Location: La Crosse Radisson
The WBA Summer Conference will be held June 22-23 the La Crosse Radisson. The annual golf outing will also be on June 22.
Register Here
Registration closes June 10
Pricing:
- One-Day (Member) (Members Only) – $99
- Two-Day (Member) (Members Only) – $149
- One-Day (Non-Member) – $125
- Two-Day (Non-Member) – $225
- One-Day (Student-Educator) – $25
- Two-Day (Student-Educator) – $40
- Keynote Luncheon Only – $75
- Hall of Fame Only – $99
Golf OutingWednesday, June 22, 8 a.m. Separate Registration |
Media Technology InstituteTuesday, June 21 – Thursday, June 23 The WBA Media Technology Institute (MTI) will be held in La Crosse June 21-23. Tuesday and Thursday will be devoted to essential technology topics including antenna, transmission and other RF concepts and discussions of data networking for communication systems. We will also discuss the business of broadcasting, the role of a chief operator and what to expect during an inspection. MTI attendees will join the WBA Engineering Day conference sessions on Wednesday with great opportunities to network with other experienced engineers, station management and peers. This is an excellent learning opportunity and a great value for your career and your station. Moderated by: ![]() Bill Hubbard Sponsored by Midwest Communications |
Engineering DayWednesday, June 22, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. |
Wednesday, June 22
8 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. – Registration
Conference Sessions
9 a.m. – 10 a.m.
Harness the Power of Your Voice
![]() George Bodarky |
![]() Amy Tardif |
Want to have more confidence and greater influence when you speak? Whether you’re a broadcaster, sales professional, business executive or educator, the way in which you use your voice can have very different outcomes. This lively, interactive session will teach you techniques to harness the power of your voice to communicate with audiences more effectively, whether you’re behind a microphone or in front of a boardroom. Among other things, your trainers, Amy Tardif and George Bodarky will teach you how to improve vocal variety, have greater expressiveness. Add power and projection to your voice, use your voice to highlight important ideas, improve your enunciation, and warm up to ensure you maintain a healthy and vibrant voice. You’re guaranteed to leave this session with the tools to never sound boring again!
*Note* Please come to the session with a script you have previously used or will need to use for a presentation, podcast or otherwise. If you do not have a script, please come with a paragraph written for your voice that describes something that inspires you.
10:15 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
How You Can Connect to Today’s Student
This panel discussion with members of the WBA Education Committee is aimed at helping broadcasters understand today’s college students and how best to connect with them about careers in broadcasting.
![]() Ken Beno – Moderator |
![]() Kelsey Brannan, WSUM, UW-Madison |
![]() Brian Lucas, UW-Whitewater |
![]() Justine Stokes, UW-Oshkosh |
![]() Dr. Ganga Vadhavkar, UW-Eau Claire |
11:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Lunch on your own (Many great restaurant options nearby)
1:30 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
Job Fair
3 p.m. – 4 p.m.
EEO Session: Practical Steps to Diversify Your Station
Hear from a panel of leaders on diversity on how they’ve strengthened their workforce by promoting diversity and inclusion. We’ll review the latest information on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and talk to our panelists from three different sectors about how they promote diversity, the challenges they faced, and the hurdles they’ve overcome. The aim is to give you practical steps to take back to your stations.
![]() Morgan Stewart, Wisconsin Public Media |
![]() Debbie Biddle, The People Company |
![]() Barbara Stewart, UW-La Crosse |
![]() Wendell Ray, Moderator, UW-Oshkosh |
4:05 p.m. – 5:15 p.m.
Harness the Power of Your Voice
![]() George Bodarky |
![]() Amy Tardif |
Want to have more confidence and greater influence when you speak? Whether you’re a broadcaster, sales professional, business executive or educator, the way in which you use your voice can have very different outcomes. This lively, interactive session will teach you techniques to harness the power of your voice to communicate with audiences more effectively, whether you’re behind a microphone or in front of a boardroom. Among other things, your trainers, Amy Tardif and George Bodarky will teach you how to improve vocal variety, have greater expressiveness. add power and projection to your voice, use your voice to highlight important ideas, improve your enunciation, and warm up to ensure you maintain a healthy and vibrant voice. You’re guaranteed to leave this session with the tools to never sound boring again!
*Note* Please come to the session with a script you have previously used or will need to use for a presentation, podcast or otherwise. If you do not have a script, please come with a paragraph written for your voice that describes something that inspires you.
AND
Legislative Update
WBA Legislative Committee
![]() Jane Wade |
![]() Tom Koser |
![]() Don Vesely |
![]() Anna Engelhart |
![]() Herb Cody |
![]() Jan Wade |
![]() Joe Poss |
![]() Terry Stevenson |
![]() Al Lancaster |
![]() Jeff Wright |
|
|
![]() Michelle Vetterkind |
![]() David Oxenford |
![]() Brandon Scholz |
5:45 p.m. – 7:15 p.m.
Reception – La Crosse Queen
The La Crosse Queen will pick us up near the La Crosse Radisson for a 90 minute cruise on the Mississippi.
7:30 p.m. – 10 p.m.
Dinner at the Waterfront (328 Front St S)
At the dinner we will recognize the 2022 WBA Young Professional of the Year
Dinner entertainment: Recording artist Sam Ness

