OOD Works Episode 24 Transcript

Brandon Lewis, Senior Majoring in

Introduction: Welcome to OOD Works, the podcast, a show about unique individuals and the services provided by Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, the state agency that helps individuals with disabilities find a job and be more independent. Here's your host Kim Jump.

Kim Jump: In this episode of OOD Works, I’m joined by Brandon Lewis, a senior at Kent State University majoring in journalism. Brandon is a participant of OOD’s Ohio College2Careers program, and he’s the author of a weekly in the Kent Stater. We’re also joined today by Jessica Vass, Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor, who’s dedicated to Kent State University. Welcome to the podcast, Brandon and Jessica!

Brandon Lewis: Thank you for having me.

Jessica Vass: Thank you.

Kim Jump: Well, I’m so glad that you could join us, and Brandon, you are on campus at Kent State, currently?

Brandon Lewis: Yes, that is correct.

Kim Jump: Can you just share with us what this interesting semester at Kent State has been like for you during this time of coronavirus?

Brandon Lewis: Oh god, where do I start? Honestly, like, let me take you guys back to, let’s go back into the last spring, let’s go back to March when we first shut down. Because I remember the day we shut down, I just came back from class. And it’s funny because the whole day, you know, we were hearing about Ohio University campus is shutting down. And our professors were like, “There’s no way Kent State shuts down, right?” Get back to my dorm room here, get the email: “We’re shutting down.”

Brandon Lewis: You know, I had no idea if we were going to come back or not. We had no idea. So fast forward to June or July: they make the announcement that most classes are going to be remote: some of them are going to be hybrid, some of them will be fully remote, and some of them will be in person. So when they gave us our schedule, I did have one in-person class, which is one of the reasons why I came back to campus. To be honest with you, when I first came back, I wasn’t sure how it was going to be. I wasn’t sure how different it was going to be.

Brandon Lewis: But to be honest with you, as we sit here right now, I feel totally safe. I’ll be completely honest with you, I give Kent State high props because even though I was, to be honest with you, very skeptical about being on campus and how safe it was actually gonna be? They’ve done a very good job at like, really ensuring that the mask policies and all the COVID stuff has been enforced. And really, nothing has really changed besides the fact there’s no in-person dining, there’s only take-out. Stuff like that. But, really nothing changed in terms of campus protocols.

Brandon Lewis: I would say the biggest change just sitting here right now, would be the fact that most classes are remote. It’s so hard to be at a screen. And even though I can see you right now, and even

1 though we can see the professor, it’s just different when you’re in a classroom, hands are up, you see other people, you are interacting. In a way, I like it, mainly because of convenience. I think there’s a lot of stuff that we can do that we don’t have to be in-person for. But also, the in-person interaction is just different.

Kim Jump: Brandon, let me ask you this: over the summer, did you contemplate taking a pause at all in your college journey, or did you, you knew you just wanted to keep on, even though you knew the environment would be very different?

Brandon Lewis: No, I never considered a pause, because I never wanted to be sent back.

Kim Jump: Mmhmm.

Brandon Lewis: That was the main reason, whether it would be with money, with student loans, tuition, that kind of stuff. I feel like at that point, because if you take a pause, you’re pausing everything. Then you have to make sure, okay, requirements could change.

Kim Jump: Right.

Brandon Lewis: You know, am I going to be—if I did a one semester pause, do I screw myself for the next year, or longer? So that thought never came into my head, because I’m like, if I take a pause, am I going to even want to come back?

Kim Jump: Yeah.

Brandon Lewis: And the whole reason why I went to college is not only get a degree to learn about journalism, but have the college experience. And even though we are doing this differently, you’re still somewhat getting the college experience.

Kim Jump: Yeah. Brandon, how did it come to be that you decided on Kent State?

Brandon Lewis: Sure. So, when I was a senior in high school, for me it was down to three colleges. It was down to OU, Bowling Green, and Kent State. I’ve always wanted to be a journalism major; I’ve always wanted to work in journalism since I was really young; I’ve always liked to write; I’ve always been interested in sports; and I’ve always loved listening to sports broadcasters, sports reporters, stuff like that. So I knew the three best schools in Ohio were Ohio University, Bowling Green, and Kent State. Kent was the first one I went, and I was like, I’m sold. So I did all the requirements, I took the ACT to get in, stuff like that, and just filed the paperwork and luckily I got accepted. So there was never really a backup plan.

