CC Engineering Mentoring Program Moves Into Third Year

Seacrest Children's Hospital Studio

Clear Channel Media and Entertainment has completed its inaugural Market Engineering Manager Development Program (MEM-Dev) and the third year of the company's Electrical Engineering Co-op Program ­ both designed to provide participants with hands-on industry experience in specialist areas within electrical engineering.

Over the past several years there has been a reported decline in the number of engineers entering radio as well as a spike in those retiring and nearing the end of their careers, according to radiomagonline.com.

"Clear Channel is making a strategic investment in the future of broadcasting engineering and we hope to attract and expose new talent to the ever-changing world of radio while also fostering the expedited growth and development of our existing employees," said Jeff Littlejohn, executive vice president of engineering and systems integration, Clear Channel Media and Entertainment.

The Clear Channel Electrical Engineering Co-op Program was introduced as a pilot program in 2011, and has offered 12 high-potential engineering college students the opportunity to expand upon their technical abilities and education while being exposed to innovative technologies and operational processes at Clear Channel stations across the country.

Many of the graduates from this inaugural class have already been placed in high-level managing positions within Clear Channel, including:

■ David Grice: market engineering manager in El Paso

■ Chris Abbott: market engineering manager in Tucson

■ Andy Mika: market engineering manager in Waco

■ Jake Wyatt: AM transmission specialist

As this first class graduates, Clear Channel welcomes its third MEM-Dev group into the program. Clear Channel will relocate its current class of six to Cincinnati to assist in building a radio studio at Cincinnati Children's Hospital in partnership with the Ryan Seacrest Foundation as part of the hands-on portion of the program.

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