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In the news today: Our host and producer of The State is graduating! This marks Rachel Fulton's final episode, in which she's been working on this podcast for the past four years! This episode covers Rachel's college recap, from jobs to her future career, as well as commencement information at MSU.
Creators and Guests
What is The State - A Podcast from The State News + Impact 89FM?
The State is a daily rundown of the headlines that matter to the East Lansing, MI community.
Happy Friday and welcome to the State in our final episode of the State for the Spring semester here on Friday, April 25, where we bring you the headlines that matter. I'm your host, Rachel Fulton. This episode is going to be a little different as I've mentioned for the past week that this is my last episode ever hosting and producing this podcast. And in honor of this, I'd like to take this final episode to recap my time here with the podcast, recap my college journey, and also give you some information on upcoming graduation days and times because of course we still have to add some news to it. And I'd also like to tell you where my next journey will be taking me so you guys can also follow me along.
Rachel:So we'll just kind of start here from the beginning, my time coming to Impact eighty nine FM, which is the campus radio station where we host the state podcast. So I had a lengthy radio background before I even came to Michigan State. I'm originally from Auburn Hills, Michigan, and went to Avondale High School where we had a full FM radio station. We were eighty nine point five WAHS, and I got my kickstart there. I was able to DJ, I did remote broadcasting, so I really just fell in love with everything radio.
Rachel:And through doing that, I was a member of the Michigan Association of Broadcasters starting about my junior year of high school where I was informed about impact. And I always knew I wanted to go to Michigan State. I never knew exactly what it was, you know, that I wanted to study, but I knew that I wanted to be here on this university. And, you know, knowing about the impact just made it go 10 times even more. So I got into Michigan State and the month before school started, reached out to our general manager here at the radio station and just wanted to get involved in any way I possibly could.
Rachel:So I was reaching out to different teams as well. You know, the Impact has so many different teams from sports to news to entertainment to music review to audio. It's just kind of like sky's the limit with us. So I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but I knew somehow I wanted to be like broadcasting or even podcasting because podcasting was something I really got into, especially during COVID-nineteen. That was how we were creating our content for my high school radio station.
Rachel:And I was informed that the state had an opening. It was opening for a host and producer and it was the perfect podcast that they thought a freshman could take on as, you know, you'll learn just a simple podcast, put some news out every day and, something I could commit to for, you know, four years. And I ended up applying for it, interviewing, and I got the position. So I've held the podcast since 2021, the fall of twenty twenty one, and I have just enjoyed every day producing it. It's our combined podcast with Impact Radio and the State News where, you know, I can take their stories every day and, produce it for you guys into a podcast form.
Rachel:So it's just been a really great experience as far as learning how to produce news, rewrite articles for podcasts and for voice. And, it's just been a big pleasure to host this every day. And you know, if you're a long time listener, you know, or if you're new, you know, just listening for the past month or maybe a couple weeks. This podcast is Monday through Friday. So every day at 8AM it broadcasts here on Impact Radio and it's also found at impact89fm.org.
Rachel:But yeah, it's just been a big pleasure to host every day for you guys. We haven't really missed an episode honestly. I do take the normal breaks for the podcast, you know, the university holidays such as winter break, spring break, and any other holiday that the university would be closed for. Those are the days that we skip for the podcast just to keep it consistent with the university schedule. But other than that, we've been pretty rock solid for the past four years producing an episode every day.
Rachel:So this is definitely the podcast where you can find any of your MSU news, any of your greater Lansing news on here because we cover it all. Just kind of going forward, you know, with my time at the Impact, so I had the state podcast right away from when I was a freshman. And then later in February of twenty twenty two, still my freshman year, I applied for our podcast coordinator role because I knew a hefty load of podcasting by then. You know, I had my own podcast and I was familiar with the podcast that made up the impact. So I thought, hey, why not coordinate some podcasts for the station?
Rachel:And I interviewed for that position and got it. And later the board of the impact was like, actually, this is more of a director position. You're just not coordinating podcasts. You're directing a lot of our different podcasts. So I became the podcast director.
Rachel:So I've had that role since the spring of twenty twenty two. And a lot of people don't realize that because I just have my voice, you know, on the impact for this podcast, but I do a lot for all of our other podcasts as well. And if you are unfamiliar with any of our other podcasts, they are incredible. We've got four different categories that range from news, sports, entertainment, and student experiences, And they just evolve from everything, know, a lot of different types of sports and a lot of different clubs and organizations that we partner with to produce podcasts for them. And, I also coordinate the podcast requests that we get in from students at the university.