Kim Jump: That’s awesome that you loved it that much from the very beginning.

Brandon Lewis: Yeah.

Kim Jump: Now, have you worked at all during your studies? Or have you focused more on the coursework?

Brandon Lewis: So, I have not worked an actual quote-unquote job. I have worked in student media; as a matter of fact, the other day, I was just named the new general manager of Black Squirrel Radio. So that’s really exciting, I’m looking very much forward to that opportunity. Student media has given me so much. And I mentioned how I’m a columnist in the Stater. That’s an unpaid position. There’s different

2 paid and unpaid positions, but student media gives you an opportunity to go out in the real world, quote-unquote, and cover journalism stories, whether it’s sports or non-sports.

Brandon Lewis: They have people at the Stater who’ve covered political rallies and everything going on with the election this year. So it’s giving people a real opportunity, but it’s not like a quote-unquote job- job. We’re very limited in terms of hours, we can only work a maximum up to ten hours a week. We don’t get paid that much, probably in total over the 15 weeks if you’re lucky you get paid $1200. So, it’s not much, it’s more about the experience, but you get to make relationships that last a lifetime.

Kim Jump: This past fall, you’ve probably covered some pretty interesting topics.

Brandon Lewis: No, because most of my work has to do with the Stater. So what happened was, I worked with Black Squirrel Radio and the Stater on and off for two, three years. I worked with the Stater my sophomore year as a reporter for—I actually took a reporting class, so it was reporting with the Stater. So I cover the wrestling team and then I cover the track and field team.

Brandon Lewis: Over the last three years of Black Squirrel Radio, I worked in sports, I interviewed athletes, I covered Kent State home games—whether that be football or basketball games, and then I was eventually the web director of Black Squirrel Radio, so I was in charge of all the web content. I was basically in charge of the whole website. And then last semester, the old general manager graduated: because I remind you, this is all students working, so we are all students. There’s no faculty or anything like that. So when the general manager graduates, there has to be a new GM that comes in.

Brandon Lewis: The new GM that comes in pretty much swept us all out, including myself unfortunately, so what I did this past fall was I just took a step back. Like I said, I rejoined the Stater as a columnist, like you said in the opening. And then, you know, I’ve written opinion columns on sports, but I mostly sat back here, did schoolwork, and really just got my mind right in my head for, hey, I know I want to come back to Black Squirrel Radio, I know I want to be the GM in the spring as I’m looking for an internship thanks to Jessica’s help, and let’s do this. And everything is looking good.

Kim Jump: That’s great. You’re really getting a multimedia experience there.

Brandon Lewis: Yeah, it’s a lot, because not only can you do written stuff, you can do photos, you can do multimedia. There are so many different platforms you can use. I mean, I talk about it all the time. I love talking, and I love writing. And those are two things, getting to be on the air—like, I love . I’m so grateful for podcasts, I think podcasts are great. But if you’ve ever done a live radio show, I tell people: you don’t understand until you’ve done it, the difference between the two. Live radio is just spectacular. You just feel like you’re in the element, where nobody can stop you. And it’s the pressure of like, this is live, so if I screw up on the air, so many people are going to be listening. And for somebody like me who likes competition and likes pressure, it’s just a joy.

Kim Jump: It sounds like you’ve really figured out the things that make you tick. You like that intensity.

Brandon Lewis: Yeah, I’m that type of person that can make decisions quickly. I’m that type of person who knows what I want and knows what I don’t want. I’m that type of person that figures out what works and what doesn’t work quickly. And I’m that type of person that once I make up my mind, there’s no changing it.

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Kim Jump: That’s awesome. So, how did Brandon, you and Jessica get connected? And did that happen last year?

Brandon Lewis: Yeah, it happened actually just a couple months ago. It was actually almost by random chance. So I was looking at different Kent State websites, because I was like, it’s September of 2020 and I’m graduating in May of 2021. I don’t have an internship! And internships aren’t happening right now because of COVID, and so many people are struggling with internships. So I went on Kent State’s website and it was like this “career for Ohioans” or something, I don’t remember the name off the top of my head.

