Megan Steckler just recently became the first ever Rowan Radio member to have been awarded two Gracies. You’d think that her passion and achievements for Rowan Radio would derive from a longing to pursue a career as a radio host, but you’d be wrong.
The Gracies were designed and built by women, to recognize women, in all realms of media, including radio, television, and digital media.
Steckler is currently a senior, soon to be graduating with two degrees in marketing and entrepreneurship from Rowan. According to Steckler, participating in the station “has always been for fun.”
She discovered Rowan Radio through a long-time friend of hers, Allison Bruce, who is currently the director of the news department at the station and has been for about three years.
With a zest for learning as well as a want to improve her public speaking skills, she committed and went through a semester’s worth of training and shadowing to become a member. Yet Steckler felt motivated to do more within the station, so with an open spot in the business news report section within the Rowan Report, she became a part of that entity as well.
After taking a particular liking to a radio production class last year, which she also took just for fun, she decided to apply for the public affairs director position.
“In that class, I realized that I loved the interview and storytelling aspect of radio, and I decided to apply for the position to see what would happen,” Steckler said. “Then I actually got it, which was pretty cool!”
In her position, she hosted a show called “A Community Affair”, where she interviewed local experts on tri-state area issues. One of the Rowan Radio directors, Derek Jones, submitted some of her episodes from the show to the Gracies last year. From there, she’d won her very first Gracie award.
This year, Jones submitted different episodes of hers, which wound up winning her a second Gracie and a new title at the Rowan Radio station.
“It’s very surreal, but I am very grateful to the station for giving me this platform to talk to these people and actually do what I was able to do,” said Steckler.
Aside from Rowan Radio, Steckler is a part of the Rowan Honors College, where she has a Bantivoglio Leadership and Service Training (BLAST) mentor since her sophomore year. Here, she mentors students every semester, and says, “that’s been a highlight of my Rowan experience.”
Steckler is also a member of the American Marketing Association, as well as Unified Sports, and the Women in Business club on campus. Additionally, she is secretary of the Beta Gamma Sigma Business International Honors Society at Rowan.
Additionally, she’s an event planning and research intern at the Rowan Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. She has also been an air service development intern at the Philadelphia International Airport for about a year.
In other words, she is an extremely busy college student.
“If you’ve ever seen my calendar I am so sorry,” she jokes. “But truthfully, I like being busy.”
In a day in her life, Steckler faces many tasks gracefully whilst being an everyday college student. She has her in-person classes throughout the day, as well as managing her internship work, coursework, extracurriculars, and any other events that might come up. Regardless, she makes time to learn and try new things.
Last year, a fellow mentor of hers took a piano class at Rowan. After she expressed her interest in learning to play the piano, she was recommended to take the same class. So just for fun, she did.
“I’ve never played piano before this semester, but it really has become my therapy between my business-heavy and more difficult classes, I just love it,” Steckler said.
In looking forward towards the future, Steckler looks to continue to pursue marketing. A possibility that lies in front of her includes fusing her two passions, radio and marketing. This would mean pursuing a career in marketing within the radio industry, something that especially interests her. But at the moment, with her graduation day just around the corner, the sky’s the limit.
“I have always wanted to keep learning, I don’t think that will ever stop. I would love to pursue graduate studies, as well as continuing to travel. But above all, I just want to keep being curious and learn as much as I can.”
If there is any lesson from Steckler to be learned, it is to just go out and do it. Do it “for fun.”
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