Lizzie Baumgartner wants the Elmhurst University community to know that campus radio station WRSE is back. Three awards nominations from the Intercollegiate Broadcast Systems prove she’s right.
Baumgartner, WRSE-88.7 FM faculty advisor, and three students have been named prestigious IBS finalists for their work in the past year:
- Best Production Director: Andrew Blalock ’25
- Best Sports Talk Program: Burnsy & Big Chuck Sports Talk (Nathan Burns ’22 and Charlie Uczen ’24)
- Best Faculty Advisor: Lizzie Baumgartner
The IBS will announce the winners during a virtual ceremony on March 5.
Before Baumgartner arrived last summer, the station had a hodge-podge of programming. Baumgartner and a small group of students have worked hard to grow the station and build out a broadcast schedule. The nominations prove their efforts are paying off.
“Even if you don’t win, the fact you were nominated is amazing,” said Baumgartner, also an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Communication and Media. “They’ve only been at this three or four months.”
The nominations are a first for WRSE, which has produced Chicago radio legends including WBBM-AM 780’s Len Walter ’62 and WXRT-FM 93.1’s Terri Hemmert ’70.
Baumgartner has a motto for her students and WRSE: Dedication to the station. It’s a philosophy the staff of about 15 has rallied around.
“They want everyone to do well,” she said. “They want to better the station.”
Students can get involved at WRSE in two ways, as a class or a co-curricular activity. Baumgartner expects students to be able to commit to four hours at the station, either on air or behind the scenes.
You can listen to WRSE at 88.7 FM or stream it at wrse887fm.com.