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High school station

R

Radio-Bored-Op

My high school alum does not have a station.
is it possible for me to have them serve as the non profit outlet so I can own my own station ?
or would ownership be "property" of the school ? and does it matter if the school is private as in tution is required to attend
 
If you are thinking either LPFM or full-service noncommercial (which is the scope of this forum), those ships have already sailed and may not return to port for quite a few more years, if ever in my lifetime.
 
I suppose a school could go the Part 15 AM/internet radio station route. Something like this can be built anytime, no FCC needed. There may also be a distressed AM station that the owner might consider selling for the cost of what it would take to start an LPFM station. This a better alternative to the station owner turning the license back in to the FCC.
 
Radio-Bored-Op said:
My high school alum does not have a station.
is it possible for me to have them serve as the non profit outlet so I can own my own station ?
or would ownership be "property" of the school ? and does it matter if the school is private as in tution is required to attend
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While the others are correct, I'll try to answer directly:

1. No, the license for an NCE or LPFM must be held by the non-commercial entity. The school could hire you to manage the station, but you as an individual could not own it.

2. There is no prohibition on private schools being FCC licensees, although I can't think of any private K-12 schools who are. Plenty of private college though.

The high school radio station is an anachronism of 40 years ago.
 
PTBoardOp93 said:
While the others are correct, I'll try to answer directly:

1. No, the license for an NCE or LPFM must be held by the non-commercial entity. The school could hire you to manage the station, but you as an individual could not own it.

2. There is no prohibition on private schools being FCC licensees, although I can't think of any private K-12 schools who are. Plenty of private college though.

The high school radio station is an anachronism of 40 years ago.
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You could also form a nonprofit and then have it own a station
 
Let me try to break this down differently.

First, there is currently no avenue right now to start a new licensed station, either full-power or low-power. New stations are only available during designated filing windows which take place approximately once every 10 years. If there was a filing window, the station's location (and if full-service, power, antenna type/directionality/etc.) must meet specific spacing and/or other protections in accordance with the FCC rules.

Now, if you are wishing to acquire an existing station, that can be done however if the station (transmitting antenna) needs to be moved to a different location, then it will require a granted construction permit and there are restrictions on how for and what channel can be used based on both availability of channels at the new location as well as specific restrictions on channels (as well as move distance).

Either way, the organization must be considered a noncommercial educational entity. This means:
(1) it can't be licensed to an individual, partnership or any kind of a for-profit organization.
(2) The licensee can be a school/educational institution, either public or private.
(3) If not licensed to a school, it has to be licensed to a state recognized nonprofit organization with an educational purpose. In the application for the new station (or assignment of the license), the organization will need to describe their educational objectives and how the radio station will be used to advance those objectives. (Private schools also have to demonstrate their incorporation status with a state, just like with non-school educational organizations.
(4) Remember, if an existing station changes hands to a different organization, the FCC must first consent to it first. This is known as an assignment of license.

The unlicensed Part 15 option for FM is extremely low power. Be advised there are many transmitters, especially sold by Chinese companies on Amazon and eBay that are illegal and cannot be used. Federal law (the PIRATE Act) calls for forfeitures/fines up to over $2 million for repeated operation. Part 15 AM does have a bit more flexibility, especially if the transmitter is on the campus of an educational institution.

Hopefully, this answers your questions.
 
Michi said:
Let me try to break this down differently.

First, there is currently no avenue right now to start a new licensed station, either full-power or low-power. New stations are only available during designated filing windows which take place approximately once every 10 years. If there was a filing window, the station's location (and if full-service, power, antenna type/directionality/etc.) must meet specific spacing and/or other protections in accordance with the FCC rules.

Now, if you are wishing to acquire an existing station, that can be done however if the station (transmitting antenna) needs to be moved to a different location, then it will require a granted construction permit and there are restrictions on how for and what channel can be used based on both availability of channels at the new location as well as specific restrictions on channels (as well as move distance).

Either way, the organization must be considered a noncommercial educational entity. This means:
(1) it can't be licensed to an individual, partnership or any kind of a for-profit organization.
(2) The licensee can be a school/educational institution, either public or private.
(3) If not licensed to a school, it has to be licensed to a state recognized nonprofit organization with an educational purpose. In the application for the new station (or assignment of the license), the organization will need to describe their educational objectives and how the radio station will be used to advance those objectives. (Private schools also have to demonstrate their incorporation status with a state, just like with non-school educational organizations.
(4) Remember, if an existing station changes hands to a different organization, the FCC must first consent to it first. This is known as an assignment of license.

