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By AUDREY L. WILLIAMS
Staff Writer
No honk run rrr\l f K a u " ~ 4 f
. ? ~?... . vpiuv.\. inv. avuvai tApti itncc iiic siai i
of 25 students at Winston-Salem State University's
WSNC, 90.5-FM is gaining.
And for that experience, they thank Clarence Thomas,
a six-year instructor in the communication arts department
at WSSU. Thomas manages the 125-watt radio sta.
tion, the television studio, teaches a full load in the communications
curriculum and is coordinator of the mass
communications minor.
His master plan is to see the student staff function as
professionals.
"I train the students for problem solving and I trained
them all from scratch," Thomas says. "Now they're learning
from each other."
This year, WSNC, which covers 15 to 20 miles in all
directions of Winston-Salem, went into its first full-year
of operation. The format consists of progressive jazz and
Top 40, and both campus and community reponse has .
been positive, says Thomas.
"We try to play music you can listen to," he says.
"There are no stations in this market that play a consistent
format and we get a lot of favorable comments, considering
that the station is amateur."
Percy Johnson, a junior physical education major
minoring in mass communications and the student station
manager, says WSNC has all the ingredients for a
From cross-coum
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Star Athlete
Whether it's the breeze that pushes the 86-poun<
her determination and desire to win, breaking r<
are hers for the taking (photo by James Parker).
?? v or
By AUDREY L. WILLIAMS
Chronicle Staff Writer
As a magna cum laude marketing graduate of
North Carolina A&T State University and an MBA
graduate of the University of Wisconsin, Michael
Suggs was very much in demand.
Turning down lucrative job offers from several
major corporations in major cities in the U.S., Suggs
decided to come back home to North Carolina. Over
six weeks ago, the native of the tiny eastern North
Carolina town of Tarboro accepted an offer from
Hanes Hosiery to become a marketing assistant.
"A lot of people asked me, 'Why come back?'"
Snoo? wvc "Rut Heine from North Carolina. I knew
""-oc J O .
a lot about the state and my folks arc here. I like the
idea of being close to my family."
After graduating from Wisconsin, Suggs took a
job in marketing sales at Proctor & Gamble in
Chicago, where he worked for a year, but it wasn't
what he wanted to do. Now he's back in North
Carolina doing what he feels comfortable doing.
At Hanes, Suggs is responsible for putting together
brochures and coming up with creative ideas for
promoting Haneswear in posters and displays. He
also maintains contact with advertising agencies and
other outside suppliers, acting as a liaison for the
zMagaziin
es at WSSU
topnotch radio station. With the exception of a sales staff
(WSNC is non-commercial), WSNC has program directors,
announcers, disc jockeys, production and public af* |
fairs staffs, all of whom work with modern state-of-theart,
solid-state equipment.
"We're not on the air that long," says Thomas "and
we realize that a lot of people will get their news from the
newspaper or television. But who knows? When the station
expands, there will be no limit."
Air-time hours are Monday through Thursday from 6
p.m. to midnight, Friday from 6 p.m. to 1 a.m., and
Saturday from 1 p.m. to 1 a.m., with hopes of extending
air time to Sundays.
Expansion of WSNC, however, depends on the university
and the quality of staff hired, says Thomas.
"Even though we do draw the needed support from the
university," says Thomas, "I could always use at least
two or three full-time professionals.
"We could use more room for a music library and g
money to update our equipment in the station, too," he
says. "Broadcasting is something you have to constantly J
update and upgrade, unlike classroom instruction." |
Johnson had a jump on the other radio students. In hi^_
native hometown of Roanoke* Va., he gained practical (
.. radio experience through a communications program offered
at his high school. As student station manager, <
which he says makes him Thomas' "right- and left-hand \
Please see Daae B7 <
- V - W _ try
to math, Tomih
f\ I What weighs 86 pounds, is !
Ik I I ** record in Forsyth County for
V V ^ 1 in five minutes and 58 second
1 The answer is 15-year-old Tc
Winston-Salem, who is ranke
1 tPR I 3'r^s cross-country in the s
seventh in the East Coast Cc
complishments last year as a
had been running for just a y
RMiraK^I Adding to
I f Kennedy High School holds ;
Wi ^5 average.
Ik - to \
Tomika, sitting primly in the 1
|^X ' Fifth Street apartment she
Bon the track sweating and stu
myself, 'They'd never get me
physical education class was tc
said she would never do.
"In my P.E. class," says T
girl on the track who was on i
team and my teacher suggestec
team."
Even though she's establis
true conquerer of cross-cou
Tomika says her size has b<
others to adjust to, especiall>
only girl on the cross-country
and switches over to the track
ing. She is also the only blacl
team.
