Haverford’s student-run radio station, WHRC, has a long and storied history. Radio broadcasting began at Haverford in 1923 via the popular Radio Club-run WHAV. That station became known as WHRC in the 1940s. The station first went off the air in 1994, due to carrier-current system failures, and has since experienced phases of love and neglect. WHRC was last active in 2015, after which it fell out of use once more. However, this semester, students are bringing college radio back to campus by reviving Haverford radio programming.
Sarah Mastrocola ‘23 and Natalie White ‘23 have taken up the responsibility as the station’s co-heads. They laid the groundwork last spring, with the help of Shayleah Jenkins ‘22 and Natalie Kauffman ‘22, for a public launch this fall. The club has received funding from the Student Arts Fund, which provides funding for artistic expression in all different media. Funding is available for any student looking to promote the arts and expression on Haverford’s campus.
“Our goal is to bring back the experience of college radio back to campus in a fun, collaborative, and streamlined way,” Mastrocola said. “We wanted to re-establish a club where students can share their music tastes and other creative interests with the community through radio.”
Beginning anew with each semester, all students on campus are eligible to participate in WHRC as a radio DJ or a podcast host. After gauging interest for the semester, each student or student pair pitches their show to the board, from which a weekly schedule is finalized. WHRC is also interested in maximizing audience participation, and will be looking to collaborate with other clubs and host events at VCAM.
WHRC is being broadcasted exclusively online, using the streaming platform radio.co. When student DJs aren’t conducting live shows, an automated playlist will be playing, so that there is always something playing on the station, 24/7.
“[We used] the spring semester to organize everything and teach ourselves the ins and outs of running the station,” Mastrocola said. Now, the station is beginning programming, broadcasting segments such as “Design: Fashion, Form, and Architecture,” “Soul Inventions Radio,” “Anatolian Hour,” and the co-head’s own show, “The 13th.” The full schedule for the fall 2022 semester is available on the WHRC Instagram page.
This isn’t WHRC’s first reappearance in recent memory, however. In spring 2021, Haverford College’s radio station was fictionalized for an appearance on the HBO crime drama Mare of Easttown. There, the radio station was named WWXU, and served as a performance venue for bands of students. The show took great care to recreate Haverford’s record archive and the live music lounge, as noted by Jennifer Waits, a former radio DJ and Music Director for WHRC in the 1980s.
This semester, WHRC is accepting applications for shows to be featured on their radio station, as well as board member applications. Interested students can attend club meetings, advertised via the WHRC Instagram page, contact the board members directly, or consult the club’s Linktree.
Follow WHRC on Instagram to stay up to date with the station’s programming, development, and meetings! Interested students can reach out to WHRC directly via email (whrc.radiostation@gmail.com). You can listen to WHRC here.
