CLC student DJs getting FM experience on WRLR

For 18 daytime hours a week, 23 student DJs from the College of Lake County's Lancer Radio are broadcasting live on Round Lake area's public radio station, WRLR, 98.3.

The new partnership between the stations began Sept. 22 and is the latest effort to revitalize the CLC radio station, which first took to the airwaves in 1979.

Under the leadership of human services faculty member Mick Cullen, who serves as WRLR's station music director and Lancer radio advisor, the campus station has undergone major changes in the last year. New equipment has been purchased and Lancer radio broadcasts online 24/7 and live Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. The partnership with WRLR brings the station's programming to FM for the first time.

"From 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. on Tuesday through Thursday, you can tune into 98.3 FM and hear Lancer Radio DJs hosting their shows live from our studio in the C Wing on an FM signal that covers most of Lake County, as well as parts of McHenry County and southeast Wisconsin," Cullen said. "This is a great opportunity for the station to have a broader base and let students' music and their talents be heard so they can be part of the public face of CLC. Having our DJs broadcast for WRLR during the day allows for more local content. Because the station is a nonprofit organization, it wanted a community focus."

Lancer Radio can be heard online at http://tunein.com/radio/Lancer-Radio-s232608/ or via the TuneIn app on any smart device.

Lancer DJs have a variety of academic interests, including culinary arts, elementary education, nursing, English, journalism and music, according to Cullen. "They learn so many great skills in radio such as public speaking, thinking 'on the fly,' working with radio technology and working as a team."

"It's fun," said mid-day DJ Oguzhan Ucak after cueing up tunes from Jefferson Airplane and Elton John. The 20-year-old student, who came to the U.S. from in Turkey at age 3, has taken a wide variety of CLC classes. He is currently in the Massage Therapy program at the Southlake Campus in Vernon Hills and will finish in spring 2016.

"I'm an improviser. I went to the Second City improv program and attended their comedy writing program. So I have no qualms about talking in front of people. I am always willing to try something new to see what I have a capacity for. I hope to get back into improv, but I'm happy to do massage therapy too."

WRLR President Bish Krywko said an educational component was always one of the goals for the Round Lake station and added that the partnership with CLC not only helps meet that goal, but helps students as well.

"WRLR is an excellent vehicle for local talent, and with the new partnership with CLC, not only do we get to showcase new local talent, but we're also able to provide those students with access to the airwaves they wouldn't normally have," Krywko said. "It's another exciting way for WRLR to continue its mission."