Jen Nycz-Conner, '95, on Applying WJPZ Lessons Through Multiple Careers

Jen Nycz-Conner, '95, on Applying WJPZ Lessons Through Multiple Careers

Author: WJPZ January 15, 2024 Duration: 59:37

Jen Nycz-Conner felt like she applied to every college in the Big East (RIP) before falling in love with the communications program at Syracuse.  Once on campus, she found a fellow freshman with a map.  She and Steve Donovan went to the radio station, met B.B. Good, and the rest is history.

Living above the station in Watson as a sophomore, Jen got more involved with the station, and soon became VP of Operations as she and her 1995 classmates ran WJPZ.  Actually, she wasn't technically Class of 1995 - as she explains.

She also talks about many of the friendships she's formed through the alumni association, with WJPZ family members she didn't go to school with.

During school, she secured internships with Jim Henson productions and HBO Sports, the latter of which led to work after graduation.   And this included some entry level "pay your dues" jobs.

Soon, her husband Chris was in DC, and Jen was in New York.  Something had to give, and she found a job working with the ProServ agency in Arlington, Virigina.

Through mergers, acquisitions, and a changing economy, Jen's next stop was Women in Film and Video in DC.  This nonprofit work connected her with the Washington Business Journal, where she'd work for nearly a decade and a half, including time on air on legendary DC Radio station WTOP.

After the job at Washington Business Journal, Jen had a few different career paths in mind.   When her current job at Hilton came up, it checked all of her boxes.

Through her one-of-a-kind career, Jen talks throughout today's epsiode about the lessons learned at WJPZ, and how they've served her well.

The WJPZ at 50 Podcast Series is produced by Jon Gay, Class of 2002, and his podcast production agency, JAG in Detroit Podcasts.

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Want to be a guest on the pod or know someone else who would? Email Jag:  jag@jagindetroit.com.

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Connect with the WJPZ Alumni Association: https://wjpzalumniassociation.org/


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For fifty years, the student-run airwaves of Syracuse University's WJPZ at 50 have been more than a radio station; they've been a launchpad. This oral history project captures that legacy not through dry facts, but through the voices that built it. Each episode is a conversation with a different alumnus, from the pioneers of the 1970s to recent graduates, tracing how their hands-on experience in what's called the "world's greatest media classroom" shaped careers in broadcasting and far beyond. You'll hear personal stories of late-night broadcasts, technical mishaps turned into triumphs, and the forging of lifelong bonds that created a unique professional family spanning generations. This podcast digs into the real, often messy, work of learning by doing, revealing how a campus station became an enduring institution. Tune in for a collection of fifty interviews that together form a living archive, celebrating the people, not just the programming, behind five decades of student-led radio.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

WJPZ at 50
Podcast Episodes
Consultant Jay Nachlis, '94, on Radio's Past, Present, and Future [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 31:02
You'd be hard pressed to find someone who understands the radio industry as well as today's guest: Jay Nachlis from the Class of 1994. Like many of us, this San Francisco native came to Syracuse with plans of being the n…
John Ferracane, Class of 2003, On the Ostrom House and More [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 43:03
John Ferracane was one of the key figures in the survival of WJPZ when the station was temporarily moved to an off-campus house on Ostrom Avenue for the 2000-2001 school year. With the help of an incredibly dedicated sta…
Hall of Famer Dave Gorab, Class of 1993 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:23
One of the hallmarks of any great leader is sharing the credit with his or her team. Hall of Famer Dave Gorab, Class of '93, rose through the ranks of WJPZ to become General Manager at a very successful time in the radio…
Audacy's Corey Crockett, Class of 2015 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 27:06
One of the amazing things about WJPZ is how many of our illustrious alumni actually grew up listening to the radio station. This has been true for decades. Liverpool native Corey Crockett, from the Class of 2015, is no e…
Back to Z89 (and Receivership) with Dena and Harry, Class of 1999 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 47:17
Simply put, Harry Wareing and Dena (Giacobbe) Laupheimer are two people the radio station wouldn't have survived without. Both members of the Class of 1999, Harry first came to the station as a freshman and became a "uti…
Behind the Banquet Scenes With Eileen Spath, Class of 2014 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:35
For several years, Eileen Spath (Class of 2014) chaired the Banquet Committee. When we all come back to Syracuse every year for one of our favorite weekends, we may not realize what happens behind the scenes to get this…
Damian/JD/Governor D Redman, Class of 1995 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:03
You may know today's guest by many names - JD, Governor, or even his given name, Damian Redman. He talks about coming to Syracuse the summer before his freshman year, meeting Dion Summers, and finding WJPZ together.You'l…
Hall of Famers Chris Bungo and Rocco Macri, Class of 1986 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 39:53
Chris Bungo and Rocco Macri met at WJPZ when they were working in production and promotions, respectively. Their friendship has led to a business partnership of over 3 decades, creating the first-of-its-kind software for…

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