Each year, the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences recognizes broadcast excellence on the high school level.   

     The Chapter is, once again, celebrating that excellence in the Chapter area (Northern California, from Visalia to the Oregon border; Reno; and Hawaii). Students can enter their best work in a number of categories. Most of the categories are familiar to those who annually enter our signature Emmy� Awards such as: "Newscast", "Arts & Entertainment", "Public Affairs" and many of the craft categories. There are a couple of categories you may not be used to seeing: "Music Video" and "Long Form - Fiction".

    The "Awards for Excellence", which promotes best practices to high school students, is intended to be an incentive for the pursuit of excellence in television journalism and focus public attention on outstanding achievements in television produced by high school students. Faculty involvement can only be advisory. Winning sponsored high schools receive an engraved glass pillar. The students involved in the production of the entry will receive certificates. 

     If you know any talented high school students who would be interested, let them know the filing deadline is March 31. Certainly let your local high schools and colleges know. For more information go to: 

http://emmysf.tv/students-2/high-school-awards/

     NATAS' High School Awards are underwritten by The TV Academy Fund, Inc., a non-profit, 501(c)(3), established to administer scholarships, grants, fellowships, research and programs that will advance the art and science of the television industry.

    It is also time again to announce our college scholarship program. This year there are $16,000 in scholarships available.

    NATAS NorCal sponsors seven awards: five $2,000 scholarships and two $3,000 scholarships. Each award is named for former NATAS members who have honored our Chapter.

    Four are memorial: The Peter J. Marino Jr. $2,000 award recognizing production; The Sheldon "Shelly" Fay Award, recognizing videography; The Kenneth Sloat Langly Award, recognizing writing; and the "Miss Nancy" Besst Award, recognizing an outstanding graduate student.

    One of the named scholarships is still active in our academy -- the Rigo Chacon Reporting Scholarship.

    And, again this year, two $3,000 scholarships, generously underwritten by The Big Picture's George Lang, will each go to one outstanding Graduate and one Undergraduate student.

    These Scholarships memorializes two former Lang co-workers and KGO-TV Journalists: Jerry Jensen, a KGO-TV co-anchor for more than 15 years, from 1969 to 1984; and Steve Davis, an anchor/reporter for more than 20 years in the 1970s and 1980s.

    Scholarship applicants must be actively engaged in a collegiate-level curriculum in one or more areas of the television industry. They must attend a college in Northern California (Visalia to the Oregon border), Hawaii, or Reno, Nevada.

    All entrants submit a sample of their work, their transcripts, an essay, and a letter of recommendation from their professor or dean. All entries are screened by a panel of judges culled from the NATAS Education Committee. The Committee meets to decide the recipient in each category. The Committee can award or not award a scholarship for each category. The entry deadline will be later this summer.

    The scholarships will be presented during this year's NATAS Silver & Gold Circle Induction this coming fall. For more information go to: http://emmysf.tv/students-2/college-scholarships/

    This chapter awards these scholarships to encourage individuals who demonstrate leadership and talent in advancing the artistic, cultural, educational and technical qualities of television.

For more info about SF/NorCal STUDENT AWARDS, click here

    Steve Shlisky, a producer and editor at KTVU Channel 2, is education chairperson for the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. 

Where did you grow up? 

Hayward, I lived there until I was around 19.

Do you have siblings?  

I have a sister.

You and your wife, Katie, have been married for a long time. You have a son playing varsity football in high school. Yet, you still look like a kid yourself! What's your secret? 

Not thinking about my age and running.

When did you first realize that you wanted to work in television?  

Junior year in high school. We had a TV studio at school, and I became hooked!! Before that I was thinking of being a teacher, or something with lawn care, since I use to mow lawns.

At the controls Will Adams, directing a newscast at NBC Bay Area

Where was your first job in TV? 

KTVU in Oakland. I interned there, and then I was hired as a TelePrompTer operator. 

Who has inspired you in your career?  

Willie McGrady, my boss at KNTV NBC Bay Area. He was a former director for NBC Sports and KGO-TV ABC7. 

Who has inspired you as a person?  

My parents had a huge impression on me. I get my hard work ethic from my Dad and my compassion from my Mom.

