Gramblinites attending the 2019:Prestige Awards Luncheon hosted by the Louisiana Association of Broadcasters and held this morning in Lafayette were (left to right) Students Kamau Dangerfield, Christiana Essien, Maurice Tandy-Patton and Charleston Talbert, operations manager for KGRM, the Grambling State University campus radio station
Grambling State University junior Maurice Tandy-Patton was named Student Broadcaster of the Year by the Louisiana Association of Broadcasters (LAB) during its annual Prestige Awards Luncheon held this morning (March 21) at the Doubletree Hotel in Lafayette.
Competition for the Prestige Awards, which recognize outstanding achievements by Louisiana radio and television broadcasters, was established to encourage the highest standards of reporting, community service and production creativity. All television and radio stations in the state are eligible to compete, and judging is conducted by a panel of broadcast experts from outside the state of Louisiana.
For the 20-year old Cincinnati, Ohio, native, the award is more than a tribute to the hard work and long hours he has spent at KGRM, the campus radio station, honing his skills as an on-air announcer and learning as much as he could about radio operations; it is a testament to the perseverance he learned early in life while facing some seemingly insurmountable odds. With limited contact with a mother who was addicted to drugs, Tandy-Patton and his father lived in numerous shelters and, at one point, in their car. When he was only 8 years old, his father developed kidney disease that resulted in him being dialyzed several times a week. Tragically, he died in 2015 after battling lung cancer.
“I am very honored and grateful to receive this award,” said the 20-year old unsuspecting recipient who is currently pursuing a bachelor’s degree in mass communication. “I love broadcasting, particularly radio; and the opportunity to be an
announcer of KGRM, our campus radio station, has been very rewarding and educational,” Tandy-Patton said.
The award, however, was no surprise to some members of the GSU Mass Communication Department. Joyce Evans, general manager of KGRM, describes him as a “dedicated student who always exhibits great initiative, professionalism and diligence.” Maurice has demonstrated admirable leadership ability and his positive attitude makes him a pleasure to work with,” she added.
“I have known Maurice since his first semester of college, when he enrolled in one of the courses I taught. His perfect score on the first test in the course got my attention. He maintained top test scores throughout the semester and was one of the top students in the class,” said Martin O.Edu, professor.
Tandy-Patton maintains a 3.4 grade point average. His ultimate dream is to become a professional broadcaster with a mission to keep the community in which he serves informed of current and important issues and events.
“It has been great working closely with and supervising Maurice during his time here at the station,” said Charleston Talbert, operations manager for the radio station. While at the station, Tandy-Patton was trained in the operations of Shortcut 360
Personal Audio Editor and is currently the producer of the Gospel News Show and hosted two on-air shows, Smooth Jazz with Mo and a talk show, KJ & Mo.
Tandy-Patton is a former contributing writer for the campus newspaper, The Gramblinite, and a member of the Earl Lester Cole Honors College.