Surely if you don’t know Daniella Singleton, you’ve seen her around campus. The Nottingham, PA native is involved with many campus activities such as WIXQ (which she is Station Manager of), MUTV (she’s the Public Relations manager), National Broadcasting Society, All Campus Musical Organization and she works at the Helen G. Ganser Library! The Communications/Broadcasting major plans on graduating this spring. We talked a bit about her love for WIXQ, how Millersville showed her what she loves and some advice for underclassmen.
Her Campus Millersville: What are your future plans, after you graduate?
Daniella Singleton: I think I want to work in something promotions related or like, event planning, something with people where I can help. I can see myself working at a music club or venue, doing promotional stuff for them.
HCM: Why’d you join [Campus radio station 91.7 FM] WIXQ?
DS: I was convinced to come give the radio a try by a boy I liked, even though I thought I hated radio. Then I trained on his show and from then on just fell in love with WIXQ. Even though things didn’t work out with the guy, without his persuasion I wouldn’t have discovered how passionate I am about this organization. [After] training and getting my own show, I ran for council positions, won the secretary and promotions director positions my junior year and now, by my senior year, I am the station manager.
HCM: Why are you so involved with WIXQ?
DS: I love it. I love the people. I love music. I love the freedom, the playing whatever you want and I love Doc Rock. Truly, I feel like more than any other organization WIXQ is just where I belonged. I just felt like family, I found a home.
HCM: Why should others join WIXQ?
DS: Other people should join WIXQ because it’s such a different organization than most student run organizations. There’s almost complete freedom to do whatever you want and you get your own radio show and it’s just you- not necessarily like sitting in a meeting and doing things with other people. It’s you and your music, or you and your friend and your music. Like, I do my show [Critical Hits] with Roger [Cowden] and I love it. It’s three hours a week that we just get to play and connect and be here in the station. It’s such a welcoming organization. Everyone’s really open and welcoming to new members and it’s like a family. The WIXQ family is not a joke. Even if you’re not on one of the councils, you still feel like you’re part of a family.
HCM: How’s Millersville helped you overall?
DS: When I came here, I wanted to be a news anchor, which is why I’m a Broadcasting major. I joined MUTV, I anchored the news, I started to produce a news show and I liked it. It was just a lot of what I didn’t see myself doing. Like the behind the scene, the editing, little things like that. It was great and even though I’ve not been as involved with MUTV as I am with WIXQ, I like the organizations [that] Millersville has. Just the opportunities that they give you are great, and if nothing else, joining all these organizations and all the opportunities Millersville has, has shown me what I don’t want to do. Which counts for something. And having a radio station on campus and just having it open to all majors and [welcoming] everybody. If I wasn’t a broadcasting major and wasn’t directly related, I could still be a DJ. Like, you’re not [a broadcasting major].
HCM: I’m an art major!
DS: Yeah, you’re an art major and you’re still here [at WIXQ]. I like Millersville, I like the Comm department. I don’t know what else I would be. I think Millersville helped me because of all the opportunities, and all the organizations that are so different but they’ve all helped me discover who I am.
HCM: What’s your favorite thing about Millersville?
DS: Besides everything I was just saying about the opportunities and everything, I like how friendly and welcoming everyone is. And especially, the thing with WIXQ is you don’t have to be in a field that you’re gonna go be a DJ for the rest of your life. It’s open to all majors, it’s welcoming to everyone. Even the other organizations I’m in, like MUTV, and ACMO has a ton of non-theatre majors. I think that’s cool. I think it’s cool to have so many organizations, all student run and just being so open and friendly and welcoming of everybody. Like anyone who’s interested. Like with WIXQ, I’m a DJ and a Comm major but I’m probably in the minority. There’s not too many, I mean there’s a lot, but [Andrew] Coons was a History major and he was just station manager for 3 years almost. I think it’s cool that something like that can happen, cause maybe at a different school, that wouldn’t happen.
HCM: Is there anyone at Millersville [teachers, faculty, etc.] that really inspired you or meant a lot to you?
DS: I would defiantely say Doc [Ralp Anttonen, WIXQ faculty advisor]. I never had him; he’s not even a teacher, but to me, he’s so full of wisdom and knowledge and he just shares it all the time with everybody. Just getting to know him and working with him as Station Manager has been such a good experience for me because not only does he have all these crazy stories to share, but… he cares. He genuinely does care about you, as a person and everything. Honestly I feel like even though I never had him as a teacher, he’s one of the most influential people, not just at Millersville but in my entire life.
HCM: Do you have any advice for incoming freshman or underclassmen?
DS: I would just say get involved and take chances and oppurtunities that are available to you and it might be a little overwhelming but if you love something go for it and join it. And I’d also say, personally for me, a piece of advice would be to just get involved but just make sure you’re okay to handle everything. It is a lot of commitments and a lot of meetings and lot ot be in 6 organizations, it is a lot of work. But just realize it is okay to say I can’t join this or I can’t participate in this. It’s okay. You’re only here for 4 years, and it sounds like a lot [but] it flies by. You want to look back at your college [years] and be satisfied. You don’t want to look at it and be like, I was always running around and stressing myself out. Which is why I think I mostly concentrate on WIXQ and stayed minorly involved in everything else. I wish I could have understood that more my sophomore/junior years.
HCM: What’s something surprising about you that most people wouldn’t know?
DS: I don’t have my driver’s license nor do I have any solid plans to get it. At least not in the near future, that’s kind of surprising. Most people are like, I want it or I’m getting it soon, but honestly, I’d be perfectly fine if I never got it.
HCM: Do you have anything else you want to add?
DS: I love WIXQ so much. I want people to understand, I wish I could just scream it and tell everybody. It’s not that I’m like, oh everyone needs to join WIXQ, I just wish that everybody could feel the way I do about WIXQ about anything. Whatever the organization is, something that you’re passionate about, even if it isn’t a student organization, even if it’s running. I really do. I love, love WIXQ and even if people don’t want to be a DJ, I think it’s important for everyone to know we have a radio station and you should listen! Yes we do, and you can listen online all the time. You don’t even need a radio.
You can listen to Daniella and everyone else’s radio shows locally by tuning into 91.7 FM, or anywhere in the world online at www.wixq.com or on the Millersville University app for smart phones. Daniella’s show, Critical Hits, is Monday nights 7pm to 10pm with Roger Cowden.