Here's Why Hinsdale South Has No Radio Station: Official

Darien IL

06 December, 2021

1:35 PM

Description

DARIEN, IL — Hinsdale Central High School broadcasts on the school district's radio station, but Hinsdale South has no access to it. Some are questioning why that's the case. This is in light of a South student group's efforts to raise money to upgrade the school's old studio. In an email last week to radio station supporters, District 86 Superintendent Tammy Prentiss said the district-wide Radio Club is housed at Hinsdale Central, but is open to all the district's students. "We implemented this practice in 2019 based on low participation levels at South and the cost to repair or replace the school's equipment," Prentiss said in an email. Low interest is often the reason for the lack of offerings at South. Two decades ago, the two schools had similar enrollments, but Central's number now doubles South's. One way to equalize enrollments is to change the attendance boundary between the two schools. But such a move is fraught with political risk. That's because residents in the Central zone fear their property values would plunge if they shifted to South. Hinsdale, where Central is, is among the wealthiest towns in the United States. In her email, Prentiss said the new South group, the Recording and Broadcasting Club, is being treated like other student organizations. New clubs fund themselves, she said. The broadcasting club posted on the GoFundMe website to raise money and received a booster club grant, rather than relying on traditional fundraising methods such as candy and popcorn sales, Prentiss said. The group, she noted, is going beyond radio to include creating podcasts and learning about audio production and engineering. Central and South long shared the radio station, WHSD, with each school broadcasting at different times. It is licensed by the FCC. In a reply to Prentiss, Matt McCann, South's station director in the late 1970s who pursued a career in broadcasting, said the district was missing an opportunity with South's studio. "Creating podcasts, learning about audio production and engineering, giving musicians access to a recording studio, etc., isn't beyond a traditional radio station — it is part of traditional radio," McCann said in an email. "If WHSD were used and operated properly, there would be more interest and student participation. That requires leadership for the radio station and desire to operate as a radio station as so many other high school and college radio stations are operated." He said the district has no reason to deny South students access to WHSD. "Throughout the 70s and 80s, both campuses had studios and broadcast live. With technology, some broadcasts can be recorded and scheduled to air later," said McCann, now an insurance executive. "WHSD is being underused." The GoFundMe page has raised $4,645. The group said the money will pay to "build its podcasting studio."