For more than a year, the Building Futures YouthBuild podcast has strived to connect with listeners and spread the knowledge that the YouthBuild program at Lewis and Clark Community College has to offer. Hosts for the podcast, Zach Cable and Parker Grassle, have touched on a diverse range of topics during their time as the voices of the podcast.
They’ve introduced us to multiple YouthBuild students and staff members, as well as giving listeners a behind-the-scenes look at what happens at our local YouthBuild program. We got to hear about Scott Bibb, the man who the Lewis and Clark Scott Bibb Center was named after, and how he fought for desegregation in Alton schools. They also discussed current events going on in our world, such as the COVID-19 pandemic and how that has affected the way we’ve had to live our lives in the “new normal”. Perhaps most important of all, they’ve provided listeners with information about the resources and support they can receive in the YouthBuild program and encouraged people to seek out the opportunities the program is able to provide.
In 2020, season 1 of the podcast ended, as did Zach and Parker’s time as hosts for the podcast. They finished up their final episode and passed the torch onto a YouthBuild member from a recent cohort, Jarrius Burton.
After going through the YouthBuild program at Lewis and Clark Community College, Jarrius became a student ambassador for the Adult Education department. This student ambassador role comes with multiple responsibilities and opportunities, one of which was becoming the new host for the Building Futures podcast.
Jarrius is very excited about becoming the new podcast host and had this to say:
“I love hosting podcasts and can’t wait to interview amazing individuals. Making podcasts is a great way to learn about things that you wouldn’t normally learn on your own.”
Jarrius Burton
The podcast team also includes adult education teacher Kelly Meyer, who had this to say about the Building Futures podcast:
“My role with the Building Futures Podcast involves coordinating all the moving parts so we can successfully record and release content. I help juggle scheduling and communication with our producer, hosts, guests and ambassador team to make sure our schedules can click together for recording times. Additionally, I work with our team to come up with topic ideas and flesh those ideas out, so we go into our recording sessions with a solid plan. During recordings, I work behind the scenes to help provide coaching and feedback for our hosts and guests. Sometimes, if there are last-minute schedule changes, I’ve even jumped in to host – which has been incredibly fun! Working on the podcast has been both enjoyable and rewarding. It’s great to see our hosts grow more comfortable in their roles and represent our program as amazingly as they do. Every recording session is full of surprises, and we learn something new every time. It’s exciting to see the podcast continue to grow, and I’m pumped to see where the future takes it.”
Kelly Meyer
Another member of the podcast team is AmeriCorps Teacher’s Aide Alexandra Blockton. Alexandra has been a student in the adult education department and is working towards finishing her GED. In 2020, she joined the adult education department staff by taking a position as a teacher’s aide.
Here’s what she wanted everyone to know about her role within the podcast:
“Hello Everyone, I am Alexandra Blockton, Full-Time Teachers Aide AmeriCorps Member, and I assist in helping with the podcast by creating the initial interview questions as well as bringing on special guests, outside of L&C Building Futures YouthBuild AmeriCorps, to be interviewed on the podcast. I also generate the different topics on which the podcast will actually present.”
Alexandra Blockton
The final member of the podcast team is me, AmeriCorps VISTA Gabby Ellis. I recently graduated from college and earned my bachelor’s degree. I had interned with the YouthBuild program while I was in school and decided to move into the available VISTA position here at the program in 2019.
Here’s what I’d like to tell you all about my role within the podcast and my experience so far:
“I work with my fellow team members to come up with creative podcast topics, reach out to guests we’d like to be on the podcast and formulate a list of individualized questions for each of our guests. I’m excited to be on this journey with my team and I hope we continue to make amazing podcasts like the former hosts, Zach and Parker, prided themselves on creating.”
Gabby Ellis
The Building Futures podcast has already made an impact by getting the word out there about the YouthBuild program’s support for our community and the opportunities for youth that become YouthBuild members. Now that the torch has been passed on to Jarrius and the new team behind the podcast, there’s no doubt the podcast will continue do great things, form new relationships with other programs and keep everyone up to date with what YouthBuild is doing.
The first few episodes of season 2 have already been released. If you’re interested in listening to new episodes or catching up on past episodes, visit https://buildingfutures.libsyn.com/website.
Gabby Ellis
AmeriCorps VISTA
Building Futures 