Lake Land College (LLC) offers a variety of programs that give students real-world experiences along with great resume builders. The Radio/TV Broadcasting program is no exception as it will prepare students for careers in several positions within the Broadcasting field. Students who graduated in this program have the option to either go into the workforce with the degree or transfer to a 4-year university. 

LLC’s on-campus radio station: WLKL 89.9 FM The Max Alternative, has been in operation since 1975. Originally, the station broadcasted from the basement of the Learning Resource Center, LLC’s on-campus library. In the mid-90s, WLKL became an alternative rock station since no other stations were broadcasting that genre of music at that time so it would not compete with any other nearby radio stations. 

Since then, WLKL has moved to the Northwest Building. Not only does WLKL serve the campus but also serves a 25 to 30-mile listening radius to let the nearby community know about what’s happening on campus.

The station is staffed by students who are currently enrolled in Radio/TV Broadcasting courses. WLKL’s primary format is alternative rock, with 70’s music from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. during weekdays, 80’s music from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. during the evening rush throughout the week along with techno music on Saturday nights beginning at 11. Furthermore, WLKL would occasionally broadcast varsity high school football games starting at 7 p.m. on Friday nights in the fall and most of Lake Land’s athletic events during the regular season. Moreover, WLKL sets up live events regarding Student Activity Board (SAB) events at the Luther Student Center.

Greg Powers has been the instructor of all but two Radio/TV Broadcasting courses since 2006. However, he has been teaching on campus since 2001. In addition, Powers has been the Station Manager for WLKL during the current period, taking over from Ken Beno, who had served in the aforementioned capacities since 1993. 

Powers stated that he, along with his predecessor, Beno, “assigned board shifts to students who are currently enrolled in Radio/TV Broadcasting courses.” He then went on to state that, “ many students jumped in feet first and found their skill set, their comfort zone. Lake Land is one of the few colleges in the state and country where students can jump into the board shift within the first week of classes and start gaining that experience.”

Powers mentioned that “in years past, we [WLKL] covered Arcola and Sullivan-Okaw Valley high school football but won’t this year since not many students have signed up for the Fall Sportscasting course. We [WLKL] have to narrow how many games we [WLKL] have to cover. The goal of the station is to cover high school teams that are not covered by any nearby radio stations. We [WLKL] cover Mattoon’s girls’ and boys’ basketball.”

Finally, Powers exclaimed, “we [WLKL] are excited to be a part of the college community and invite everyone to tune in to the radio station.”