Two years ago, Veralyn Williams, a senior at DeWitt Clinton High School, looked forward to attending a prestigious private college. But she soon learned from her parents she would not be able to attend a private school because she was not a citizen, did not have a green card and was not eligible for financial aid.

But then Williams, now a 19-year-old Hunter College sophomore, joined Radio Rookies, a non-profit program where inner-city teens broadcast their personal narratives on WNYC radio, the local affiliate of National Public Radio (NPR). “It’s something that affected me for so long so I chose to speak about it,” Williams said, adding that she often asked her parents about her legal status, only to be ignored.

Catalina Puente also had a story to share.

“I had so much on my chest,” said Puente, a 16-year-old Kingsbridge resident. “Now there’s less weight on my shoulders once I got to speak about my story.” Puente, a junior at University Heights High School, wrote a piece about her romantic obsession with another girl.

Radio Rookies aims to take teens from disadvantaged neighborhoods and teach them to use radio equipment to tell their intimate stories to the WNYC audience. But before they get on the air, the process begins months before in the teens’ neighborhoods.

Radio Rookies is based at a different community center across the city each year.
Professional journalists teach the teens to prepare interviews, develop their stories, and use computer software like Pro-Tools.

In 2004, the COVE (Community Organized with a Vision of Excellence) in Norwood hosted the program, though the participants came from beyond Norwood. The workshops started last summer and concluded this June. The stories aired June 15 to June 18. Williams’ piece aired nationally on National Public Radio. The stories will air again Aug. 29 – 31 (see box).

The program directors recruit rookies from schools, community centers and even off the street. Puente was discovered by one of the program mentors when she performed at a poetry reading at Bronx Community College. “We just look for teens who will get something out of the program who would not have an opportunity like this,” said Czerina Patel, Radio Rookies’ senior producer.

The Mosholu teens — Veralyn Williams, Catalina Puente, Carlos Gonzalez, Derrick Hewitt, Miguel Ayala and Francis Torres — produced stories about aggression, violence and the foster care system. Since Williams told her story, she feels her life has started to move in a positive direction.

“I’ve been approved and waiting for priority,” she said about her application for a green card. “Now it’s not just an open-ended question and me being oblivious. I got to talk to my parents.”

Catalina Puente is no longer preoccupied with her obsession; she now immerses herself in writing, story-telling and drawing. She attends the New Youth Connections workshop for Bronx teens, where she works on creative writing pieces.

Radio Rookies began in 1999 when Marianne McCune, a WNYC freelancer, encouraged Harlem teenagers to use Columbia University’s radio equipment when the station was empty during the summer. Patel soon became program coordinator. She dreamed of something bigger and better and started workshops and created the name “Radio Rookies.”

“The goal of the program is two parts — to give teens the tools to tell their own stories and to provide listeners with new perspectives,” Patel said.

The award-winning program costs about $300,000 annually to run and is funded by a number of foundations.

“Just to think that so many people are listening to you,” Puente said. “Not many adults listen to teens. It’s a good way to hear what teens really got to say.”

Some rookies hoped their broadcasts would break ground with their parents.

“More than anything it was all about the open communication with my parents,” said Williams.

“I tried to persuade her not to do it,” said her mother, Lois Williams, who worried her daughter might get deported for broadcasting her immigration status. “Now I’m very proud of her. I have more respect for her now. Whatever decisions she makes I’m supportive.”

Patel also praises this particular group of teens for their candid stories.

“All teens are unique and special but in this group there is real courage in their stories,” she said. “These are all important issues that people do not like to talk about … but now they have engaged parents and young people to deal and talk about them.”

 

Radio Rookies on the Air
The stories by the Radio Rookies will be re-broadcast on Monday, Aug. 29; Tuesday, Aug. 30; and Wednesday, Aug. 31 during Morning Edition (6 a.m. to 11 a.m.) on WNYC 93.9 FM and 820 AM.