How Bartlesville teacher's journey took him from the broadcasting field to the classroom

During his journey into the workforce, Danial Karnes didn’t foresee becoming a full-time school teacher in his master plan.

He loved the broadcasting field — both behind the mike, behind the scenes and even in front of the TV camera.

And, he enjoyed ample experience in all of those areas.

But, somehow, destiny patiently guided Karnes’ path — and honed his communication skills as an educator — to the classroom.

He’s now in his fourth year at Bartlesville High School teaching classes in business computers, as the broadcast media instructor and overseeing the compilation of the yearbook.

Karnes became fascinated as a youth in working in radio. He had taken his first broadcasting class while attending Claremore High School.

“I had a dream to be in radio and did news in radio,” Karnes said.

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That led to other related stops, including working for Channel 2 and Channel 8, before he branched out to become the spokesman for seven years for AAA Oklahoma.

Karnes invested about two decades in the media and public affairs areas; he didn’t begin his concentrated college studies — at Southern Nazarene University — until past his mid-20s.

Karnes brings both his practical and professional experience to his students as he labors to train the upcoming generation of media broadcast specialists.

To reiterate, Karnes never envisioned himself in this position.

“I never saw myself being in the classroom, per se,” he explained. “But, as I’ve thought back, In every job I had I was training people to do some things.”

Those endeavors in tutorship served him well when he decided on a career in formal education, in which he became the creator of the high school’s broadcasting media department.

One of the activities in which he takes special delight is the Friday morning reports, shown on YouTube, for Bartlesville High students and personnel.

The program features student anchors, who package their stories after they’ve gone out and shot them.

A more concise description by Karnes about the process he inculcates in his students — including some that are with him for the fourth year — is to start from the interview to the writing process to the script. The student has “to decide what the story’s going to be about and why this story is interesting to this audience,” Karnes explained.

Then there’s the technical training aspect of how to properly utilize the equipment.

Supervising the construction of the yearbook is a year-long process, Karnes said.

One of the changes in this regard in which he’s proud is to create a spring-generated yearbook — rather than the former practice of distributing yearbooks in the fall. His biggest concern is that students put in their orders as soon as possible so they might be able to get one.

“We hope this year they get the message to order the yearbook in time,” he said.

In his focus as a business computers instructor, Karnes focuses on Microsoft Office Products.

“The majority of companies will use some type of Word,” he said. “Google’s great, and it’s a free product, but it doesn’t have all the capabilities as Microsoft Office Products.

Between the hats he wears, “it is a busy week every week,” Karnes said.

This is his fifth year as a teacher, spending the first one at Okmulgee before coming to Bartlesville.

While at SNU, he received a degree in organizational leadership and a master of business administration (MBA). He also attended, prior to college, a technical school of broadcasting.

“When I came to Bartlesville, I was coming to look at a business position,” he said. “It had nothing to do with broadcasting.”

But, he became intrigued when he learned Bartlesville High intended to start a broadcasting program. He felt compelled to pass on his knowledge to students.

“It’s been a blessing to be part of it,” he said. “All of the students have responded well to it. They’ve enjoyed it. I have had a number of the same students all four years.”

He’s especially grateful for the grant provided by the Bartlesville Community Foundation, designated to purchase a jib crane and motorized head — expanding the depth of camera shots the students can take and enhancing their value in potential careers in broadcasting and film.

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Karnes also points to practical ways in which the broadcast department has served the school and community — the Friday video announcements, a band concert, and helping bring memorial services for Jim Hess and Jim Bohnsack to wider audiences. He’s proud of teaching his students the hands-on aspect of broadcasting and “how impactful the broadcast media can be.”

This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Bartlesville broadcast teacher followed circuitous course to classroom