WGRE up for Woodie Award

Thursday, October 8, 2009

GREENCASTLE -- DePauw University's student run radio station WGRE has made it through the first rounds of the "Woodie" award presented by MTV's 24-hour college network mtvU.

The radio station is in the running to be named the best in the country. It is in the top 25 university-run stations in the country, and voting is underway to determine which of those 25 is number one. WGRE was a finalist in last year's inaugural competition.

College students vote online for the Woodie Awards. The top five finalists will be unveiled on Oct. 26, with the overall winner being named on Nov. 18.

Indiana University and Ball State University stations are also in the top 25. Other schools include Boston University, Universities of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana and Iowa, as well as Penn State, Rutgers, Vanderbilt, Florida State and others.

To vote for WGRE, go to www.ratemyprofessors.com and follow the link for 2009 Woodie Awards.

WGRE was one of America's first non-commercial, educational stations. It signed on the air on April 28, 1949. It has been broadcasting for more than six decades.

Since 1991, WGRE has been located in the Pulliam Center for Contemporary Media. Managed and run by a 15-member student board and with over 200 DePauw students working for it, the station operates 24 hours a day at 800 watts.

The station covers Tiger athletics, trains deejays at all skill levels, partners with the community in various giveback opportunities and has introduced students to breakout artists including Lupe Fiasco, the Raconteurs, Modest Mouse and Wilco.

In this file photo, deejays Brooke Hollingsworth and Ashley Fehr man the radio booth at WGRE during the spring semester. More than 200 DePauw help make WGRE a success.

Over the past 15 years, WGRE has received more than 100 awards for news, sports, public service and other activities from organizations such as the Indiana Associated Press Broadcasters, Indiana Press Club and Sigma Delta Chi.

The station has been a finalist three times for the National Association of Broadcasters' highest honor -- the Crystal Award, which recognizes service to community. WGRE is the only non-commercial station to have been so recognized.

Additionally, the Princeton Review has recognized the station as one of the top six college radio stations in the nation each of the last six years and a number one ranking in 2000.

WGRE is 91.5 FM on the radio dial. It can also be accessed at www.wgre.org

Call them at 658-4641 or send an Instant Message to WGREREQUEST on AOL Instant Messenger with song requests.

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