Sam Ness
Thursday, June 23
7:30 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Registration
8:30 a.m. – 10 a.m.
Business Breakfast
10 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
Economic Update – U.S. Bank

Mark Consigny, US Bank
10:45 a.m. – 11:45 a.m.
Baby Got Back Up?

Nancy Douglass, GM, WLKG, Lake Geneva
Costly, stressful, and enormously time consuming. Cyber-attacks are a threat to ANY computer connected to the internet. You can lose everything. Learn how one small Wisconsin radio station found out the hard way how important it is to protect and save your files, and what they did to recover from a triple cyber-attack.
Noon – 2:30 p.m.
Keynote Lunch

Tom Thibodeau
Keynote Speaker Tom Thibodeau and Local Broadcast Legends Presentation

Jonathan Green, Mike Hayes, Terry West, Tom Zalaski
2:45 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Purpose and Compassion at Work

John McHugh, Kwik Trip
Regardless of your role, what are people, customers and business partners looking for in you? What is the workplace culture you have created with your team that leads to success? Creating a mission driven culture with compassion and trust turns satisfied customers into loyal customers. In addition, if the work we do is tied into a purpose beyond profits our job satisfaction increases substantially and employee turnover is reduced.
Join John McHugh as he explores the role you play in your organization’s success and how you can find the key people to help you achieve that greatness. His examples and stories are ones that you won’t forget.
3:45 p.m. – 4:30 p.m.
The Connected Vehicle – What Does that Mean for Radio?

Juan Galdamez, Xperi
How listeners consume content in the vehicle is evolving rapidly! Automakers are bringing the living room experience to the vehicle and increasing connectivity to the vehicle. The great news… Radio is still the No. 1 source of entertainment inside the vehicle! Join us as we walk through how the Connected Car is evolving and chat through what that looks like for radio.
5 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Hall of Fame Reception
6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Hall of Fame Dinner
7 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Hall of Fame presentations
Masters of Ceremonies:
![]() Michelle Vetterkind |
![]() Tom Koser |