Rachel:Any student is allowed to come and propose a podcast idea, which just makes that really open environment here. And it's just been great to see what different podcasts that we have coming in and see what's basically come to life since I've been in this position. After I found out I was a director and everything like that, I was ready to take it up a little bit of a notch. You know, I'd been working with the impact for a minute and I got an opportunity the summer after my freshman year, which was 2022, for Unleash Your Inner Creative with Lauren Legrosso. And Lauren Legrosso is a Impact alum and she's an MSU alum and she has a Webby award winning podcast, also a Signal award winning podcast that she was hiring a producer and editor for.
Rachel:And so I interviewed for that position because I was ready to get into the bigger industry and show off a little bit more, learn a little bit more, and I was able to work with her. I've had that position for close to three years now, and we've just done amazing things with that podcast. You can also find that podcast wherever you get your podcasts. And it's just all about self authenticity, loving yourself, finding a voice for yourself, and unleashing any creativity that you have for anything that you're interested in. And it was the perfect podcast to be part of for college as you know, you are finding yourself as an adult.
Rachel:And I also had a great relationship with Lauren. It was just us for our team and we were the dream team. We've won three Webbies now. We just found out this week that we won another one. So three Webbies in the books with this one.
Rachel:And Lauren and I just have a mentor mentee relationship and I give the world to her for my podcasting experience, which has just amped up here for the State podcast. So it just shows in both ways. So just reviewing all the other things that I've been part of and have received here at the university so far, I am a journalism major with a minor in broadcasting. And I've been heavily involved in award ceremonies and, just heavily involved in any broadcast spectrum that I could get here at the university. So, you know, winning Michigan Association of Broadcast Awards, which we have won a second place for the news category for the state podcast.
Rachel:So kudos to this podcast. That was a few years ago, but it's definitely an award winning podcast moving forward. I can see it with whoever produces it next. But I've also won a few other things, know, on air personality with, Tessa Kressch used to produce exposure here at the Impact. And like I said, we've I've won three Webbies with Unleash Your Inner Creative.
Rachel:So the work has truly, truly paid off. And I give everything to the Impact because it truly kick started my podcasting and my broadcasting career. A lot of people don't also realize is that I had a big career switch. So like I said, I came to MSU wanting to do radio, really get involved with it. And that's what I that was my mam and jammer.
Rachel:Podcasting, anything audio, that was my thing. And with the university and the journalism degree, they are pushing you more towards like TV side because it is that prime time right now for visual entertainment. And you're not taking a lot of classes for radio or just audio specific things, you can, but it's not part of the requirement specifically. So I've been taking a lot of TV focused classes, you know, creating video packages that you would see on a TV broadcast at any news station. And this past fall, I had to take focal point, which is the capstone class of the journalism program here at Michigan State.
Rachel:And you basically put on a broadcast every week, every Friday. So you can either become a reporter or a producer. There's two sides of the class. And I want to be a reporter. You know, my voice is always on air, and I thought, why not try on air on TV?
Rachel:And I ended up really loving it. You know, TV wasn't something that I enjoyed thoroughly the past couple years, but I sat down with Mike Castellucci, who's the teacher here at Focal Point, which is he's a very well known person in the industry and very knowledgeable. And he just talked me up and said, you know, if you wanna do this, like, let's get you on board and just work you as hard as you can get the point where, you know, we can see where that talent really lies. I did. I worked very, very hard.
Rachel:I created some great packages in the past fall and I fell in love with TV news, you know, both sides of it from the M. M. Jang side, the multimedia journalist where you go and shoot and edit and create your own stories, and also the anchoring side. I think it's really, really fun to go on camera and I think you also are very personable in that way with people. So I fell in love with all aspects of TV and by the end of the fall I wanted to see what was out there as far as a career.
Rachel:So I started reaching out to local TV stations to see, you know, maybe if they had shadow opportunities for the spring or just any way to just meet with them just to give them my goals and see if I was maybe a prospect for what they might be looking for by the time I graduated. So I had some shadow opportunities that I took and I also had received an email from WILX News ten where I found out that they weren't only hiring an MMJ position because typically after college if you are a broadcast major, you move on to just being a multimedia journalist. It just gets your foot in the door. You're creating content, you're creating stories for TV stations, but you're not on that on air shift yet. So they were hiring for an MMJ and they were also hiring for a weekend morning anchor.