What's your favorite ice cream flavor? 

Chocolate Malted Crunch from Rite-Aid.

How do you spend your weekends? 

Usually lounging around the house or participating in running events.

Knowing you, and seeing your Facebook posts, you are a runner, no doubt about it. When did you take up running? 

I have been into running for three years now. I started out, just trying to run three miles for the Turkey Trot, and now have 10 marathons under my belt!!!

What do you love about running? 

I love the workout/sweating. I use to play sports all the time growing up, then stopped and just worked all the time.

How many miles a week do you run? 

On a good week, I run 30 to 40 miles. 

How many marathons have you raced in, and where? 

10 marathons. My first was in Toronto, Canada. Others have been in New York, Las Vegas, Folsom, Oakland (2), Fremont, Morgan Hill, Folsom and Portland, Oregon. 

What charitable organizations are nearest to your heart? 

I participate in a group on Facebook called "I Run 4 Michael". All of us runners work out for kids and their families who aren't physically able to. I also try to give back to our U.S. veterans via the Wounded Warrior Project or Taji 100 or Team RWB.

Perfect dinner?  

My wife's turkey meat loaf. Then the cold sandwiches the next day!!!

Any guilty pleasures?  

Ice cream, fast food, buttered popcorn

Besides running, do you play any sports? 

Not too much, but I still try to play catch with my son and play basketball when I can.

What do you do to stay healthy and in shape? 

Pretty much running and trying to watch what I eat.

Control room camaraderie With Ed Duran, Eva Sandoval and Aaron Zafra

Do you have any professional mentors? 

Again, my boss at KNTV, and my father-in-law. He is a mentor as well. 

What do you do to relax? 

Watch TV or go to the movies.

How many Emmys have you won through the years? 

I have been nominated for one so far.

As a director in the controlroom, what kind of hard work and concentration goes into your job? 

The hard work is coding the show beforehand and making sure the producer can get the effects they want. During the show you need to be on the lookout for bumps in the road, so to speak. It's like driving and constantly scanning the road.

Some say there is a big difference between the San Francisco Chronicle, the New York Times, and, say, USA Today. What's your favorite read? 

To be honest, I do not read newspapers. I am online, starting with Yahoo! and clicking on links' that friends post, like NBC Bay Area.

What's your favorite TV show? 

It was Sons of Anarchy, but that just ended, so Cutthroat Kitchen is taking its place.

See any good movies lately? 

Family man With wife, Katie, and their kids

Nothing new, but watched Shawshank again, lol.

Personality-wise, are you more of a goof than you are serious?! 

I always try to make folks laugh so I'm a goofball, like I was in high school.

If you could do it all over again, is there anything you would change about your life? 

I wish I would have paid attention more during my high school football days and to be more friendly to folks in high school.

Any words of wisdom for the next generation of television directors? Technology is taking over, so just be able to adapt as best as you can. 

Favorite music? What's in your iPod (if you have one) or collection of CDs? 

90s hip hop to country to rock...what a range. haha. 

Wine tasting, or a cold bottle of beer?  

I am not a big drinker but if I have to, a diet soda with Malibu rum.

Favorite spot in the Bay Area? 

My house in the South Bay.

Favorite restaurant in the Bay Area? 

Aquis, with my wife. And, Red Robin, with the whole family.

     Kevin Wing is a San Francisco-based producer for ABC News' "Good Morning America". He is also regional vice president, representing San Francisco, on the Board of Governors of the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, and serves as editor of "Off Camera". Tweet Kevin @KevinWingABC

How Much Sleep Do You Need?

      Depending on the breaking news of the day, it's not uncommon for producers, reporters and editors to be deprived of sleep. But when a few hours of shuteye become more routine than occasional, can it have a long-term effect on your health? Is there a magic number of hours you should sleep?