Brandon Lewis: And it said, “Make an appointment with this person to help you work out and see what your internship interests are.” And there was a button that said, “Do you have a disability?” And I was like, I do! So I clicked on it and it said, “A OOD representative will contact you.” And that contact ended up being Jessica. That’s how we first made contact and I think we just really have seen internships and been on the same page about what I want, and Jessica has been really helpful in the process.

Kim Jump: That’s awesome. So Jessica, you then got Brandon’s contact info and he’s obviously very self- motivated. He knew exactly what kind of assistance he was going to need from you, namely an internship. So describe what that’s like when you first start working with a student there at Kent State.

Jessica Vass: Yeah, I know Brandon, he reached out to me via email actually right away, and then instantly we first set up an informational interview first just to go over what OOD can provide for Brandon. But he was really direct on what exactly he needed from me, and what he needs to graduate as well. So we instantly got services started, finished the intake, got him into our planned services, and then from there, he’s been working one-on-one with another outside agency. So they’re also helping with an internship process to help him get placed as well.

Kim Jump: Great. And Brandon, do you know the name of your provider that you’re working with?

Brandon Lewis: Her name is Angie Christy. She has already started working and she’s going to continue working to try and get me placed into an internship, hopefully as soon as possible.

Kim Jump: Yeah. Jessica, how hard has internships been? We’ve got a pandemic going on, rising numbers at the time of this recording. I’m guessing that’s probably challenging.

Jessica Vass: It has been, unfortunately. I know all students—including Brandon, everybody who’s needing an internship, even if they’re a junior as well as a senior, I’ve heard just stories that they’ve been canceled or they’ve had to push back to the following summer. So it’s been hard on everybody.

Kim Jump: Yeah. And I take it you and—

Brandon Lewis: Angie.

Kim Jump: Angie! Guessing you’re looking within the field of journalism?

Brandon Lewis: Yes. And I should mention, because this is an important aspect of this. Not all internship majors are required, but I think they’re going to start making it required, but for sure under the journalism field, it’s always been required that you must have an internship before you graduate. There’s like, a whole thing where you prove to them what kind of work you’ve done to ensure that you

4 would have an internship—because you know, the point of the internship is job experience, and in journalism they really want you to have that experience before you leave.

Kim Jump: Well, I feel like one thing that’s really fortunate for you that you have going outside of the status of an internship is all this experience that you’ve gotten within journalism while you’ve been a student. Can you tell us a little bit more about your weekly column?

Brandon Lewis: Sure.

Kim Jump: And share maybe some of the favorite pieces that you’ve published?

Brandon Lewis: Sure. So my weekly column with the Stater is called “Brandon’s World.” And it’s based off my show name that I had on Black Squirrel Radio for the last two years. I just carried it over to the written form. So essentially, I pick a topic, whether it’s a local here in Cleveland about your favorite local team, or it’s a national issue, and I just basically expand on it.

Brandon Lewis: So for instance, this past week’s column, I wrote an NFL midseason report card; so basically what I did, I took all 32 NFL teams and I said, okay, we’re going to divide each team into a category: Superbowl contender, playoff contender, all these different categories. I’m going to rank them. I don’t really have a favorite column, to be honest, because everything I write is my favorite. The next one I write is my favorite.

Brandon Lewis: There’s obviously pieces that are better than others, but when I start writing, I just get into a zone. And I take really good pride in my work, and if it’s not good work, I don’t publish it. So there’s never something where I’m like, “Oh, this was my favorite.” They all have to be my favorites because I use them all interchangeably for clips when I’m applying for these internship places.

Kim Jump: Yeah. As a , do you try to be unbiased or do your favorite teams come to the surface and kind of shine?

Brandon Lewis: You know, it’s funny because it depends on the topic and the article. I’m a huge Philadelphia Eagles fan if you can tell by my shirt. The Eagles this season are… I’m in love with the team, but they drive me nuts. In my 32 team midseason report card, I literally just wrote that I said, “Alright, we’re talking about the Eagles, here’s the deal: they’re my favorite team, they drive me nuts, the end.” I’ve written—well, it didn’t go exactly like that, but pretty much—I sometimes write about my favorite teams, it’s something I’m very passionate about. But usually I don’t, because if I do, the bias will come out.

