Florida Beta Riley Slay is studying Communications and Hospitality at Florida State University (FSU). A friend interned with the Red Hills Broadcasting, a local radio station, and passed the internship information onto Riley, who was excited to apply. She thought the internship would be cool and it also gave her necessary credit hours towards graduation. However, she never fathomed where the internship would lead her after graduation.

Riley spent last spring and summer as an intern working marketing promotions. She worked hard and gained the respect of colleagues at the station. When a weekend position opened, one of her co-workers, an on-air personality, encouraged her to “ask them to give you a spot on the air.” So Riley, the young woman who thought she was “just an intern,” became the Program Director on Tallahassee’s Hit Music Station Hot 104.9 from 12 a.m. to 3 a.m. on Sunday mornings. She would stay up just to listen to herself on the radio, excited for what she had accomplished.

Riley is excited to say she has accepted a job working as an on-air personality on Saturdays and Sundays after graduation. In this role, she introduces new music, talks between songs, and does live marketing promotions during her program. Riley’s mom, Florida Beta Kelly Spillet Slay hit the nail on the head when she said, “You get out what you put in.” Congrats to Riley for putting 110 percent into her internship and turning it into a job.