Nov. 5, which included tours of the new facilities given by students active in radio broadcast and other student media areas.
The event also featured a reading of a proclamation given by Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson, which thanked the Hornes for their generosity and for dedicating their personal and professional lives to making a positive difference in their home state of Arkansas.
The Candace Dixon-Horne Radio Broadcast Center is adjacent to the Sue Walk Burnett Center for Journalism and Student Media in Kimpel Hall.
“Student Media has truly evolved into a productive newsroom that anyone — from any major, classification, regardless of experience — can dive in,” Ledbetter said. “Our students are producing award-winning work and I’m so very proud of them.”
A version of this story by Andra Liwag first appeared in the Fulbright Review.