One small step for the Winona State Mass Communication Department, one giant leap for the future of Winona State University.
When it comes to Mass Communications, there is one guy that everyone refers to, and he goes by Tom Grier. Professor Grier has been with Winona State University for about 27 years and is a master of all things journalism and beyond. He is a believer in discovery and knows that the next big chance you take on emerging technology could be the best decision you ever make. This is why Professor Tom Grier is the founder of Winona State University’s new drone.
I was lucky enough to sit down with Tom to learn all about our very own drone! Here is the interview with all of the inside details:
WSU Mass Communication alumni and current students tested the drone in May 2015. Pictured (left to right) are alumni Josh Averbeck, Andrew Link and Paul Solberg, and current student Jordan Gerard. Photo by Tom Grier.
HC (Her Campus): When did you get the drone?
TG (Tom Grier): We ordered the drone in the fall of 2014 and it officially arrived and was unboxed on January 19th 2015. Since it was so cold, we opened it in our Photo Studio in Phelps Hall and I got to fly it for the first time. I lifted it up and flew it around in a circle; back and forth and then I set it down. From there we continued to test it on warmer days; letting students and alumni get a chance to fly it.
HC: What intrigued you about getting a drone?
TG: Years ago, when I worked in the Public Relations Department, I always wanted aerial footage of our campus. I would go to the Airport and have one of the pilots fly me over campus as I shot pictures out the window, but they never turned out well because you are up so high. I then turned to a guy in town who flew helicopters in Vietnam, and had actually bought his very own helicopter. The benefit of the helicopter was the stationary shots I could achieve of our beautiful campus.
A few years ago I was looking to get more beautiful photos of various Winona State buildings, but I received word that he had sold his helicopter. I knew I needed photos of Lourdes Hall, Somsen Hall and the Stadium. During my search for a new method of taking aerial shots, I came across a piece on these drones when they were still fairly new and I thought, wow, it would be great to have one of those.
HC: What will be the policy for student access? Who will have access to it?
TG: As of right now there isn’t a student access policy in place since the drone is so new. We are hoping to have a special topics course in the spring for students to learn about and practice with the drone. Only students within the specific class will have access to it. The class will discuss safety, ethics and how to properly use the drone. So as of right now, access is very limited, as we are all still learning to use the drone.
HC: What did the drone cost?
TG: When I made my proposal to the Mass Communications Department, they were very worried about the money. The kit is about $2,000 plus extra batteries. During this time I happened to mention that to one of our retired faculty, John N. Weis. He goes “I’ll tell you what Grier, I’m going to call the foundation and donate the money.” He donated $1,500, which was enough to buy the drone itself and the kit.
I went back to the Mass Communications Department to tell them the money was there and we can now buy the drone. Later on, we spent some of our own money to buy extra batteries. The drone kit that we purchased was about $1500, but they come anywhere from about $900 to $10,000.
Close-up of (drone) owned by WSU’s Mass Communication department. Photo by Tom Grier.
HC: Will it be used in other departments on Campus?
TG: A couple of departments have hinted that they might want to use it, but haven’t really adamantly said, “I really want that, can I borrow it?” So as of right now it hasn’t been checked out by anybody, the Mass Communication Department has only used it. We are leery on checking it out to others due to safety precautions. Safety is our number one priority.
HC: Where do you see the drone to be a best fit for the future?
TG: Primarily Journalism. Like I said, it is another way of telling the story. I believe its greatest impact lies in journalism, but it certainly has a great impact in Advertising, Public relations, and film. Eventually, I hope we can have about 6 of these drones so they could be used for other classes. For example, in advertising, if your professor asks you to make an ad and you want to get some aerial footage to put in your ad, you will have the benefit of being able to accomplish that with the use of the drone.
Eventually, the drone would have a short training course prior to its use, but maybe not for a few years or so.
HC: What have you used the drone for so far?
TG: Right now we are just testing and practicing so that we can get used to it. We haven’t used it for anything professional quite yet. We are cautious to flying it in town due to telephone poles, trees, and buildings. I would love to use it on homecoming game day when the stadium is full with our Winona State Warriors’ fans. We are still cautious about how we would do this, but it is definitely an idea we have had. We plan to continue to practice flying the drone with students and alumni.
HC: Why do you feel that this was a worthy investment?
TG: Primarily it is to give students familiarity with a new and emerging technology. That is what we have always wanted to do; let the University be the testing lab for the next new technology. We want to let students touch it, play with it, make mistakes with it, learn from it, and then when they go to a potential employer they can say, “look what I can do, you should hire me.”
I believe the drone has great career development potential. For example, let’s say there is a job opening for a photographer at the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Five guys apply and they are all pretty equal, but one of them says they have experience with a drone, learning how to take aerial footage and create stories and films using the drone. Who is getting the job? The person with the drone experience, as they stand out among the rest.
HC: How do you control the drone? What is its capability?
TG: It can go up to about 25mph. It can move. For height, it depends on who you ask. Some say it can go 1,000 ft in the air, but the highest we have flown it is about 400ft, which at that point you can barely see it. To get a better estimate as to how high that is just think Sheehan Hall is about 130ft high. So it can fly almost 3 Sheehan Halls high, which is up there.
The drone is controlled with a remote control, similar to that of an Xbox or PlayStation. It also has a monitor that lets you see what the drone can see. The drone is also very smart in that if you aren’t touching the controls it will just hover in one place. Also, the drone has a built in GPS.
WSU Mass Communication students tested the drone in May 2015 at Kinstone, an outdoor permaculture-learning lab in Bluff Siding, Wisconsin. Pictured are Nate Nelson (left) and Jacob Hilsabeck. Photo by Tom Grier.
HC: Does the drone have a name? Will it?
TG: No, I haven’t even thought of that! We have enough trouble naming the program for the drone. The program, as of right now, will be called The Aerial Visual Communication Lab. So far it’s one machine, but maybe in the future it will be five machines. So I created the lab, got approval from the Mass Communication department, bought the machine and now some students are having a chance to learn how to use the equipment.
We are hoping it will be a class in the spring. It would be about half lecture and discussion and half trying out the machine and editing the video it produces, which is the most interesting part. Do we fly it just because it’s fun? Or do we fly it with a purpose? The question you want to ask is, what story do you want to tell that needs to be told from the sky?
All in all I do think we should name the drone, because I have never thought of it until you asked me. It has to be a clever name. I don’t want to name it Clyde or something…
HC: Final words or any special additions…
TG: It is an opportunity for students to learn a new and emerging technology. As long as it’s used safely and ethically, it has great potential, and I would like to see the program grow from one machine to many more. Ideally I just want students to touch it and get comfortable with it. I don’t want them to be afraid of it. I have had about 8 students who have flown it now and every one of them has been very scared that they are going to break this very expensive machine. The price may be steep, but that is the cost of doing business. If you break it, you break it. I just want students to get familiar with it and not be afraid of it. We want to give our students as many opportunities as we can to better their knowledge and future.
Professor Tom Grier hopes to continue to let others try out the drone and become familiar with it. Soon enough, we will all be skilled in “Drone Training”. We are all very excited to see what this drone has in store for the future of WSU.