The Student Media Hall of Fame has recently inducted Jilliana Sliby (’18). The fledgling movement seeks to pay homage to the student-leaders who have made great contributions to WLAS, the 1851 Chronicle, and Lasell Community Television (LCTV). Sliby was the first president of the also fledgling LCTV, serving as their first president for four years.
LCTV was a natural next addition to the communication school’s club offerings following WLAS and the 1851 Chronicle. The venture was led by Brian Wardyga, Ed.D., a Communications Professor and the general manager of WLAS, and he continues to oversee the organization to this day. Sliby’s interest in video production from her video and photography courses in high school led her to the university and to attend the first LCTV meeting.
“It really wasn’t a club yet. I think it was just something that [Wardyga] wanted to make happen,” Sliby said. “It was definitely a jump for me to take charge and to have a leadership position. So it was definitely scary but exciting at the same time.”
Under Sliby’s tenure, LCTV established and started toward a mission to be a safe space for students to create what they are passionate about. Sliby encouraged the club to remain largely unformatted, allowing the producers to utilize any formats and styles they see fit. This led to a variety of skits, trailers, teasers, and more released on their YouTube page over her tenure, a YouTube page that is still active for the club to this day. The organization also made a concerted effort to contribute to the greater school community as well. Under Sliby, LCTV began to film for the school in key events such as ComDay, tournaments, awards banquets, and more.
“I definitely wanted it to be not only an outlet for the students but also a resource for the community,” Sliby said.
Another major impact Sliby had on the campus was the organization of the film festival. Under her guidance, an annual film festival allowed students, regardless of whether they were television production students or members of LCTV, to submit films of various lengths to be judged. Sliby was in charge of the event, including the day of activities, and submission of content.
Sliby frequently looked to existing organizations for guidance in the early days of LCTV. Due to the connection with Wardyga, WLAS, and their senior station manager Justin Miller took a particular role in LCTV developing into the organization it is.
“I think the thing that stood out about the radio and the team that led it was the organization,” Sliby said. “Just learning how to keep organized and stay on top of so many different tasks.”
Sliby also had the opportunity to set up much of the club’s organization, particularly among their equipment, giving LCTV a foundation to move forward. Since Sliby’s departure, LCTV has moved into their own studio in the basement of the Brennan Library. Prior to this, LCTV did much of its studio work at NewTV on Needham Street in Newton.
Since graduating, Sliby has continued her journey in video production. She first spent four years at AVI-SPL VideoLink in various production roles. Sliby then moved to Cramer where she has spent over two years as a producer.
The Student Media Hall of Fame is proud to induct an alumni who built the foundations for a bright LCTV future.