COVER STORY <str<strong>on</strong>g>Success</str<strong>on</strong>g> <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> <strong>Set</strong> Alumna excels in local televisi<strong>on</strong> producing role Professi<strong>on</strong>alism, c<strong>on</strong>fidence and an impeccable work ethic led Maggie Sliter ’07 to <strong>the</strong> first step <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> televisi<strong>on</strong> ladder of success. One of <strong>the</strong> first graduates of <strong>the</strong> College’s Communicati<strong>on</strong> Studies program, Sliter is now a producer of <strong>the</strong> ABC (WSYR- TV9, Syracuse) Show, Bridge Street. Sliter has enjoyed a growing history with Bridge Street. She appeared <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> show in 2006 as a model, helping to promote <strong>the</strong> College’s annual fashi<strong>on</strong> show. The experience gave her a taste of working in televisi<strong>on</strong>, and left her wanting more. “It’s surreal to go from modeling as a junior at Cazenovia, to producing <strong>the</strong> segment as a professi<strong>on</strong>al,” said Sliter after a recent Bridge Street segment promoting <strong>the</strong> College’s 2008 fashi<strong>on</strong> show. “I never thought I would be working <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> set just a few years later.” During <strong>the</strong> fall semester of her senior year, Sliter was hired as an intern <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> show. “I became very interested in what goes into getting a show ready, and <strong>the</strong>n watching it come to life,” she says, recalling her realizati<strong>on</strong> that this was what she wanted to do professi<strong>on</strong>ally. With her eyes set <strong>on</strong> a tangible career goal, Sliter increasingly involved herself in <strong>the</strong> show. She let <strong>the</strong> producers know how interested she was in producing, and how willing she was to assist in any way. This initiative led to an invitati<strong>on</strong> to work <strong>on</strong> a segment called <strong>the</strong> “Intern Challenge,” which included selected interns working <strong>on</strong> various shoots that highlighted different places in Central New York. So<strong>on</strong> after <strong>the</strong> “Intern Challenge” was finished, Sliter was asked to book and produce a few Bridge Street segments, and was included in <strong>the</strong> show’s planning meetings. When her internship was over, Sliter didn’t want <strong>the</strong> experience to end. A growing c<strong>on</strong>necti<strong>on</strong> to <strong>the</strong> show and increasing interest in televisi<strong>on</strong> producti<strong>on</strong> prompted her to base her Senior Photo: Susan Kahn Sliter credits her Communicati<strong>on</strong> Studies educati<strong>on</strong> and her experiences <strong>on</strong> campus for teaching her to be professi<strong>on</strong>al and c<strong>on</strong>fident. Capst<strong>on</strong>e project <strong>on</strong> Bridge Street. She shadowed <strong>the</strong> producers and essentially became a producer in putting toge<strong>the</strong>r a video of <strong>the</strong> Bridge Street operati<strong>on</strong>. Sliter’s c<strong>on</strong>tinued presence <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> set while producing her capst<strong>on</strong>e project put her in <strong>the</strong> right place at <strong>the</strong> right time. An opening for a full-time producer became available in <strong>the</strong> spring of 2007. “I still remember Julie [<strong>on</strong>e of <strong>the</strong> show’s hosts at <strong>the</strong> time] calling me into her office and asking me if I would be interested in <strong>the</strong> positi<strong>on</strong>,” she says. Sliter recalls going through <strong>the</strong> formal interview process, and <strong>the</strong> stress of waiting to find out if she would be offered <strong>the</strong> job. “Following graduati<strong>on</strong>, I was ei<strong>the</strong>r going to work <strong>on</strong> Bridge Street, or I was going to get <strong>on</strong> an airplane with a <strong>on</strong>e-way ticket to Las Vegas,” she laughs. The job offer came and <strong>the</strong> flight to Vegas never happened. Being able to highlight people and places