     According to studies on sleep and mortality, insufficient sleep can shorten your life. Sleeping plays an important role in:

• Healing and repairing blood vessels
• Maintaining a healthy balance of hormones that control your appetite
• Controlling blood glucose (sugar)
• Repairing cells and tissues, thus boosting bone/muscle mass
• Defending against foreign or harmful substances

     You can experience the following immediate and long-term health effects when you don't get enough sleep:

• Diminished cognitive function
• Increased levels of cortisol (stress hormone) which cause the following:

1. Increased appetite
2. Increased body weight
3. Increased belly fat
4. Increased risk for type 2 diabetes
5. Increased chronic low-level inflammation which leads to chronic disease (such as, coronary artery disease, dementia, and stroke)
6. Increased blood pressure

      If Seven is Good, Is Eight Better?   

      Many people believe that they need at least eight hours of sleep a night for good health. But a study* reveals that sleeping seven (7) hours per night had the best survival rates. In fact, mortality hazard significantly increased when sleeping:

• ≥8 hrs. (When sleeping >8.5 hrs., risk exceeded 15%.)
• ≤6 hrs. (When sleeping <4.5 hrs., risk exceeded 15%.)

      Causes of death associated with sleep duration include:

1. Heart disease
2. 'Other causes'
3. Cancer
4. Stroke (Deaths from stroke were highest in men and women who slept 8, 9, and ≥10 hrs.)
5. Breast cancer
6. Colon cancer

      Bottom line: Those who reported they slept 6.5 to 7.4 hours had a lower mortality rate than those with shorter or longer sleep.

*Six-year study by American Cancer Society; 1.1 million men/women ages 30-50 to >70 years. Published JAMA Psychiatry article: Mortality Associated With Sleep Duration and Insomnia, 2002.

      Karen Owoc is a former Governor of the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and is a clinical exercise physiologist at a San Francisco Bay Area hospital cardiac rehabilitation program. She produces/hosts The Health Reporter, a new half-hour health program plus a series of short-format healthy living TV segments. http://TheHealthReporter.tv 

       More than 60 TV veterans showed up for a mid-January get-together at San Francisco's Public House brew pub to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake and to again celebrate KGO-TV's honor of receiving the George Foster Peabody Award for its coverage of the 1989 tremor.

       NATAS Silver Circle member Harry Fuller, KGO-TV's news director at the time, came down from Oregon to lead the festivities. The party was organized by Paleo TV Reunion, an old-timers' group first organized by Fuller in the 1990s.

Remembering the old days KGO-TV ABC7's Carolyn Tyler, with former station news director, Harry Fuller

     In honor of the occasion, and of Fuller, the Paleos presented him with a donation of $2,500 to the Klamath Bird Observatory, a non-profit on whose board he serves as president. Fuller, author of Freeway Birding: From San Francisco to Seattle, also regaled the Paleos with tales of the Grey Owl, his latest study bird.

       And to commemorate his creation of "The Naturalists," KGO-TV's pioneering foray into environmental journalism, Joel Bartlett and Penelope Dunham presented Fuller with a painting by noted landscape artist Carol Peek, who was present at the event.

       Here are memories of the 1989 earthquake from those who attended the reunion:
       George Lang: "When the earthquake first hit I was in Marin. The first thing I did was run over to the shopping center, and Macy's was on fire. I was actually able to do a live broadcast where I was narrating what was going on. It was kinda cool for a camera guy. Just seeing how something as natural as an earthquake could virtually stop civilization as we knew it. I had never been exposed to anything like that before." 

       Paul Jeschke: "I was over in Marin... started heading back to the city, got up on the Waldo Grade, and it looked as if the whole city was on fire, because of the flames in the Marina. It was just incredible. And travelling across the Golden Gate Bridge to get back to work ... every single traffic light was out. And yet traffic was flowing smoothly through every intersection because there were volunteers out there directing traffic. It was amazing. The city came together in an emergency. The question was, we've just had an earthquake, should I go through the Broadway tunnel? 'What did you do?' I went through the tunnel!"  

       Carolyn Tyler: "My most vivid memory was being confused!! I had arrived in the Bay Area in Spring of '86 and of course knew it was earthquake country. When it hit, I was talking to a friend long distance and the phone went dead. I jumped up and looked out my window. No one seemed rattled. One woman was calmly walking with a bag of groceries, a guy was on his bike and cars were still driving by. So I thought 'maybe this isn't a big one... Maybe it just feels like that to a newbie.' But I turned on the radio and all hell was breaking loose!! I called the assignment desk and asked if I should come in and the answer, of course, was hell yes!! After that it was all rather surreal... anchoring out of the newsroom for days, my friend Laura Marquez' apartment destroyed, urgent calls from friends and family around the country, and working long hours." 