Kim Jump: Mmhmm.

Brandon Lewis: So that’s my trying to stay away from it, because I’m one of those people that are like, “You can’t tell me my team is not good. I can tell you your team is not good, don’t tell me my team isn’t good, because I’ll fire back!”

Kim Jump: Do you have a favorite sports reporter that has been a role model to you, or someone you admire and would like to emulate?

Brandon Lewis: Okay, not necessarily a reporter, more of like a talk show host. Colin Cowherd is great. I love listening to The Herd every day. He finds a way to frame things that just makes sense, but he uses all of these analogies. It’s funny because he always compares everything in sports to his divorce, which

5 literally makes no sense but he finds a way to make it work. Skip Bayless and Shannon Sharpe also , they’re two commentators who go head to head every day. And they just make me laugh, because it’s like, it’s your typical sports conversation with your buddies where you’re screaming across the table at each other for two and a half hours a day.

Brandon Lewis: That’s always the way I start my morning, and I always had those guys on in the background while I’m doing homework and stuff like that. So it’s cool to look up to those guys. But, at the end of the day, I don’t let them shape my opinion, if that makes sense. I’m still my own style. And I’ve always said, I’m that person who will always give you the thought that you don’t have. So whichever way you think I’m going to go, I can go the complete opposite thought of you, and I can give you arguments from both sides.

Brandon Lewis: But at the end of the day, I don’t care if you think I’m dead right or dead wrong, I’m just glad you’re listening to my opinion, because I am blessed to be able to work in sports. I’ve always told people that are like, “Oh, well, you have a job.” I don’t have a job, I work for fun, pretty much because that’s what sports is. We’re so lucky that we get to talk to athletes, and we get to watch sports for basically free and talk about it for free, and make lots of money if you’re really lucky doing it. And that, I feel like, has always been the gift of sports.

Kim Jump: Yeah. What are your top… if you had to rank them, top five sports to cover, what would they be?

Brandon Lewis: Well, football would for sure be number one. Basketball would for sure be number two. Number three, if you count it as a sport, I love professional wrestling like WWE. It’s like the top of my list, I watch it every week, it would always be cool to cover. Four would be baseball. It probably would be three, but the sport I feel like is dying a slow death, unfortunately, because they don’t really market those stars. It’s just something about baseball. And five, I really wouldn’t have a fifth. I would say, maybe something like UFC, something like that. But in terms of like soccer or other major-league sports like that, I don’t really follow hockey. So I would say more of like the combat-style.

Kim Jump: Okay.

Brandon Lewis: My goal, one day, is to be somewhere at the top of the sports industry: whether it be talking sports, writing about sports. But in terms of right now, my goal, really, is to just be that guy that everybody doesn’t hate. Be that reporter who is just really comfortable interviewing, and the people will want to answer your questions.

Kim Jump: Is there, are there other areas that you and Jessica have targeted that you want to work on or develop outside of the internship to feel like you’re really career ready?

Brandon Lewis: Yes, so we’ve talked about after securing an internship, potentially looking at jobs afterwards, after graduation. So we’ve talked about that. In terms of fields, the only fields we really looked in was the journalism sports field because like I said, that’s what I want to go into.

Jessica Vass: Yeah, that’s his strongest area, so I think that would be the best. I think it would just be not beneficial for him if we steered outside of that area.

Kim Jump: Yeah. And Jessica, when you work with students, do you look at job field, past or future, as part of those discussions?

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Jessica Vass: We are required to look at the labor market of each of the job goals, and I can say I do remember journalism does have a very good labor market outlook in terms of growth.

Kim Jump: Yeah, that’s reassuring. Your role as a College2Careers counselor there at Kent State, how is that different from just carrying a general caseload as a counselor at OOD?