The unlicensed Part 15 option for FM is extremely low power. Be advised there are many transmitters, especially sold by Chinese companies on Amazon and eBay that are illegal and cannot be used. Federal law (the PIRATE Act) calls for forfeitures/fines up to over $2 million for repeated operation. Part 15 AM does have a bit more flexibility, especially if the transmitter is on the campus of an educational institution.

Hopefully, this answers your questions.
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If you are on a campus there is also a service known as Carrier Current but I haven't read anything about that in years
 
Carrier current stations were AM, are long-gone, typically reached students in dorms. Typical audience size could be counted in single digits. We had one in Lander Hall, U of W off campus housing. RF was fed via the dryer AC connection in the laundry room.
 
I attempted to have my agency that I'm employed for 22 years ( non profit ) acquire an FM station for all abilities to have their own radio station_ as the company serves the adult population of developmental delays, however the CEO talked to me about taking on this task for a small handful of individuals served.

The answer keeps coming back to try buying a station no one wants any more
......
 
radiofan2023 said:
No high schooler in 2024 is going to know what AM radio is or care about being on it. Go online or you’re wasting your time, effort and money.
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I don't agree. An AM station would be available for listening with everyone in the community, not just for those who tune in on their computers, phones or tablets. Plus, students learn valuable engineering skills…skills that go beyond just being a board op and spinning music. I think there would be plenty of people in the community who would love to tune in to a football game or other sports activity from the local H.S. on their AM radios. The station might also attract volunteers who would want to help with programming or technical skills.
 
ZebraRadio said:
I don't agree. An AM station would be available for listening with everyone in the community, not just for those who tune in on their computers, phones or tablets. Plus, students learn valuable engineering skills…skills that go beyond just being a board op and spinning music. I think there would be plenty of people in the community who would love to tune in to a football game or other sports activity from the local H.S. on their AM radios. The station might also attract volunteers who would want to help with programming or technical skills.
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The economics are beyond brutal, though. AM stations are expensive to run, requiring significant parcels of land for towers and ground systems. The sort of AM stations that get tagged as "maybe this should be donated to a school" tend to be the ones that have been neglected the longest. When you start replacing obsolete transmitters, rusting towers and decaying ground systems, you're suddenly in the hole for hundreds of thousands of dollars, all for what are usually facilities that have been outgrown by their markets. These stations are near-death for a reason - nobody's listening.

Engineering AM radio isn't something a high school student can just jump in to doing. You need a good mentor, and where are those these days? The handful of engineers I work with who have significant AM experience are all in their 60s or older, are all way overworked and in demand for more hours than they have available, and most would like to retire soon.

Anyone who thinks "oh, it would be fun to get a school involved in radio" should start with a budgeting spreadsheet - and once you start in on that, 99 percent of the time you'll find it's more expense than it's worth, especially for schools that are almost universally in their own financial dire straits these days.

Having said that, I just helped a college near me save its FM license from expiring, and I was very happy to have been able to do so. In this case, there was a solid base of student volunteers, a very energetic and talented recent graduate as station manager, and an administration that had the ability to shell out five figures and counting to keep its station alive. That's the exception to the rule these days.
 
fybush said:
Anyone who thinks "oh, it would be fun to get a school involved in radio" should start with a budgeting spreadsheet - and once you start in on that, 99 percent of the time you'll find it's more expense than it's worth, especially for schools that are almost universally in their own financial dire straits these days.
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And keep in mind that schools get no credit with the state board of education for offering a broad slate of electives. A broadcasting elective won't improve students' SAT/ACT scores or truancy rates or proficiency in math or grammar.

Vocational training stopped being a priority in most K-12 schools many years ago. So I think you would find it quite difficult to convince a K-12 school to add a new vocational program, especially one that prepares students to work in an industry with only a handful of local jobs.
 
fybush said:
The economics are beyond brutal, though. AM stations are expensive to run, requiring significant parcels of land for towers and ground systems.
Click to expand...
I agree with Scott's comments here. If we are going to train our future broadcasters beyond the board, a (full-service) AM environment will reap the fewest rewards. Part 15 AM (intentional radiator) would be a better way to go when nothing else is out there.
 
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