Another feather in his cap was being a TOP 50 Year 12 Trailblazer 2021. He was also selected as a Finalist for the National 2020 Community Radio Awards for Outstanding Youth Contribution at his local radio station, SWR 99.9, which enjoys a huge fan following in Western Sydney.
For someone who started out in community radio at the tender age of 14, Dylan has come a long way in pursuing his dreams.
He started off volunteering in the Duke of Edinburgh scheme. It took off at Alive 90.5 FM, Baulkham Hills. “I would certainly say that this is where my passion for radio got sparked, so much so that I could not live without it,” says Dylan.
A person who he met during his stint as a Volunteer at the Community Radio inspired him. He mentored him, gave him valuable suggestions and prodded Dylan on. As on date, his mentor is an on-air announcer at a radio channel in Wollongong.
Three months of hard work at the radio station and he was given the role of Podcasts Manager at the station and eventually climbed up the ladder to become the Website Manager and Chairperson Digital Content (Relieving) at the age of 15.
To make things more interesting for him, he was offered a show of his own, to be produced and podcasted by himself. It was around the same time that Dylan and his IT teacher from Glenwood High School, embarked on the journey of starting a radio station within the school, Glenwood Radio which would be played across the PA system inside the school.
Starting off at high school
Dylan spent the latter part of his high school dividing time between school and his local media station.
He says it boosted student morale to start the radio station at school that time, where they could be radio presenters without stepping out of the school physically, giving up on weekends and paying high air fees.
“This is where I developed an interest in teaching and mentoring others. The knowledge I had acquired over my years volunteering at the community radio paid off,” says Dylan. By the end of the year, he had the school’s radio station running with professional broadcast software.
He invested heavily in volunteering at the existing Western Sydney community radio stations.
Popular radio channels such as 90.5 FM (which covers Parramatta, Cumberland and The Hills) and SWR 99.9 FM (which covers Blacktown, Fairfield and Cumberland) have seen an increased youth participation largely due to Dylan’s mentorship and strategic initiatives including new website design and staff communication platforms.
After a while, he moved to SWR 99.9 FM in Blacktown and it is here that his radio career seriously took off. He went on to become the Chairperson of Digital and Marketing, managing online content.
The next steps
For the next four years, Dylan is studying Cybersecurity and Media and Communications, at Macquarie University.
He has started working on a casual basis at the Australian Radio Network, a role which he aspires to take on full time in the long run. Stories around Technology, community and youth issues are his areas of interest.
Dylan has great support in his parents and his partner Rose Lewis, who herself works a lot in the community space. “She motivates and encourages me a lot,” says Dylan. Significantly, Rose was the runner-up at the Zest Awards.
