On Oct. 14, 1920, a group of Union students used some makeshift equipment housed
in a shed behind the electrical engineering lab to broadcast 27 minutes of music.
From that broadcast 75 years ago, widely considered the first scheduled radio broadcast
in the country, has grown WRUC, a 24 hour, seven day a week, non-commercial student-run
operation that features everything from jazz to sports to Spanish music and news.
On Saturday, Oct. 14, from a spacious state-of-the-art fourth-floor Reamer Campus
Center studio complete with a changer that holds 100 compact discs, the station will mark
its 75th birthday.
Senior Dan Petruzella, general manager, said one of the things he likes about being
involved in WRUC is doing something for the community. WRUC provides four hours of Spanish
programming every Saturday morning. The station also provides live coverage of all Union
football and hockey games. (Union College radio was the first known station to cover a
sporting event when it did play-by-play for a Union-Hobart football game on Nov. 13,
1920.) These services, says Petruzella, provide an important link to the community.
“We love bringing them in if we can,” he says.
Also on WRUC staff during the 75th birthday of the station are senior Matt MacInnis,
program manager; Rob Cohen, business manager; Phil Tavernier, technical manager; and Andy
Fradkin, promotions manager.