News at 4Cs

4Cs Brings 90.7 WKKL Back On-Air with New Focus on Student Broadcasting Experiences

Cape Cod Community College’s student radio station, 90.7 WKKL, is on the air and ready to enter a new phase in its storied history.

Following an upgrade and investment in equipment and radio tower, 90.7 WKKL has returned to the airwaves with a renewed commitment to playing Classic Alternative music. The College has strategized new ways to revamp the station’s on-air product, student and alumni run programming, and provide a more robust broadcasting education to enrolled students.

Among the changes for the Spring 2021 semester are two fully online radio courses that start January 25, 2021, and are currently open for registration. Those courses are COM 113: Radio Broadcasting and COM 208: Broadcast Writing and Presentation. Both courses are fully online and are taught by 4Cs alumna and local radio personality, Lisa Zinsius (a.k.a. “Lisa Z.”).

“When WKKL lost its FM signal last year, we heard from many people in our community how critical it was to get back up and running,” said John Cox, President of Cape Cod Community College. “What we heard from folks, especially our many alumni who worked at WKKL while they were students, was how impactful the radio station has been in training and educating broadcasting and communication professionals throughout the region and beyond. The significant investment we’ve made in the station signals both our commitment to keeping WKKL as a part of our community and our dedication to giving our students the relevant experiences they’ll need to become the broadcasting professionals of tomorrow.”

The College’s plans for the next Academic year and beyond call for even more classes dedicated to a variety of different broadcasting mediums and expanded on-air opportunities for students and alumni. Those who enroll in dedicated radio classes will have opportunities to air programming on WKKL, as will students across the College in other areas like Communications, Health Sciences, and more.

“While WKKL’s signal was down, we took time to take a deeper look into the educational and professional needs of the communities we serve by talking with experts working in the broadcasting field,” said Arlene Rodriguez, Vice President of Academic and Student Affairs for Cape Cod Community College. “Thanks to their insight, we decided to revamp our classes and overall strategy as to what WKKL really means to our College and our community. This is a student-run, student-operated broadcasting experience, and we want to make sure that our focus remains on education. With new courses and new experiences that will focus on new media broadcasting opportunities like podcasting and digital production, we’re hopeful that student involvement will boom.”

For decades, 90.7 WKKL was dedicated to providing listeners with alternative music choices out of the Makkay Broadcasting Center on the 4Cs campus, living up to its moniker as “Cape Cod’s Classic Alternative.” A new automated music software brings that music back on the air, 24/7, to pair with student, alumni, and community based programming. The station is also live streaming at capecod.edu/wkkl.

“Our students have a lot to say, and we have the platform to let them say it,” Cox added. “Regardless of your career path moving forward, there’s inherent value to the experience you get from broadcasting on WKKL. Whether it’s honing your public speaking, getting more comfortable with technology, or generating content meant to inform the community about important services or news, we look at WKKL as a real growth opportunity for our College community.”

Enrollment is now open for Spring 2021 classes, including the two online radio courses that will provide live, on-air experience on 90.7 WKKL.