Delta State Radio (WDSW-LP 88.1 FM), a new low-power FM station broadcasting from the campus of Delta State University, launched Friday with the goal of providing community-targeted radio programming.
Delta State President William N. LaForge said the university is grateful for all of the private donors and the many donations of time and resources that have enabled the station to begin broadcasting.
“The Delta State University Foundation, along with friends and supporters, helped us achieve this goal by providing in-kind and private dollar contributions,” he said. “It’s all privately funded, and we hope to continue that going forward.”
As the university continues to build its reputation nationally through quality academic programs in music and culture, the station offers unique opportunities for Delta State students and the surrounding community, LaForge added.
“The radio station will give us a little pizzazz as a university and a community,” he said. “We have new opportunities to keep our constituencies apprised of events and activities. It will also give some of our students a chance to participate in the broadcast end of it. This will certainly be a nice addition to Delta State’s focus on music and culture.”
This initial launch is the result of years of planning and commitment from numerous people within the Delta State family.
Soon after becoming President, LaForge voiced his desire for a campus radio station to build and share the unique culture and diversity found at Delta State and in the Mississippi Delta as a whole, said Dr. Michelle Roberts, Chief of Staff and Vice President for University Relations.
“However, the bulk of the work has taken place in the last few months,” she added. “Delta State has many wonderful people who work tirelessly to ensure its success, and those who have been involved in getting this station up and running in such a short amount of time are to be commended. I offer special thanks to the staff in Communications and Marketing — led by Director Jennifer Farish and assisted by April Mondy and Leigh Emerson — who have coordinated this effort and worked around the clock to launch the station by Homecoming weekend, as well as Tricia Walker and her advisory committee who have been invaluable resources in this new adventure.”
Walker, executive director of the Delta Music Institute Entertainment Industry program at Delta State, has been one of the primary champions behind the station’s creation and said she has always been a fan of college/community radio and the eclectic mix of programming it offers.
In first researching the possibility of getting a station at Delta State nearly a decade ago, she and others on the Delta State staff found that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) does not open up frequencies very often, and when they do, the window of time to apply for a radio license is often pretty small.
So, in 2013 when the FCC announced a window of time that applications for an LPFM license would be accepted, everyone knew it was time to jump into action.
“A group of campus/community radio fans convened to discuss the possibilities,” Walker said. “In that early group were myself, Don Allan Mitchell, Karen Bell, Will Jacks, Michelle Johansen, and the late Dorothy Shawhan. Others on campus with radio ‘connections’ included Pat Webster, Matt Jones, and former Delta State professor Ron Douglas.”
The application for an LPFM construction permit was submitted to the FCC and was awarded to Delta State on January 27, 2014. Once the construction permit was issued, the station had to be on the air within 18 months or the construction permit would expire.
It was essential to enlist the help of some generous donors to meet the deadline. Research was completed for available call letters, and in the summer of 2015, the station was born through the generous donation of equipment by Delta State alumnus J. Boyd Ingram and radio station owner Larry Fuss, the support of the DSU Foundation, and the hard work of Ed Czelada and the Elijah Mondy family. Thanks to their time and support, the FCC granted the license to Delta State on July 27, 2015.
Walker said the initial launch is just a beginning point for the station, which aims to greatly expand its local programs and community involvement. Starting with a mix of music from genres including blues, classic rock and pop, the station will seek to develop a broad mix of community-oriented programs created and supported by volunteers both from the Delta State campus and the community.
“I believe we will begin to develop a great group of programmers who will put together some really interesting, relevant and entertaining programming for the campus and surrounding community,” she said. “And the original programming will be something you won’t find on other stations.”
The involvement of students and community volunteers will be essential in order for the station to achieve its mission “to engage in and celebrate the diversity of Cleveland and Delta State University through alternative, non-commercial, community-targeted radio programming and to offer broadcast learning opportunities for community members and the Delta State family,” according to the station’s website.
“We need students and citizens who enjoy being part of building something from the ground up to sign up as volunteers and programmers,” Walker said. “This is not the type of station where you have to have a particular type of ‘radio sounding’ voice. We are looking for dedicated folks who have a passion for the ‘theatre of the mind’ that is radio.”
People of all ages and backgrounds are needed for the station grow and expand in the year to come, she added.
“I really hope the campus and community will take ownership of the station in the sense of making it their own through programs that address issues important to the community as well as unique music programs,” she explained. “Civic issues, school issues, celebrations, local news … the station should be a voice for all of the community.”
For more information on Delta State Radio or to sign up as a volunteer, visit www.deltastateradio.com. The station is seeking both volunteers and donations through memberships and time. Applications are available through the station website, and anyone around the world will be able to listen to the station through a live streaming link to be available on the website by Saturday (Nov. 7).
Questions and feedback on the station should be directed to the Office of Communications and Marketing at commark@deltastate.edu.