More than 60 Bay Area and northern California TV news colleagues gathered in January for the event.  Photographs by John Odell

       Don Sanchez: "What impressed me most is, we immediately responded. People came in who had days off. Everybody seemed to know, under Harry's direction, where to go, what to do. And I have never seen, I was never so proud, of such an amazing response to the event, and the work that obviously led to the award. It was just extraordinary." 

       Mike Clark: "I was with Paul Zaro and we were at Candlestick. We had done our live shots and were on the elevator to the press box to get our free hotdogs. We stepped out of the elevator and I hear this noise. I thought, people are stomping on the stands. But wait a minute, these stands are concrete, they don't make any noise. And I looked out and the light standards were swaying back and forth. And I said, "Oh my God, Paul, it's an earthquake!" And we turned around and started to get back on the elevator. Wait, wait, wait. Can't do that! So we ran all the way back to our truck, hearing as we go KCBS radio, 'The Bay Bridge collapsed, the Marina is on fire.' We grab our gear, get back on the field, and start doing live shots with Pete Wilson."            

      Sydnie Kohara: "My most vivid memory is sitting at the update desk and looking outside at the SF skyline and not seeing a single light. Not one. The entire city was dark. Also, the video of people helping firefighters pull fire hoses through the streets of the Marina District. It says so much about the people who live here. I still can't watch it without getting choked up. And of course being part of an amazing newsroom operation that night.  I had just been hired a few weeks before, didn't know everyone's name, but saw a team come together like a well-oiled machine, with Harry as the driver. It was the best of newsrooms in the worst possible scenario."

       In addition to this writer, other Silver Circle attendees that night included Bob Anderson, Joel Bartlett, John Catchings, Rigo Chacon, Janice Gin, Kate Kelly, Pam Moore, Fred Pardini, and Jan Yanehiro.

Paleo TV Reunion meets informally about three or four times a year. 

       If you would like to have your name added to the contact list, e-mail John Odell at [email protected]. All are welcome. You don't have to be old nor have worked at KGO!

       John Odell serves as Secretary of the Board of Governors of the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. He was on the KGO-TV news team which received the George Foster Peabody Award for coverage of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake. 

       The Foundation of The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences and its chapters will award more than $200,000 in scholarships this year to college-bound students aspiring to careers in television. 

       At the national level, the awards include a new $40,000 Trustees' Scholarship and two $10,000 scholarships honoring legendary broadcasters Mike Wallace and Jim McKay.  The funds are granted to outstanding high- school seniors who intend to pursue a career in any aspect of the television industry. 

       "There is no better way to honor the Emmy� Award-winning excellence of broadcasting luminaries past than to recognize and foster the excellence of television's future," said NATAS Foundation Vice President Adam Sharp, himself a 1996 scholarship winner. "The excellence displayed over the last few years has raised the standards of the scholarship program to incredible new heights."

       This is the third year of the Mike Wallace Memorial Scholarship, funded by a five-year grant from CBS News in honor of longtime correspondent Mike Wallace (1918-2012) and presented each year at the News & Documentary Emmy Awards. The Jim McKay Memorial Scholarship, now in its sixth year, honors sportscaster Jim McKay (1921-2008) and was established in 2009 by the HBO, CBS, NBC, ABC and FOX networks.  It is presented at the Sports Emmy Awards each May.

       The $40,000 Trustees' Scholarship was re-established by the NATAS Board of Trustees to recognize a standout student achievement in the electronic media arts of the last year.  The recipient will be selected from the applicants who distinguish themselves in the 2015 McKay/Wallace competition or who were honored with a chapter scholarship in 2014 and nominated for further consideration by their chapter.  The 19 regional NATAS chapters award thousands of dollars in scholarships annually.

      The online application for the McKay and Wallace scholarships is available at http://emmyonline.org/scholarship, with a deadline for submissions of 5 p.m. EST on Monday, March 16.  NATAS Trustees and officials will review applications and creative works, and the National Scholarship Committee will make its final selections in April.