Chris Bernier, Joyce Garbaciak, Howard Gloede, Gene Purcell
Register Here

Deborah Biddle
The People Company
With a calm, level-headed approach, keen listening, insightful questioning, and a passion for individual and organizational belonging and thriving, Deborah Biddle influences individuals and teams to successfully rethink and redo the ways they engage with people and make decisions. Deborah is an Inclusion Institute Certified Diversity Practitioner, Inclusion Institute Certified Diversity Practitioner, National Diversity Council Certified Diversity Professional, Intercultural Diversity Inventory Qualified Administrator, Certified Talent Management Consultant, and a sought after Trainer and Speaker. She leads the diversity, equity and inclusion consulting, assessment, training, coaching and practitioner certification firm, The People Company LLC. Deborah works with organizations that want to leverage the power of change to heighten development and performance for their people. She designs and delivers thought-provoking and challenging experiences that help people THINK better, DO better and BE better at what matters most. Deborah serves as president of Madison Youth Arts Center Board of Directors, board member and Diversity Committee Chair of Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, board of directors vice president of Madison-Based Impact Christian Schools, advisory board member of Africasong Communications, Inc., United Way of Dane County Personnel Committee member, Unitypoint Health-Meriter Community Health Impact Committee member, Madison Downtown Rotary Racial Equity and Inclusion Committee member and Music Committee member, and Golden Life Member of Schaumburg-Hoffman Estates Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. She is also president of Reasonable Service Ministries, which serves people through bible teaching and Christian music. A graduate of Keller Graduate School of Management at DeVry University, Deborah holds a master of business administration degree and a bachelor of arts degree in finance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She also has an Activity Based Costing Certificate from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in the Workplace Certificate from the University of South Florida Muma College of Business. Deborah is the devoted wife to Lloyd, Lead Pastor at River Valley Community Church, and mother of two sons, Jason, a human resource professional and Jared, a collegiate scholar.

George Bodarky
WFUV-FM
George Bodarky is the Senior Director of Content Strategy and Student Development at WFUV FM, an NPR affiliate station, based on the Rose Hill campus of Fordham University in the Bronx. George was recently promoted from his role as WFUV's News and Public Affairs Director. George is a past president of Public Radio News Directors, Inc. (now Public Media Journalists Association and a past president of the New York State Associated Press Association. He also serves on the executive council of the Deadline Club. and is on the board of the New York Press Club. George is an award-winning journalist who trains undergraduate and graduate students at Fordham University in multiplatform journalism. George is also an adjunct professor at the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY and has taught at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. He is widely known for his vocal coaching and journalism training. Over the years his students have won countless awards and have secured employment as anchors, reporters, writers and producers in commercial and public television and radio outlets across the nation. Prior to working at WFUV, George spent many years as an anchor, reporter and news manager in commercial radio and television.

Nancy Douglass
WLKG-FM
Nancy Douglass is the General Manager of WLKG, Lake 961FM. She celebrated her 20th anniversary at WLKG by purchasing the station. WLKG is located in Lake Geneva and covers southeastern Wisconsin and a bit of northern Illinois.

John McHugh
Kwik Trip
John McHugh is the Director of Corporate Communications, Leadership Development, and Training for Kwik Trip, Inc., based in La Crosse. In his role at Kwik Trip he has helped the company achieve recognition as a Top Workplace as listed by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Minneapolis Star Tribune and the Des Moines Register.
Prior to joining Kwik Trip in 2004, John was an instructor and principal at Aquinas High School in La Crosse. He holds degrees from the University of Saint Thomas in Saint Paul, Minnesota and the Gregorian University in Rome, Italy. John sits on the Boards of Trust Point, Better Life Insurance and Viterbo University.
He and his wife Maggie enjoy living at their log home near Sparta.

Sam Ness
From theater performer, to full-time busker and wanderer playing festivals and cafés, Sam Ness has shared the stage with acts such as America, Styx, Night Ranger, Chris Barron (Spin Doctors), and many others. Mixing Traditional Folk/Americana roots with a new-age Alternative Singer/Songwriter feel, Sam finds inspiration in the ancient cobblestone streets across the globe. Sometimes wild and dance oriented, other moments raw, emotional, and filled with moments of silence, Sam’s show changes every night. His percussive playing paired with an assortment of special effects including a loop system, have built a sound larger than most full bands.
Sam has taken home a handful of Madison Area Music Awards including Male Vocalist of the Year (2019, 2020, 2021), Alternative Album of the Year (Whispered on the Wind 2018), Madison Area Breakthrough Artist Second Runner up (2017), Cover Song of the Year (Bonnie Raitt’s I Can’t Make You Love Me 2020), Unique Performer of the Year (2021).
For videos and more information on Sam, visit: samness.us

