Get Involved
- ShawneeTV & Morning Show
- Sports Broadcasting / LDTV
- Video, photography, graphics & on-air opportunities
Get Recognized
- Burlington County Teen Arts
- NJ State Teen Arts
- LDTV Awards
- Competitions & end-of-year art shows
Build a Portfolio
- Photography
- Graphic design
- Film & video
- Broadcasting
- Work directly with Mr. Pistone on projects and portfolio development
Earn College Credit
- Broadcasting Media: 7 RCBC credits
- Cinematic Storytelling: 7 RCBC credits
- Creative Photography: 3 RCBC credits
- Up to 17 college credits through eligible courses
Explore What Comes Next
- Career and college exploration through ClarityDojo.com
- Research interests, careers and majors
- Test ideas through real-world experiences
- Parents can participate and support the process
Create • Get Involved • Build a Portfolio • Earn Recognition • Earn College Credit
More Than a Class: Creative Media Opportunities at Shawnee
If your student is interested in video, filmmaking, photography, graphic design, sports media, broadcasting, or simply learning how to tell better stories, there are a lot of ways to get involved at Shawnee.
My goal is not simply for students to complete assignments. I want them to create work that gets seen, build a portfolio, gain real experience, compete, earn recognition, explore future careers, and take advantage of opportunities while they are still in high school.
Start with Creative Digital Media
Creative Digital Media (CDM) is our introductory course and gives students experience in video production, photography, graphic design, editing, storytelling, and digital media creation.
From there, students can continue in either direction:
Photography Pathway
- Studio Photography
- Creative Photography
Video / Film / Broadcasting Pathway
- Broadcasting Media
- Cinematic Storytelling
Students do not have to know exactly what they want to do when they begin. CDM is designed to let them try different forms of media and discover what they enjoy and where their strengths are.
Earn College Credit While at Shawnee
Several of our advanced courses can also earn Rowan College at Burlington County college credit through the RCBC College Accelerated Program (CAP).
Broadcasting Media
7 RCBC credits
ETV 101 + ETV 105
Cinematic Storytelling
7 RCBC credits
ETV 102 + ETC 205
That means a student taking both advanced video courses can potentially earn 14 college credits while still in high school.
Creative Photography
3 RCBC credits
PHO 120
Students who move through both media areas could potentially earn up to 17 RCBC credits across these CAP-eligible courses, depending on their course selections.
CAP registration is separate from enrollment in the Shawnee class, and students must meet RCBC requirements. College transfer policies vary by institution, so families should always check with colleges they are considering.
Get Your Work Seen
Students do not have to wait until college to start producing for an audience.
Through ShawneeTV, students have opportunities to:
- Produce content for our morning programming
- Create Renegade Morning Show segments
- Shoot and edit news stories
- Produce promotional videos
- Create graphics and photography
- Work in front of or behind the camera
- Learn studio and field production
- Publish work through ShawneeTV and other school media outlets
Students who are not currently enrolled in one of the classes can still get involved with Shawnee TV. Stop by A111 or talk to Mr. Pistone.
Sports Broadcasting
Students interested in sports have an entire area of media to explore.
Opportunities can include:
- Camera operation
- Sports photography
- Play-by-play and commentary
- Sideline reporting
- Graphics
- Highlight packages
- Sports promos
- Live production
- Working with LDTV sports broadcasts
The LRHSD Office of Media & Communications also provides LDTV Sports Talent opportunities, giving students another way to gain actual broadcasting and reporting experience.
Film and Cinematic Storytelling
Students who enjoy narrative work can move beyond basic video production into filmmaking.
Cinematic Storytelling focuses on combining image, sound, editing, performance, composition, and story to create films with a strong narrative impact.
Students can create:
- Short films
- Documentaries
- Narrative projects
- Promos
- Experimental work
- Interviews and profiles
- Competition pieces
The goal is to move from simply knowing how to operate equipment to understanding how to communicate an idea and tell a story effectively.
