By Jared Kennedy
News Editor
The University of Nebraska at Omaha was not a quiet place last summer. Much needed renovations were initiated and work still continues. One of the facilities that received some attention was the UNO Television studio.
The studio is located downstairs in the College of Public Affairs and Community Service building. Updates included a leveling of the concrete floor which was then sealed with an epoxy coating, the studio was painted, the studio cameras were re-cabled, new ventilation vents were installed, the curtains and lighting system were taken down and repaired, even the glass between the control room and the rest of the studio was taken out and cleaned thoroughly.
Dr. Chris Allen, professor of communication and general manager of UNO television, says the renovation has helped bring the studio into the 21st century.
“It was important just for morale… it will make productions and class work in the studio much easier,” Allen said.
Allen says the renovation costs were not pulled from the UNO TV budget; instead they were covered under the university’s building maintenance budget.
“Several years ago we had a bid done just for the floor and it was something close to $10,000 and we just didn’t have that kind of money…I sent a letter (to UNO facilities) and they came back and said it fit under maintenance,” Allen said. “We paid for the curtain maintenance which was almost nothing.”
UNO Projects Manager Kevin Thibodeau says the most challenging part of the remodel was cleaning the glass between the control room and the studio.
“There are three layers of glass and the inner windows were not cleaned in years,” Thibodeau said. “The TV department and Facilities worked so well together that the project had no real challenges.”
Dustin Roby is a student worker at UNO TV. He says now that the renovation is over and the school year has begun it’s back to business as usual in the studio.
“The cosmetic work to the existing facility has been a long time coming as not much has been done since everything was installed in 1962,” Roby said.
Allen says the next thing the studio would like to work towards is broadcasting in High Definition
“That’s really vital to the future of not only our education but our ability to recruit students. Students come out of high school using HD and they see that we’re not,” Allen said.
Most UNO TV broadcasts can be seen on the Knowledge network. The Knowledge Network is on Cox channel 109 and Century Link channel 79. Allen says UNO TV is currently recruiting crewmembers. Students can look on the school website for the job postings.
“In the next few weeks anyone interested in working on crew should be checking the school website regularly,” Allen said. “Video and video production are still a vital component of communication… anyone can benefit from taking a video production class.”
Allen sees UNO TV as a good way for students to learn how to produce good video. He says knowing these techniques can help someone in almost any field in today’s work environment.
The ribbon cutting for the studio happened on Sept. 3 and Allen says all are welcome to come check out the updated space.
