When it comes to college radio stations, Lehigh’s award-winning freeform station is unique—not only in its variety of programming, but also because WLVR is one of the few college stations left in the United States where students have a hand in its management and operation. 

“Most college radio stations are run by outside entities, and many college radio stations have sold their licenses,” says A.J. Fritzinger, the station’s chief operator since 2001. “The lifeblood of this station is our students.”

WLVR broadcasts at 91.3 MHz FM 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The station, located on the top floor of Grace Hall, had much more on-campus exposure before the renovation that converted the Ulrich Student Center into the Caruso Wrestling Complex. Decreased foot traffic, says Fritzinger, has limited student awareness of and involvement with the station.

WLVR has a much larger presence in the wider Lehigh Valley community. The station reaches thousands of listeners each day and has been named “Best College and Community Radio Station” by the Lehigh Valley Music Awards eight times in the past decade. WLVR now hopes to expand its reach even further, both on and off campus.

In 2008, a Lehigh graduate and New Jersey resident anonymously donated $10,000 toward a new signal tower so he could tune in to WLVR from his home. After the University approved the signal expansion in 2010, WLVR held its first-ever on-air fundraising campaign, procuring an additional $17,000 from the community. Once installed atop a 20-foot tower on the roof of Iacocca Hall on Mountaintop Campus, WLVR’s new antenna will increase the station’s signal from 33 watts to 200 watts—enough to reach over 150,000 more households in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

The upgrade has seen its share of delays due to logistics and weather, but Fritzinger hopes to see its completion by end of the spring 2015 semester.

Closer to home, WLVR plans to get the Lehigh community more involved with the launch of a new show called “Prof Talk.” “Prof Talk” will begin this spring and will serve as an opportunity for Lehigh faculty members to discuss their research, relevant current events, and even their own musical interests. The station would also like to increase awareness on campus by bringing students from different clubs and organizations on-air.

“I hope that Lehigh’s radio station will represent the community in more than just music,” says Fritzinger.

Students involved with WLVR enjoy an incomparable experience that does not require a particular background or field of study—only a passion for music and a willingness to make a significant time commitment. Jason Levine ’16 and Julianne Kerwood ’17, who serve as the station’s public relations managers and host radio shows of their own, have both.

“It’s a completely rewarding experience. It looks good on a résumé. Most of all, it’s a really fun community,” says Levine, a mechanical engineering student who did audio-visual work in high school. “Besides WLVR, there’s never really an opportunity for me to express this side of my interests [outside of my major].”  

“This is a hobby,” says Kerwood, who studies bioengineering. “I think it’s taught me about the importance of diversifying yourself and becoming a fully rounded person, not just getting involved in one thing.”

Meanwhile, WLVR hopes its efforts to expand—in both its signal reach and on-campus outreach—will help bring its diverse programming to more listeners than ever before.

“WLVR is no longer just this little college radio station that sits in the corner of a building,” says Fritzinger. “It’s a growing station, and it has a lot of potential for even more growth.”

Story by Kelly Hochbein
Video by Stephanie Veto