Photography
Photography students can move from basic camera skills into more intentional and advanced work.
Studio Photography develops camera control, lighting, lenses, post-production, composition, and creative decision-making.
Creative Photography adds documentary and fine-art approaches, deeper visual storytelling, conceptual work, and portfolio development.
Students have opportunities to create work that can be exhibited, submitted, published, and included in a serious portfolio.
Competitions, Festivals and Awards
Strong student work should not stay on a classroom computer.
Throughout the year, we look for opportunities to submit student work to competitions, exhibitions, festivals, and other showcases.
One major opportunity is the Burlington County Teen Arts Festival, which includes categories such as:
- Photography
- Digital Media
- Film/Video
- Visual Arts
Exceptional county-level work may also be selected to move on to the New Jersey State Teen Arts Festival.
Shawnee students have already had work selected in both visual arts and filmmaking.
Students producing video also have the opportunity to compete in the annual LDTV Awards, with categories that recognize work including news, filmmaking, public service announcements, on-air talent, demo reels, technical achievement, morning show segments, and other student productions.
These are not hypothetical resume builders. Shawnee students regularly earn recognition in these programs.
Build a Portfolio Before Graduation
One of the biggest advantages of staying in the program for multiple years is that students begin building a body of work rather than isolated assignments.
That portfolio might eventually include:
- Photography
- Graphic design
- Short films
- Documentaries
- News stories
- Sports productions
- Motion graphics
- Morning-show segments
- Demo reels
- Competition work
A student can enter Creative Digital Media with very little experience and leave the advanced courses with work they can actually show to a college, employer, internship program, client, or creative program.
LDTV Option Two
Students who become serious about media can also explore the LDTV / Office of Media & Communications Option Two program.
This can give eligible upperclassmen another level of authentic production experience with Lenape District Television and the district’s media operation.
It is an opportunity to move beyond classroom simulations and experience more of what professional media production actually looks like.
Students interested in this path should talk with me early so we can look at their course sequence, experience, and eligibility.
Work Directly With Me
Students do not have to wait for a particular assignment to bring me an idea.
If a student wants to create a film, improve a portfolio, submit something to a competition, photograph an event, produce a sports piece, develop a show idea, or simply figure out how to make something better, come talk to me.
Some of the best student work starts with:
“I have an idea. Can I try this?”
My answer is usually: let’s figure out how to make it happen.
Career Exploration Through ClarityDojo
I also created ClarityDojo.com, a separate career-exploration platform designed to help students move beyond simply asking, “What career should I choose?”
Instead, students investigate.
They can:
- Explore a career or major they are considering
- Compare different possibilities
- Research what the work is actually like
- Identify questions they still need answered
- Talk with people who have real experience
- Try small real-world tests
- Record what they learn
- Decide what deserves further investigation
The idea is simple:
Question → Research → People → Real-world test → Reflect
Students can use ClarityDojo even if their interests have nothing to do with media.
Parents and other trusted adults can also participate through ClarityDojo’s Family Support tools when a student shares an investigation with them. A parent can add perspective, suggest useful contacts, help create a real-world test, and support the student’s investigation without taking the decision away from the student.
ClarityDojo is an independent project created by Mr. Pistone and is separate from LRHSD and Shawnee High School.
Visit ClarityDojo.com to explore it.
The Bigger Goal
Whether a student eventually studies film, communications, photography, design, marketing, journalism, business, engineering, medicine, or something completely different, these experiences build skills that transfer:
Creativity. Communication. Collaboration. Technical skill. Problem solving. Professionalism. Confidence. Initiative.
There are many ways to participate.
Take a class.
Join Shawnee TV.
Shoot a game.
Make a film.
Enter a competition.
Build a portfolio.
Earn college credit.
Explore a career.
Bring me an idea.
Create something worth showing.
Questions or interested in getting involved? Stop by A111 and talk with Mr. Pistone.