in Central New York is Sliter’s favorite part of <strong>the</strong> job. She says that she is still learning as she researches topics, finds guests and creates ways to present informative and entertaining topics to <strong>the</strong> show’s viewers. She is proud of her role in providing an informati<strong>on</strong> outlet that goes bey<strong>on</strong>d <strong>the</strong> stati<strong>on</strong>’s local newscasts. “Unless you work for <strong>the</strong> show,” she says, “you d<strong>on</strong>’t realize how much actually goes into <strong>the</strong> planning of a four-minute segment.” Shauna LaSpina, senior producer of Bridge Street, is aware of what goes into televisi<strong>on</strong> producing and knew early <strong>on</strong> that Sliter possessed <strong>the</strong> necessary traits. “Maggie was always a step ahead of our expectati<strong>on</strong>s,” said LaSpina. “To be successful in this business you need to be smart, quick, a go-getter, and always looking for <strong>the</strong> hottest topic. Maggie brings all of <strong>the</strong>se qualities to <strong>the</strong> show <strong>on</strong> a daily basis.” In additi<strong>on</strong> to her role as producer, Sliter has also come full circle, now serving as <strong>the</strong> show’s internship supervisor. One of <strong>the</strong> interns she supervises is Zachary Zabella, a Cazenovia College Communicati<strong>on</strong> Studies major. “As an intern working with Maggie,” he says, “I have been exposed to a fast-paced mass media envir<strong>on</strong>ment that has helped me grasp what my career path may look like.” Zabella has also worked with Sliter <strong>on</strong> campus and c<strong>on</strong>tinues, “As a student, and now as a producer, Maggie is used to completing what needs completi<strong>on</strong> and not backing out before it’s over. She is a workaholic, but has fun in everything she does. Bridge Street is a perfect fit for her.” Sliter credits her Communicati<strong>on</strong> Studies educati<strong>on</strong> and her experiences <strong>on</strong> campus for teaching her to be professi<strong>on</strong>al and c<strong>on</strong>fident. She cites her adviser, Maureen Louis, assistant professor and director of <strong>the</strong> Communicati<strong>on</strong> Studies program; Hea<strong>the</strong>r Howley, assistant professor of communicati<strong>on</strong>; and Roger Benn, adviser of WITC-FM 88.9, <strong>the</strong> Cazenovia College radio stati<strong>on</strong>, for playing significant roles in her growth and development as a professi<strong>on</strong>al communicator. “Maggie is such a dynamo; from <strong>the</strong> first time I met her, I saw such spark, such drive,” states Professor Louis. “It was a joy having her as a student and I know Once an intern for Bridge Street, Sliter enjoys incorporating college students – like Cazenovia’s Zachary Zabella (left) – into <strong>the</strong> show’s producti<strong>on</strong>. Sliter (right) communicates with those <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> set as she reviews an upcoming segment of a recent episode of Bridge Street. it will be a thrill watching her c<strong>on</strong>tinue to grow in her career.” Sliter remembers her “Communicati<strong>on</strong> in <strong>the</strong> Mass Media” course as being <strong>the</strong> catalyst for her interest in <strong>the</strong> communicati<strong>on</strong>s field. Her experiences working <strong>on</strong> WITC-FM, and for The Quad, Cazenovia College’s student newspaper, as well as managing and booking events <strong>on</strong> campus, and her Bridge Street internship, all provided her with <strong>the</strong> necessary hands-<strong>on</strong> experience. Now a communicati<strong>on</strong>s professi<strong>on</strong>al, Sliter encourages o<strong>the</strong>rs to “work hard, d<strong>on</strong>’t be afraid to make mistakes, and have fun!” For Maggie Sliter, <strong>the</strong>se three ingredients helped her excel as a student at Cazenovia College, and have positi<strong>on</strong>ed her in <strong>the</strong> world of communicati<strong>on</strong>s, <strong>on</strong> <strong>the</strong> first step of <strong>the</strong> ladder of televisi<strong>on</strong> success. 4 Cazenovia College Magazine: Spring/Summer 2008 Cazenovia College Magazine: Spring/Summer 2008 5 Photo: John Seiter Photo: John Seiter