SPRINGDALE, Ark. — Springdale schools just reached a major milestone on its YouTube — 10 million views.
Trent Jones, Springdale School District's communications director says the district's Youtube channel isn't just about the weekly announcements…
“It's Kindergarten all the way to 12th grade—we have all kinds of people engaged in it. It's used for teaching, it's used for capturing memories, it's used for entertaining the community, and it's used for highlighting local businesses, but most importantly it's an opportunity for students to develop real-life workforce skills,” said Jones.
Jones says that the most important part about the channel is that it's made entirely by the kids, teaching them in real-time.
The district posts athletic highlights, live streams, performances, and even student newscasts.
“There's no better feeling than when you create something, and then people view your work and appreciate it," says Harber High School senior Connor Jenkins.
Over the last three years, Jenkins has produced more than 30 shows, participated in live streams, commentated basketball and volleyball games, and recently helped start a new sports show called 'Into the 6A'.
He did it with the help of fellow senior Alexej Vargas who likes to work behind the scenes on the production side.
“Per week I probably put 80% of my time into it - more than 20 hours a week," says Vargas.
“This is 100% preparation for the workforce. I couldn’t be more prepared than I am right now. Three years of commentating experience going into college is insane, no one else has that experience," says Jenkins.
“Because of the connections I've made here, I've started my own business—I'm doing live sports broadcasts, events like weddings, and I just shot a promotion for Sam's Club and Walmart,” says Vargas.
The students say that they owe it all to their experience at Harber High and the content they’ve been able to create. Until graduation, they will continue working to set up the next round of students for success.
“Our whole goal is that we don’t want whatever we put on Youtube to look like it was made by kids. We want to look like professionals in the industry," says Jenkins.
If you want to check out some of the shows Connor and Alexej have produced, all you have to do is go to the Springdale School District Youtube page.
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