Jessica Vass: Okay, yeah, that’s a good question. Since I am actually housed at Kent State, so I’m actually within the Student Accessibility Services office at Kent State. And, so it’s a partnership; I always think of it as, it is a partnership between SAS there as well as Career Services. So I’m actually on campus helping the students navigate the college life, college experiences, and just making sure that they are on track to graduate and then move on to hopefully get employment and their degree that they went to school for. As far as a general caseload, I can still do all of the same services a general caseload counselor can do. I think the biggest difference is I strictly only have a caseload of college students, whereas they have a wide variety of anybody coming in.

Kim Jump: And how do referrals typically come to you?

Jessica Vass: So recently, I can say lately a lot of students like Brandon, they actually found me through the Career Services KSU advising system. I believe that’s how you found me, Brandon, actually. So they’ve been actually coming through there, but then they can find me all online. Some students have found me through the SAS website and through email blasts that SAS has put out to students. But, I’m still working on outreach, so trying to find more students. So that’s been a little bit of a struggle.

Kim Jump: Especially in more of a virtual environment.

Jessica Vass: Yes, unfortunately, because colleges thrive on those in-person events and experiences. So it’s definitely different.

Kim Jump: Yeah. Has Kent State been hosting online events?

Jessica Vass: Yes. Through, I think every office has held an online orientation or an event to just get more information about that office out there to students and family.

Kim Jump: Brandon, what would your advice be to other students who are thinking about connecting with OOD, and specifically at your school with Jessica?

Brandon Lewis: So, I would just say—and I’m not just saying this because Jessica’s quote-unquote “in the room,” we’re on Zoom. Jessica has been a tremendous help. She really has understood me, she understands my wants, she understands my needs, and she has helped me get on the right track. So I would recommend Jessica to anyone. I would say, if you’re struggling, definitely reach out to your advisor.

Brandon Lewis: If you have a disability, reach out to SAS, reach out to Jessica directly, and just get started; because no matter what industry you’re in, no matter if we’re in COVID or not, it’s hard. It’s really hard to apply for jobs and most of the time, you don’t even get heard back. So having other people on the lookout for you, helping to get internships, helping you be on the right path. I will say, right now, I feel like I’m on the right path. Just a couple months ago, I felt lost. If it wasn’t for Jessica and it wasn’t for OOD, I would more than likely still feel lost.

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Kim Jump: I’m glad you’re feeling much more confident about the process, and that is awesome. I hope you’re soaking that in, Jessica!

Jessica Vass: Yes! I am. Yes, thank you, Brandon, and I’m excited to work with you and I’m excited to see what your future becomes, too.

Brandon Lewis: I am too. You know, it’s definitely going to be a wild ride, for sure.

Kim Jump: Yeah. Well, Jessica, I know you have fourteen counterparts, because we have College2Careers in fifteen of the state colleges and universities across the state. But maybe someone’s listening to this that maybe goes to a private college; or maybe they’re not in college yet, maybe it’s a student who’s still in high school; or maybe someone who’s recently gotten out of college but hasn’t landed that job and they have a disability. How can they get started with OOD?

Jessica Vass: Yes. So the best way would probably be through our website first. They can go to ood.ohio.gov, and from there they can actually look up our regional offices and they can find their local office and then connect with that office through that way just by calling. Or, they can also go through oodworks.com, where they can actually fill out an application to get services started, and then someone will directly contact them after they’ve filled out the information on there.

Kim Jump: Jessica, if a student’s listening or family member, and they’re at Kent State and they want to connect directly with you, what’s the best way to do that?

Jessica Vass: The best way right now, since I am working from home, would be by email or by phone. And my email address is Jessica dot K dot Vass—V as in Victor-A-S-S, at ood dot ohio dot gov ([email protected]). And then my phone number is 216-538-6570.

Kim Jump: Update from January 2021: Brandon has been hired as the new General Manager of Black Squirrel Radio for the spring 2021 semester. This is a paid position. He also secured an internship writing for BVM Sports, covering all Kent State and local sports, and the Cleveland Cavaliers, Browns, and Indians.

A transcript of today’s episode is available at ood.ohio.gov/podcast. Don’t forget to subscribe and leave a rating and review. We’re on social media @OhioOOD. Do you have a disability? Do you want a job? We can help. OODWorks.com.

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