WNHU Celebrates 50^th Anniversary In-Person and On-Air

JJ Dionisio ’25 recently sat at the microphone at WNHU, preparing to go on-air. This was no ordinary broadcast, though. Members of the University community – including alumni who helped establish the University’s award-winning radio station 50 years earlier – surrounded him. There was a feeling of excitement – anticipation, even – as Dionisio prepared to officially kick off WNHU’s 50^th anniversary celebration at the station and across the airwaves.

Program director for WNHU, Dionisio led the countdown as Chargers sipped champagne. There were 50 years of the student-run station’s history to celebrate as part of this milestone, as well as the station’s future.

“It was cool to meet people who did my job in the past,” said Dionisio, a music and sound recording major. “I feel it’s an honor to do my job, and meeting them reinforced that perspective. Seeing those with this same passion that exists in me was meaningful, and I didn’t know there were so many who also had it. This is very special to me and very emotional. It made me feel that I’m doing the right thing.”

When Dionisio helped officially mark the 50^th anniversary of the launch of WNHU, he turned the microphone over to Pete Sotere ’74, who greeted listeners as his fellow Chargers cheered. A founding member of WNHU, Sotere was second person to broadcast on-air.

“It’s great that it’s still here after 50 years and still on-air,” said Sotere, who is among the station’s community hosts, “Celebrating over 50 years of Heavy Metal and Hard Rock,” which airs every Monday night. “It was an honor to be here, and I hope to be here in spirit for the 100^th anniversary celebration. I hope all the enthusiasm here today is still here then. This is fantastic.”

‘A great time to...be a content creator’

The celebration included a wide array of alumni who have been involved with the station, as well as current students. It lasted the entire weekend of the anniversary, bringing together Chargers past and present for campus tours and a reception. It also included a discussion about the station’s next 50 years led by professional in residence and WNHU general manager Bruce Barber.

Barber, a Connecticut radio veteran, discussed his interest in new technology, from advancements in digital technology to podcasting. He expressed his excitement about the richness of radio as a content platform, as well as the promise of what it can achieve. While part of the discussion focused on artificial intelligence, something Barber called a “game changer,” he was confident there will remain an important place for radio.

“AI is doing amazing things, but it isn’t humanity – and that exists right here in radio,” he said. “It’s a great time to be alive and to be a content creator. I hope this celebration of how far we’ve come will continue for the next year. I think we need to take what we learned and discussed, let it marinate, and keep it alive. That’s our goal.”

‘It’s like I’m 19 again’

Jess Finn ’24, WNHU’s station manager, joined Barber in the discussion. She’d been looking forward to the celebration, and she says she was “honored” to be a part of it.

“Seeing the passion that alumni put in, something I could still feel among them, I realize how important it is to honor the past and everything they did,” said Finn a communication major. “I hope this will inspire students. I want to be sure we all understand the work the station’s founders put in. Even though I hadn’t met them before, we all still felt like family.”

Those alumni who took part in the celebration shared their own experiences at the station, including what it meant to them to be a part of WNHU and how their involvement prepared them for their careers. Don Fertman ’76, who was among the station’s original founders, says he was thrilled to return to his alma mater to celebrate all the station has achieved since his time as a member of the station’s student crewmembers.

“Being here 50 years after we went on air, it’s like we never left,” he said. “It’s like I’m 19 again. I’m so confident that with the station’s current leadership, that original spirit, the culture of radio, and the community of listeners are all being carried forward based on what we did 50 years ago. They’ve made it even better with the technology of today.”

‘I can’t wait to be here for the 100^th anniversary celebration’

Current students also reflected on their own exciting and memorable experiences at the station. For Logan Dumas ’24, ’25 MBA, co-hosting a weekly variety show called “The Kitchen Sink” with Dionisio has been particularly enjoyable. The show has enabled them to share their music tastes – Dumas has highlighted jazz, and Dionisio has covered electronic dance music – as well as music from TV shows.

Dumas was excited to be a part of the 50^th anniversary celebration that helped him feel connected with the station’s past and present, and inspired him to contemplate its future.

“Being part of the anniversary celebration gives me even more respect for what the station does,” said Dumas, a music and sound recording major. “Everyone talked about the vibe, and it shows when I see those who have built the station. It gave me even more respect for the past and for the future. I can’t wait to be here for the 100^th anniversary celebration when I’m in my 70s.”