Mark Your Calendars for the Cold Stares

by Kaitlyn Thompson

On March 24, WVU Parkersburg will be showcasing three bands in an effort to bring students and the community together. Under Riverhawk Productions, presented in partnership with 96.3 FM WPKM, WVU Parkersburg’s college radio station, the Cold Stares, Thru The Mill and Creek Don’t Rise will be hitting the stage to entertain the campus with live music.

Dr. Torie Jackson, Chair of the Humanities, Fine Arts and Social Sciences Division, Anthony Underwood, Vice President of Student Services, Katie Wootton, Director of Marketing and Communications and many students have been working diligently to bring this concert and future events to life. They have come up with the promotional material, sorted the details for food and refreshments and have organized the logistics for stage equipment.

The purpose of this concert is to bring people of the community to WVU Parkersburg in an effort to have fun and enjoy themselves while also raising awareness for WPKM 96.3 FM. While entertainment is the intended purpose of this event, the proceeds are going towards partially funding a scholarship. Not only is this concert going to be filled with excitement, but it is going to help a student fulfill their educational dreams.

Last semester in a communication and media studies class in the Strategic Communication division, the proposal for this event was raised.

“Creek Don’t Rise was actually chosen by Megan, a CMS student. She helped choose Creek Don’t Rise in a class last semester for Strategic Communication. We were looking at proposing the concert,” Dr. Jackson said. “…so actually, the proposal for the concert came from that class in a way to bring students on campus to bring the community on campus and to provide people with a good time.”

Not only will this concert provide the audience with a fun experience, but with all the intricate work this sort of event demands, the students involved are being provided with real world experience. Students, especially the communication and media studies students, will be exposed to various roles such as filming, editing, interviewing band members and much more.

“It’s going to open up a lot of opportunities for students to experience that working part of what they’re doing, and I think it’s going to be really fun for them,” Dr. Jackson stated.

This concert is only the beginning of what is to come. Dr. Jackson, Mr. Underwood, Mrs. Wootton and a group of students are working on a concert series for nearly each month for the upcoming school year.

“I hope that it will get people excited about future events at the college because this is the beginning of what’s right now being called WVU Parkersburg Presents, and so we’re working. Katie, Anthony, a student group and I, are working on a concert series for next year, and it’s going to be varied,” Dr. Jackson said.

Each concert will be different than the one before. The concerts will range from an author coming to the college to a rock concert or even a bluegrass concert. In August, information will be available to all students for the upcoming events from August 2018 to May 2019.

With the beginning of a new year, these concerts are a new sign of hope that the community will once again be aware of all the events WVU Parkersburg has to offer, just as it did years ago.

“We used to, years ago, do a lot of events here. And they brought a big crowd, and people would come here because they knew we put on good events,” Dr. Jackson said. “So we’re going to let them know that we’re doing that again.”

Saturday, March 24 is the first opportunity of many to experience what students and community members should look forward to. The concert will be held in the WVU Parkersburg College Activities Center, doors open at 5 p.m. and the concert begins at 6 p.m. To see these bands in concert, it only costs $5 for students and $10 for general admission. Not only is that a good deal, but DiCarlo’s Pizza will supply food and Woodridge Golf Club will supply alcohol.

Photo credit: Alex Morgan Imaging