Having kicked off in March 2024 for Women's History Month, Radio World's "Women in Engineering" spotlight, written by Assistant Editor Elle Kehres, features women in broadcast engineering roles and other technical positions, highlighting their work and growing careers in a male-dominated field. This is an ongoing feature, as women's industry contributions extend far beyond the month of March.
Radio engineering has long been a family affair for Amanda Hopp, who began working alongside her father -- longtime Radio World contributor Cris Alexander -- as a part-time board op at 670 KLTT(AM) at age 16.
Today, Hopp is the chief engineer for Crawford Broadcasting, a family-owned media company based in Denver, Co. It's a role she started back in 2008, at the ripe age of 22, and has grown into ever since.
Overseeing four stations and seven signals in the Denver area, Hopp keeps busy, making sure operations at Crawford's Colorado stations KLTT(AM/FM), KLZ(AM/FM), KLDC(AM) and KLVZ(AM/FM) are running smoothly.
With her family ties in the engineering world, after her childhood fantasies of being a meteorologist or veterinarian subsided, there was little doubt that Hopp would follow in her dad's footsteps. (Alexander has been director of engineering for Crawford Broadcasting since 1984.)
Once Hopp graduated high school -- amidst getting her Associate of Arts at the Community College of Aurora -- she worked as a part-time engineer for Crawford's KLTT and KLZ, supporting the then chief engineer, Ed Dulaney, who passed away in September.
It was around that time when Crawford put Hopp through the Cleveland Institute of Electronics, where she completed its broadcast engineering course.
Not long after, when the chief engineer gave his notice, the reins were passed to Hopp.
"It's a lot of responsibility and it can be kind of scary at times," said Hopp. "But I love the hands-on work. It makes you care."
Said hands-on work at Crawford includes everything from facility upgrades and DIY projects to integrating new studio digs. Now, as 2024 comes to a close, Hopp has an eye to the future, preparing for Crawford's latest update.
"We're moving our automation system over to RCS' Zetta," she told Radio World. "We've been with NexGen since 2002, back before I started."
Crawford looks to complete the transition in the first quarter of 2025, which means Hopp is spending her free time getting certified. She recently completed the new RCS Academy "Zetta for Engineers" training course, in addition to completing the original Zetta Certification. She also holds CBRE certification and an Amateur Extra radio license.
While Hopp has worked on her fair share of legacy systems and "really old transmitters that I've heard 1,000 stories about," she prefers working on all-digital studio and transmitter facilities employing AoIP technology, especially if it means she can avoid trudging to transmitter sites during Colorado's colder, winter months.
"I like to be able to remote in," said Hopp. "There's a lot to be said for staying comfortable in a snowstorm."
[Related: Read Amanda's May 2024 interview about trends in codecs]
When she's not running around Crawford's office and studio space -- which boasts some pretty spectacular views on the 12th floor of a mixed-use building in Aurora, Co. -- you might find her hosting meetings for Chapter 48 of the Society of Broadcast Engineers a few levels down.
It's no coincidence that these SBE meetings are located in the same building as her office. Hopp is chairwoman of the Denver chapter, and is responsible for managing meetings, planning events and keeping the chapter's website and social media accounts up to date.
"It takes a lot to create a highly-engaged group," said Hopp. "I do a lot of the work, but I enjoy it. It has been fun getting the chapter to wake up again."
Out of the 69 members in Chapter 48, Hopp said she is one of just two woman engineers in attendance. Her counterpart is Michelle Grove, who has served as chief engineer at Bonneville International since 2022.
Along the same vein, Crawford has 13 full-time engineers that work alongside and under the guidance of Hopp; however, she's the only woman on the engineering team.
While it was a little unnerving for Hopp when she first accepted the chief engineering role in her early twenties, she said the team at Crawford has always been very welcoming.
"We're a very family-oriented company. And so it just makes it a lot easier," said Hopp. "Nobody is above anybody else."
Although, even with a strong support system, being a woman in a male-dominated workplace isn't without its share of misgivings ... especially if you're an introvert.
"In certain fields, and even just doing SBE stuff, for me it's intimidating," said Hopp.
Her advice for women in STEM careers?
"Be confident with yourself and who you are, and who cares whatever anybody else thinks? It's the way I've always been. I kind of do my own thing and if you don't like it, well, guess what? It doesn't hurt me any."
When it comes to her mentors, unsurprisingly, first and foremost is her dad.
"For me, one of the most rewarding things is just getting to work with my dad," said Hopp. "I know not everybody enjoys working with their parents, but I do."
Hopp also recognizes Stephen Poole and Todd Dixon -- both of whom taught her "how to break things and put them back together," and the programming and coding side of radio engineering.
"It's kind of what this job has begun," said Hopp, "a lot more IT."
In an ever-changing media landscape, with technology continuing to evolve at a rapid pace, Hopp said the value of mentorship cannot be overstated.
Mentorship is especially important as the broadcast industry faces a shortage of engineers, with more industry vets entering retirement.
When asked about how to get the word out about radio engineering -- well, that's just the million-dollar question isn't it?
Hopp said stations can't necessarily hire on experience alone. Engineering skills can be taught; however, passion and willingness to take on whatever jobs need doing are invaluable traits.
"At Crawford Broadcasting, it isn't just computers and equipment," said Hopp. "I get to go out and mow on a tractor all day. I maybe have to go use a plunger on the toilet. It could be anything. So you have to find the person who is okay with doing all of it."