Hello friends and family!
A lot has happened since my last post! I officially graduated from West Virginia University with some pretty high honors, and just one day before the online commencement ceremony, I received a job offer!
I am extremely blessed to have this opportunity ahead of me during this uncertain time. The majority of companies are still in a hiring freeze, and have no idea when they will be able to move forward. I've spoken to a few news stations who are in the same boat, and while a few of my friends have job offers (or have already started!), I was ready to accept the fact that I would not be employed until the fall months.
I've accepted the opportunity to start as WHSV-TV's new digital content producer NEXT WEEK! I will be handling all things digital in the newsroom, so every social media post, push notification, and web post that you see for the station... I am behind it! (I might even be able to report every now and then, so I might end up on television once more!)
WSHV is an ABC affiliate network based in Harrisonburg, VA, which is about two hours away from Washington, D.C., and three from Morgantown. I had been interviewing for a few other positions with other stations, including one in Montana and another in Texas! That being said, I'm so excited to be moving to a new city! I absolutely LOVE Pittsburgh and will forever be a yinzer born-and-raised, but my small, suburb of a hometown was a toxic place and I am so happy to not be staying for much longer.
I've always wanted to move someplace warm, and while Virginia is not an entirely different climate than PA, it is a step in the right direction! I seriously cannot boast about the location of this town enough; it is absolutely perfect. James Madison University is smack-dab in the middle of the town, so the population is very similar to Morgantown. The cultural district is home to museums, restaurants, and cafes, and on the outskirts are national parks (which is a huge bonus, because as many of you know, Matt and I plan on getting an entire pack of dogs someday soon).
I'm beyond excited for this position to jump-start my career! The news director seems amazing, and everyone I've talked to so far at the station has been so friendly! Multiple people in the newsroom have compared working there to The Office, and if you know anything about me, you'd know that I LOVE that show!
I'm hoping that this post serves as a Q&A for my family because they have all been asking the same questions! I think I've answered the most frequent ones: start date, location, position, station name...
Matt is getting just as many questions as I am, because as most of you know, Matt and I have been together for nearly four years, and even lived together this year at school. Matt is actually a year behind me in school, but he will be graduating a semester early (so we will be walking together in December).
The angel that he is, Matt will be moving to Virginia with me for a few weeks to help me get settled! We're hoping that with the university nearby and bigger cities within an hour's drive, once COVID-19 settles, Matt will have plenty of job opportunities to choose from. The worst part is because COVID-19 is still a thing, it will be hard to make friends in the area. I'm hoping by my start date that the newsroom can return back to normal slightly, but as of now, newsrooms all over the country are empty, and everyone is working from home.
In other news, we were able to hold a little going away/graduation/birthday party yesterday! It was a small get together with family only, but it was nice to be able to see everyone before I officially move this week. I turned 22 today!
If you need me, I'll be stress eating some birthday brownies.
xoxo, Madison