' t _ . . r _ 11 t* _ i i r . *
Last ran, lomiKa aereatea ,
d Tomika Whltten or just in the Forsyth County cross
ecords on the track field championship, and for many
was hard to swallow, especic
rggs, home is where
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Michael Suggs turned down attractive )ob offers fi
areas to be closer to home (photo by James Park*
4
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3n The Air
Student station manager Percy Johnson and the 24 other
jvhat it takes to be a professional in radio broadcasting fro
Ularence Thomas (photo by James Parker).
a Whitten makes exi
handed to them from a "skinny little girl" who,
had neither the experience nor the strength of
5-2 and holds ihe her competition.
running the mile "Everybody always ask* me why do I run,"
s? Tomika says. "They pick at- me about being so
>mika Whitten of skinny and when I beat the guys they always
d number one in make up excuses, like 1 passed them because
tate. She ranks they hurt their ankle and they'll limp off the
inference for the track.
in the nation for ** A lot of the guys seem to think that the only
reason that 1 run so fast, is that when a good
all those ac- breeze gets behind me I just blow them away,"
14-year-old. She sbe says.
ea, v As in track and cross-country, Tomika sets
e lOth-erader at out 10 d? lbe best she can academically. Nama
3.5 made point 'ng math as her favorite subject, she is at the
vas dumb," says
ivine room of the
"ZZJXl I Voun? * ?m*d
ff, and I'd say to
ements for her
> do just what she top of her class at Kennedy and was recently
nominated and selected for a United States Naomika,
"I beat a tional Leadership Merit Award. The award is
the cross-country based on grade point average, leadership, ati
I try out for the titude, responsibility and school involvement.
"Mrs. (Mose') Brown," says Tomika of one
hed herself as a of her teachers at Kennedy, "she nominates me
ntry and track, for everything <and gets me into all this
een difficult for academic stuff."
since she is the The small bones and tiny frame that causes
team at Kennedy others to gape in amazement when Tomika runs
team in the sfcr- track or cross-country is the result of heredity.
k member of the Rosalind Culp, Tomika's mother, also slender
* . .....
in name, is noi muen taner tnan ner record14
boys out of 60 breaking daughter and like any mother she is
-country district proud of the accomplishments academically
of them the loss and athletically.
illy when it was "Tomika has always been that type in
^
; theheart and family
I purpose c
marketing
"I like >
to come t
learn as fa
is because
4tAfter a \
the wc
and
W ^^1 Since hi
V IM m, /* IttSu??s wa!
p summer
||^V >
reminds hi
om major corporations in exciting metropolitan he says wi
sr).
c
r
f
Section B
March 8, 1984
jKfll
students on staff at WSNC are learning
m faculty member and station manager
celling a habit
whatever she attempts," says her mother. "She
excels. The first time I saw her run, I was amazed."
Tomika interrupts and says, "No, Mama.
Remember, at first you didn't like it."
Realizing that she has been cornered, Culp
admits, "Well, you know, 1 thought to myself,
'My baby running a mile.' It took some getting
used to.
"But I'm her number one fan," says Culp.
"When she runs, I get so excited and nervous
that one of her coaches has to tell me to calm
down."
As a member of the Road Runners, a local
amateur track team, Tomika competed in the
Junior Olympics last summer. From there, she
went on to compete in Baltimore at the East
Coast Conference and to the Nationals in
Durham ama/ino mat-hp* rnmnpiifor* anH
spectators.
A 1988 Olympic hopeful, Tomika, who can
run four miles non-stop, is grooming herself for
the tough competition she will face if she makes
it to her ultimate trial. .
"I'm going for the record in the 800 meter,"
she says. "The record, which hasn't been
broken in four years, is two minutes and 19
seconds. I run it in two minutes and 24 seconds.
"I always go for the record," says Tomika,
"and if I put my mind to it, I'll break this
one.
Like her idols, Wilma Rudolph and Mary
Decker, Tomika would like to make a name for
herself in the world of women's track and
cross-country. However, she also realizes that
anything could happen that could prevent, her
from qualifying for thejOlympics. So profes
sionally, her sights are set on computer programming.
"I'm not surprised at anything she does,"
says Culp. "Like I said before, if Tdmika attempts,
she succeeds."
are ?
>f implementing and executing assigned
plans and projects.
-vhat I'm doing now," he says. "1 wanted
o a smaller company because you can't
ist in huge corporations.
F the other reasons, too, why 1 like this job
' I'm not filling a quota," Suggs says,
veek of initial orientation, I was put right
>rk. Here, I feel like I'm earning my money
't get bored."
? was near the top of his class at A&T,
s fortunate enough to land the best of
tternships in major cities, but he says the
for the big city life just couldn't replace
South.
though I wanted to come back to the
le says, "I didn't want to go to a small
.vas looking for a slower-paced life as
3 Chicago, but I chdn t want to come to an
halt.
sn-Salem is providing me with that happs
the-road-type medium," he says,
ring Winston-Salem to his hometown,
5 there's a lot of open air space here that
im of home. "People might take offense."
ith a smirkish grin, "but to me, WinstonPlease
see page B12