Barbara Stewart
Barbara E. Stewart has been at University of Wisconsin-La Crosse for 22 years. In her current position of Vice Chancellor for Diversity and Inclusion, she is responsible for providing oversight for several campus diversity offices and provides leadership for campus-wide diversity initiatives such as the campus climate survey and the Diversity and Inclusion pillar of the campus strategic plan. Barbara served as Director of the office of Multicultural Student Services and in addition served as the Associate Dean for Campus Climate and Diversity in the Division of Student Affairs. Recently, Barbara was awarded the UW System Board of Regents Diversity Award in 2022. Prior to working at UW-La Crosse, Barbara worked in a variety of Higher Education positions in Iowa, Illinois, and North Carolina. She achieved her undergraduate and graduate degrees at Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa. In addition to her administrative, responsibilities, she has taught undergraduate and graduate classes in diversity, advising and disability issues. She also provides training on many diversity and inclusion topics. She serves as a mentor, trainer and advocate for diversity and inclusion in the La Crosse and surrounding community.

Morgan Stewart
Morgan D. Stewart is an Admin Manager for Wisconsin Public Media (PBS Wisconsin and Wisconsin Public Radio). She works closely with the HR team, executive leadership, and staff developing, implementing, and evaluating organizational strategies in support of its public service mission. Stewart received her master’s degree in media studies and was an adjunct instructor at UW-Oshkosh, teaching the intersections of race, class, and gender in mass media.

Amy Tardiff
Report for America
Amy Tardif is the Corps Excellence Regional Manager for the Northeast at Report for America and an independent fact-checker. She fact checked the Peabody award winning podcast Believed. Amy is formerly a member of the Public Media Journalists' Association (PMJA) Editor Corps, the regional manager of StoryCorps in Chicago, and WGCU Public Media’s Station Manager and News Director where she also won a Peabody Award for her documentary Lucia’s Letter on human trafficking. She was the first woman in radio to Chair RTDNA, and she served five years on the PMJA board. Amy has also been managing editor for NPR's Next Generation Radio Project five times. She and George have been voice coaches together for more than a decade.

Tom Thibodeau
Distinguished Professor of Servant Leadership, Viterbo University
Distinguished Professor of Servant Leadership at Viterbo University and voted best professor in La Crosse in 2015. Tom Thibodeau is a nationally recognized speaker who provides leadership and organizational culture development consulting to health systems, corporations, college systems, school systems, large cooperatives, communities, and organizations of all sizes across the U.S. He has been actively serving the La Crosse community for more than 20 years through his leadership on a number of community boards and committees and as founder and active member at Place of Grace, a local Catholic Worker House.
- Click here to book your room at the La Crosse Radisson
- Reservation deadline is June 3.
Related Events
- WBA Community Workshop: Digital Tricks for Finding Local Content to Share Online and On the Air Date: June 9, 2022
- Webinar: How to Stand Out Amid Media Competition and Digital Fragmentation Date: June 16, 2022
- Media Technology Institute Date: June 21, 2022
- Job Fair Date: June 22, 2022
- Annual Golf Outing Date: June 22, 2022
- Engineering Day Date: June 22, 2022
- Summer Conference Date: June 22, 2022
- Webinar: EAS Requirements and What Your Entire Staff Should Know About the Alternative Broadcast Inspection Program (ABIP) Date: July 21, 2022
- Webinar: Enhancing Local Coverage Just in Time for Election Season Date: August 18, 2022
- Broadcasters Clinic Date: October 11, 2022
- Webinar: Post-Election Impact on Broadcasters Date: November 17, 2022
- Awards Gala Date: May 6, 2023