Student-led radio programming getting a signal boost

Sadly, The Scratch 93.7 FM is being de-claw-missioned.

The student-led radio station that began with a meager quarter-watt signal broadcasting over the Jasper High School parking lot in 2014 and grew to 100 watts covering most of Jasper and even creeping into the outlying areas — on a good day, it could be heard in Huntingburg and Ferdinand — will be no more after next Monday.

But, on the bright side, students will now have 2,600 watts of broadcasting power with coverage across the entire county and further when they take over Jasper Public Radio’s station, 91.7 FM, next week. The station will have a new name and, when it launches, a new format.

Adding the extended coverage and renaming the radio serves an important purpose for the media program at Jasper High School, which also falls under the Patoka Valley Career and Technical Cooperative. “Now we have the opportunity to reach out a little better to area schools,” JHS Media Teacher Evan Elrod explained. “So, if a student from Southridge or Forest Park wants to come in and take the class, they can feel a little bit more part of the station because we will be more county-based rather than Jasper-based.”

He hopes this will entice students from other schools who may be interested in radio and broadcast media to enroll in his courses and get some experience on the air.

“I think exposing our students to a wider community and a wider listening base gives us more opportunity,” Elrod added. “And, if they want to call ballgames at their school, they can because we can reach them now.”

The Scratch was an excellent playground for students being introduced to broadcasting. They were given leeway to experiment with show formats featuring their favorite music within what was considered the alternative rock genre. But that is a broad genre, and the students pushed its limits.

Plus, when the students weren’t directing the musical selection on weekends and after hours, a few local musicians were brought in and given rein to create their own shows. So, you could tune into The Scratch and catch Rap, Heavy Metal, Hard Rock, Grunge or Bluegrass on any given day. That diversity and accessibility gave The Scratch a broad fanbase.

“I think people forget the power of radio because there are so many options out there,” Elrod said. “But people come back to radio because it’s easy, it’s free, and it’s effortless to just turn on the radio.”

In a world driven by algorithms and echo chambers, The Scratch exposed its audience and the students to a broad range of music. Elrod’s favorite moments occurred when a student reluctantly got on The Scratch and heard a genre of music they didn’t usually listen to. “They would have no interest in that genre — say, hip hop or pop or rap — and then they start working on The Scratch and realizing there are some really good songs on here,” he said.

Plus, the students learned important skills as they worked with local businesses to acquire underwriting, developed programming or even responded to their own mistakes while on live radio.

Along with the new station name and frequency, the format will change a bit. While The Scratch’s audience may not notice a significant change, listeners of WJPR may miss some of the classic hits they are used to hearing on 91.7 FM.

“I was listening to it yesterday, and it was Barry Manilow to Celine Dione,” Elrod laughed. “There is not a student in this county that is going to play that.”

The new station will be considered an Adult Album Alternative or Triple A format. This is a broad range of music, but students will operate on a different tier with programming and musical direction. It will be less playground and more professional, according to Elrod. More in line with local commercial stations like WITZ and WBDC in the operational aspect.

With the move to a Class A noncommercial license, the radio station is considered full power compared to the lower power FM license (LPFM) The Scratch carried. The LPFM license only allows for signals up to 100 watts. They are designed for small education stations like the JHS program.

The disadvantage of this license type is that larger stations broadcasting on the same frequency can overpower these smaller radio stations. It happened with 93.7 FM, and according to Elrod, they couldn’t do anything about it as this other station’s signal encroached on their coverage.

The new station won’t have the same issue as it has a different standing with the FCC and can file complaints if necessary to stop other stations from overpowering their signal.

Next week, The Scratch will go off the air permanently as Elrod prepares to launch 91.7 FM. The official start date is somewhat malleable at this point. He wanted to launch as soon as The Scratch stopped broadcasting, but the recent weather has made it challenging to climb radio towers.

He thinks the change may happen by the time school starts on August 10, but if not, he may launch on the anniversary of the first broadcast from the little studio in Jasper High School that went out across the city. On August 13, 2014, The Scratch went live with its 100 watts. Unfortunately, August 13 lands on a Saturday this year, so that plan may not work out.

As they say, stay tuned for updates on when students will begin using an antenna attached to the tower located next to the girl’s softball field to send a signal up to the WJPR radio station located in a cornfield near Dubois.

Elrod is going to miss The Scratch.

“We really struggled with leaving The Scratch. This was not an easy decision,” he said. “In my opinion, The Scratch is one of the coolest radio station names and concepts that I have ever been a part of.”

“But the new format and the new image is being done because we have a bigger mission,” Elrod added. “This is a really cool opportunity that I’m really excited for our students to get.”

Remember, your familiar local station, 93.7, will move to 91.7 on the FM dial after Monday next week. “3 to a 1 and you are done” is a slogan Elrod created to help people learn about the new frequency students will be broadcasting on.

The Greater Jasper Consolidated School Board approved purchasing the broadcasting equipment, station and antenna from Jasper Public Radio for $158,000 at the February board meeting. As part of the agreement, Jasper Public Radio turned over the license for WJPR.