Rachel:And I was like, there's no way I can be an anchor right out of college. But, you know, they were like, hey, let's just get on a Zoom call and talk about it. And it ended turning into an interview and they really liked me. You know, they had seen my reel, you know, with all of my my montage of work with me on camera and all the video packages that I've done. And ultimately, I got hired at WILX News ten for the next two years as their new weekend morning anchor, and MMJ.
Rachel:So I am just so, so excited for this next journey of my life. You know, I've taken focal point for this last semester here at MSU as well and just created some more awesome work. And some of my work has even helped me get a Emmy nomination for three of my pieces. So we find out this weekend on April 27 on Sunday what those placements will be for the Michigan chapter NATAS awards. So I'm just so thrilled and I'm just really excited for this next journey.
Rachel:So you guys aren't losing me entirely. You can find me on your weekend morning, Saturday and Sunday from six to 8AM showing you what news is happening in the Greater Lansing area and other cities because we do cover a lot of other cities in the surrounding area. So and I'll also be reporting throughout the week, you know, different stories. So, you know, you'll you'll find my face here and there. Speaking of graduation time, you know, it's it's coming to an end here.
Rachel:Next week is graduation, which is just crazy. This time is rolling up, but I thought I would give you guys some information on this year's spring commencement. So commencement days are May, where thousands of MSU students will walk across the stage, turn their tassels and take that big leap into what's next. The ceremonies will be happening at two of the university's biggest venues, the Breslin Center and the Wharton Center for Performing Arts. Now, if you are planning to attend, there is a lot to keep track of, but don't worry, I've got you covered.
Rachel:So it all kicks off next Friday, May 2. The morning starts bright and early at 9AM with the graduate degree ceremony for students receiving doctorates, masters, and educational specialist degrees. And then later in the afternoon at 02:30PM, doctoral students will have a separate ceremony just for them. In between those two events at 12:30PM, undergrads are invited to a university wide convocation, which is a chance to celebrate across all disciplines before their individual college ceremonies. Speaking of which, Friday also includes ceremonies for veterinary nursing grads at the Wharton Center and communication arts and sciences students at the Breslin later in the evening.
Rachel:Moving on to Saturday, it's pretty packed up. Social science kicks off things at 08:30AM at the Breslin, followed closely by nursing at the Wharton. And then you've also got natural science, James Madison, the Broad College of Business, the College of Music, and Residential College in the Arts and Humanities, just to name a few, celebrating throughout the day and into the evening. Then on Sunday, the spotlight turns to the Colleges of Arts and Letters, Lyman Briggs, Engineering and Education, all holding ceremonies at the Breslin. And if you're wondering about medical students, their ceremonies are spaced out a bit.
Rachel:The College of Osteopathic Medicine kicks things off on May 1, Veterinary Medicine is on May 2, and the College of Human Medicine wraps things up on May 10, the week after. Now let's talk speakers because MSU is bringing some serious star power this year. Matt Ishbia, the CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage and also the guy who owns the Phoenix Suns and the Mercury, He'll be addressing undergrads at the big convocation. Then there's Deirdre O'Brien, senior VP at Apple, one of Fortune's most powerful women in business. She'll be speaking to the master's graduates.
Rachel:And for the doctoral crowd, they've got James Spaniolo, who's worn just about every hat you can think of, former MSU dean, university president, newspaper exec, you name it. If you can't make it in person, don't worry. All ceremonies will be live streamed on MSU's commencement website. So whether you're across the country or just stuck in traffic, you can still tune in and cheer on your Spartan. And before you head to campus, just a few quick reminders, you won't need tickets and there's no limit on how many guests each grad can bring.
Rachel:But seating is first come first serve, so plan accordingly. Only small clear bags are allowed inside and no food or drinks will be permitted. So there you have it. We're at the end of our season here for the state, which is just a very, very emotional time. But thank you so much for joining us today.
Rachel:This podcast is produced by the state news and impact eighty nine FM. You can always find us online at statenews.com andimpact89fm dot org. A huge congratulations to the class of 2025. Go green and go celebrate. You've truly earned it.
Rachel:And happy summer to the rest of the MSU student body. It has truly been an honor bringing you the stories that matter for the past four years. I've been Rachel Fulton, and Impact eighty nine FM will bring you some more news starting in the fall semester. Thanks for joining me.