On September 17, Riverside Brookfield High School’s RBTV teacher Matthew Holdren was the recipient of the Best Practices Award. At Triton College, Holdren received the top award because of his work in the sports/activities media days here at RB. Awarded by the Des Plaines Valley Region School/College Alliance Conference, the Best Practices Award recognizes teachers who’ve made a distinct contribution to the classroom by teaching a practice that other schools should implement.
Nominated by former industrial arts teacher Dave Weishaar, Holdren and RBTV had the possibility of being considered for the Best Practices Award in the Des Plaines Valley region. During the award ceremony, RB’s Superintendent Dr. Kevin Skinkis, and Principal Dr. Héctor Freytas had the opportunity to view Holdren’s work and congratulate him.
“I’m proud again of Mr. Holdren. He’s been a breath of fresh air. This is year two for Mr. Holdren here, and he continues to add to the proud legacy of RBTV. I mean, this sky’s the limit for Mr. Holdren, for our students, and the opportunities it will bring. I mean, he’s putting our students in the spotlight. And when you’re in the spotlight, people may come calling and courting. So I’m excited what opportunities will come from this for our students,” Freytas said. ”I mean, when you’re there being taught by a successful educated, renowned educator, I mean, that’s just gonna set you nicely for any college and career opportunity, so ultimately our kids benefited from this and I’m so proud. I’m so proud of Mr. Holdren for that.”
Here at RB and in the community, RBTV is one of a kind. While it may be perceived as a norm here, RBTV is a distinctive elective that, typically, isn’t found on high school course offerings.
“After they showed it, I got bombarded by superintendents of the principles, ‘Matthew, that was great.’ ‘ How do you do that?’ ‘Can I put you in touch with my teacher?’ ‘Can you teach him how to do this?’ ‘Can we come visit your your studio?’ So, that was really cool to see them see it and understand how neat it is because I think sometimes when you do things at your own school, you get used to it and it becomes the expectation, and we lose the sense that it’s a unique practice,” Holdren said.
Since Holdren has stepped up to the plate, a shift has occurred in the media landscape here at RB. From the Bulldog Weekly, interviews, and especially, sports media days, Holdren has changed the name of the game for RBTV and adjusted to the modern era of media.
“The only thing that people are really watching on live TV are sports. Everything else is really gone to single camera edits, Netflix series, things like that. Talk shows aren’t even really popular anymore. So, it’s just a testament to the students accepting that cultural change and working hard to continue to. I want to be the best media program in the country. That’s my goal, and that’s what we’re heading to do, and so again, it’s a testament to the hard work by the students,” Holdren said.
Speaking of sports, as popularity for media has risen, there has been a push for name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals. While NIL deals will increase popularity for the player, it will also shine a spotlight on the videographer.
“So, okay, how does that translate? Well, if you have a million followers on TikTok and you’re a player that like Georgia is thinking about recruiting, but you’re kind of on the fence, but they see that you have a million followers. They want you because you are going to their program. And so their million followers as a defensive lineman are now Georgia’s million followers. And so it helps in the recruiting process and all that. So, with the push just for sports media doing things like this is going to prepare the students to be able to do something like that in college, right away. And I know, for a fact, some students at my old school, a few of them had gone to Ball State, Syracuse, and they are always messaging me and calling me saying, ‘Hey, you know, I’m able to, as a freshman, help out with our media and our our athletic department there,’” Holdren said.
There were a total of three recipients for the Best Practices Award: besides RBTV, schools such as West Leyden and Triton were honored with this recognition.
“I won one or RBTV won one, so did West Leyden for their Gold & Bold Cafe. They have a student-run cafe, which is really neat. And then, Triton, with a bunch of other schools, won it for their dual enrollment program, which is a program where students go right to junior college, like they don’t even go to high school. They’re actually high school students, but they just go directly to Triton to do their school work. So, in their four years, they graduate with a high school diploma and an associate’s degree,” Holdren said.
As Holdren and RBTC continue to make strides in the media, their efforts will not go unnoticed with strong, continued support from the administration.
“We’re one of the few high schools that has a full TV production program. I want to say Mr. Holdren almost has everything. I don’t know every single little tool or device in the RB in the TV production world, but if it’s going to benefit our kids and put them in a better place, we will always consider supporting a teacher,” Freytas said.
In light of success, there are also challenges that arise in the process. For Holdren, it’s student numbers and engagement.
“So, for me here, the biggest challenge is honestly, it’s numbers,” Holdren said. “I’m full-time media and so the biggest challenge for me is keeping it fun and exciting, but also keeping the rigor that goes along with classes like this, particularly with my first two sections, because those are dual credit courses through the College of DuPage. And so I have a syllabus I have to follow. That’s the College of Du Page’s syllabus. And so we have to stick to that,” Holdren said.
While Holdren does face challenges with numbers, there is no doubt students will sign up for next year’s RBTV class. Because of this recognition, there truly is a positive energy that will continue to walk across the halls of RB.
“Energy is contagious. Whether there is good energy, or whether there is bad energy, I always believe it is contagious. So here you have a teacher that was recognized for outstanding teaching. I could only see that influence in a positive way, inspiring our other teachers, other departments to continue excelling in the profession. It’s only gonna be motivational for everybody,” Freytas said.
