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Tech campus radio station WTTU celebrates 50th anniversary

When 麻豆果冻传媒 started its first campus FM radio station, 88.5 FM WTTU, in 1972, then-president Everett Derryberry said, 鈥淚t marks a significant milestone in the expansion of 麻豆果冻传媒 and should be a great step toward improving communications not only within the academic community, but in the surrounding area as well.鈥

Student DJ at WTTU

When current Tech sophomore and music education major Hannah Koster walked into the station 鈥 now in its 50th year 鈥 she found not a lot seemed to have changed from its early days, for better or for worse.

鈥淭he poster boards were dingy and there were old fliers still up. When I pulled the papers off, you could actually see the words still on it because it had been there so long that the ink transferred,鈥 Koster said.

Despite what she saw as dated d茅cor and music, she decided to give working at the station a try. After going through training, Koster was given her own radio show called Rockin鈥 the Nest, where she played mainly rock music from the 70s and 80s 鈥 her favorite genre. She found that not only was she having fun creating her own show, but she was learning about audio engineering, something she could use in her music education major.

鈥淚 was a little interested in it before, but working with the radio station really boosted my interest,鈥 Koster said.

In no time at all, Koster was offered the position of program manager for WTTU and took the reins with enthusiasm.  She and her team started updating and refreshing the look of the radio station itself, which is located on the top floor of the Roaden University Center. They retired some of the lesser-known music in their library and started pulling in tunes more familiar to modern students.

The station currently has about 11 student and faculty DJs in its rotation. After they receive training, each DJ is allowed to design their own program, whether that be a talk show or just playing their favorite music.

鈥淭here鈥檚 one show called The Couch because the DJs sit on a couch in the studio with their friends. They pick a topic and just talk about it, and if it goes off on a tangent, well, that鈥檚 fine. It鈥檚 just them talking and having fun,鈥 Koster said. 鈥淚 really feel this sense of joy in the studio. I'm so happy when I sit in here and I can hear laughter coming from the booth. It鈥檚 just so heartwarming.鈥

There鈥檚 another program called Radio Roulette where the DJ picks a CD at random from the studio鈥檚 collection and plays songs from it, then discusses her opinions on what was played. Another program features students discussing the paranormal, and Tech English instructor Andy Smith hosts a Teacher on the Radio program on Saturdays.

Current WTTU DJs come from a variety of majors and most started with no experience with being on the air. They are responsible for picking a regular time and providing the content for their show. Koster says that so far, all the participants of the revitalized radio station have taken ownership of their work and treat it like a real job, even though they are volunteering their time.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been a great learning experience and something we can 100 percent put on a resume,鈥 Koster said. 鈥淲hen someone uses me as a job reference I can say, 鈥楽o-and-so was awesome. They always showed up on time for their show. They were responsible for themselves. They made sure that the booth was clean when they were done. They never said a cuss word on the air and got us in trouble,鈥欌 she laughed. 鈥淚t really is, whether they realize it or not, building them up in a different way.鈥

WTTU will celebrate its 50th anniversary with a reception from 4-6 p.m. Tuesday, April 12, in the University Center鈥檚 Tech Pride Room. The official Titans Podcast will also make an appearance from 3-4 p.m. to record a podcast at the station and hold a meet and greet.

For more information about the radio station, including how to stream it online or how to apply to be a DJ, visit /cis/communication/wttu/.

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