Participants in IU Amateur Radio Club value experience

There is a club on IU's campus that allows students to talk to anyone in the world -- for free. The IU Amateur Radio Club has been around for more than 25 years, and its members include students, Bloomington residents, faculty and staff. \n"Amateur radio is a lot of fun, and it's a hobby that people can do," senior Mark Hermsdorfer said. "We help to direct communication during an emergency. You've got to have fun with it, but know (how to) handle yourself when there is an actual emergency."\nTo be able to talk and signal on amateur radio, you must take a test to be licensed. The test consists of multiple choice questions and a basic understanding of etiquette when operating over the airways. There are also three levels at which you can operate -- the higher the level, the more places you can contact. The Tech level is the most basic; the middle level is General; and the highest level is called Extra.\nJunior A.J. Ragusa was rooming with Hermsdorfer during their freshman year when they both joined and got their amateur radio licenses. Now both students have Tech positions.\n"(Hermsdorfer) and I have known each other for two years, and we were friends before we joined. I got into amateur radio when my friend from home, their dad was into amateur radio," Ragusa said.\nRagusa also described several of the advantages of being a part of this particular club.\n"I can spend as much or as little time as I want to. Sometimes I am really busy and other times I don't have as much going on, so it's not as demanding as other things on campus are," he said. "There is also a wealth of knowledge from participating in amateur radio, as well. I get to talk to people that I wouldn't normally get a chance to talk with, so that's a plus."\nThe radios can be built and operated from just about anywhere.\nSenior Bryan Jaffe, president of the Amateur Radio club, said he operates a radio from his car.\n"You can also build your own equipment and operate from anywhere: I have one set up in my truck."\nThe club also has drawn members that are not the typical student with a computer science major.\nPeggy Kelley is a senior elementary education major who joined to help teach her future students about geography and science.\n"I'm an education major, so I think this will help when I am teaching science to my kids," Kelley said. "We will be able to talk on the radio, and there are so many projects that I will be able to do. For example, we could communicate with space stations and talk to other schools in other areas."\nKelley is not yet licensed to talk on the radio but plans to receive her license in October.\nThe Amateur Radio Club participated in a contest Sunday to see how many other stations they could contact throughout the day. The club was able to contact 103 stations, and a majority of those stations were located on the West Coast.\nJaffe said this was the first year for the contest and the club already has plans for upcoming contests.\n"We got through to the West Coast really easily," Jaffe said. "We also talked to some IU alumni that just happened to be on the air. I hope to participate in contests in the fall where we contact worldwide stations."\nKelley said the biggest reward of being a part of the club is being able to talk to others in different parts of the county.\n"It's fun to actually talk to someone and not be remotely in the area," she said. "It's really open ended."\n-- Contact senior writer Lindsay Jancek at lmjancek@indiana.edu.