By Sophie Lange, Managing Editor
At the time of its first broadcast in 1949, the student-run radio at Gettysburg College was known as “WWGC The Voice of the Campus” and was located on the third floor of the “Science Hall,” which has since been demolished. Until 1975, WWGC was a closed-circuit AM radio station and only transmitted to dorm rooms and dining halls through the existing power lines. During this time, it was financed by the students’ chest and advised by members of the college faculty. Then, the Board of Trustees granted approval for the radio’s transition to a full-service FM radio station, and WWGC became WZBT 90.3 FM after receiving its first FCC license for educational broadcast. By 1991, the station moved to its current studio located in the basement of Plank Gym. Since 2008, WZBT has operated 24/7 thanks to an automation system that allows the continual broadcast of music, even without the presence of a live DJ in the station. Today, the station broadcasts on 91.1 FM from Gettysburg and on an online streaming platform at wzbt.org.
A view from within WZBT’s studio. (Photo Alice Van Etten/The Gettysburgian)
Currently, the station is run by two Co-General Managers: Dan Teodorescu ’27, who joined WZBT as a sophomore, and Charlotte Bruchey ’27, who joined at the beginning of her freshman year. Both Teodorescu and Bruchey became very involved with leadership opportunities very early in their time as DJs at WZBT.
Teodorescu became the News Director shortly after his first all-DJ meeting, which involved producing an hour-long talk show about local news each week, before becoming the General Manager this past fall. When asked about his experience in the station’s leadership, he said, “It has been a lot of fun getting to know my fellow DJs and being there for them when there are technical difficulties. Although DJing is usually done alone in the booth, Many DJs, especially recently, invite friends to sit in on their shows or even co-DJ. Despite radio typically being a solitary activity, we still form community and collaborate.”
Bruchey began assisting the Public Relations Director and the Music Director before becoming the Music Director herself in her second semester. She held that position until the spring of her sophomore year, when she began training to become the station’s General Manager.
“Leadership roles are so accessible in WZBT, and they offer such a wide range of training and skills. You can find a way to access anything you may be interested in, and I have appreciated the variety of positions I’ve interacted with here,” Bruchey stated about her experience.
WZBT has created a strong community both on- and off-campus. In addition to the many call-ins from campus and community members that the station receives during live DJ shows, the station has even added a show run by DJ Captain Midnight, a member of the local community, on Thursdays from 9 to 11 PM. Teodorescu described the show, known as “Land Beyond the Sun,” as “an entrancing ambient and drone music show.”
Any student or faculty member at Gettysburg, as well as local community members, can have shows on the station, strengthening the diversity of what is broadcast on WZBT.
Technology in the WZBT studio, located in the basement of Plank Gym. (Photo Alice Van Etten/The Gettysburgian)
“Student engagement really depends on the show and what the DJ wants that to look like,” Bruchey explained. Some DJs open their shows to their friends, and they can sit in while broadcasting. Other DJs, like me, send our streaming link to anyone and everyone, and encourage friends and family members from around the country to tune in… We do have some off-campus involvement, but it can be difficult to tell where exactly listeners are coming from unless they call in.”
Both Teodorescu and Bruchey run their own radio shows. Teodorescu runs “Good Vibrations with Dan” on Fridays from 6 to 8 PM, which explores a new theme every week.
“Having a show is a great way for me to relax at the end of each week and start my weekend. It has become a part of my routine, and it is great to have some time set aside each week to take my mind off my life and focus on DJing,” he said.
Additionally, he ran a weekly local news program, “The Gettysburg Update,” which was written, researched and broadcast entirely by Teodorescu. He credits his time as the News Director with helping him discover his passion for local politics. Since he began “The Gettysburg Update,” he has interviewed candidates running for the Gettysburg Borough Council and the Gettysburg Area School Board. Although the show is currently inactive, Teodorescu is hoping to conduct more interviews on the air in the future.
Bruchey’s show is called Common Condiment and runs on Thursdays from 6 to 7 PM. “I absolutely love it. It was definitely nerve-wracking at first, and I was nervous about messing things up, but it’s turned into a very therapeutic hour of my week,” she explained. “I look forward to making my theme for the week and crafting my playlist around that.”
This semester, Bruchey has expanded her programming to include more interviews and contextual information surrounding the music she selects for her shows. On March 19, she had the opportunity to interview the band Horseshoe on her show about their upcoming album release.
“It is exciting to engage with different aspects of the community and incorporate that into what I broadcast,” Bruchey said.
When asked what they want students to know about the station, Teodorescu and Bruchey both expressed that it is a welcoming community that gives its DJs a great deal of freedom in what they choose to broadcast.
While there are federal regulations and college policies that must be followed by all DJs on the station, Teodorescu explained that, “WZBT is a place on campus for free student expression. In addition to doing a music show, you may also do talk shows on the radio about a subject of your choice. During your music show, you are also free to talk about what you like during air breaks. No matter your music taste, interests, or opinions, your voice has a home at WZBT Gettysburg.”
Bruchey encouraged students with any interest in the radio to participate: “It’s so easy to get involved, and it’s a very low time commitment! WZBT welcomes anyone and everyone who is looking to participate, and there is always a home for you here. We stream all kinds of music, and each DJ tailors their show to their interests, making our programming unique each week. We have such an awesome community of DJs who come from all over campus, and we always have more space!”
New DJs are typically added at the beginning of every semester, and interested students should contact WZBT’s executive board at wzbt_exec@gettysburg.edu for more information on how to join.
This article originally appeared on pages 10-11 of the March 2026 edition of The Gettysburgian magazine.
April 15, 2026
I was a DJ and also Copy Director at WWGC from 1967-1970. I worked in radio for 8 years after I graduated. I started part-time at what is now WARM-FM in York when I was a student, and then full-time after graduation. I also worked at radio stations on Long Island, and in New York City. Those college radio days were lots of fun! We were on the second floor of the CUB, but since we had no air conditioning and there was a lot of equipment in the studio, it could get hot, so you would leave the door open! Our format was mostly Top 40, which was the predominate one for AM stations at the time along with broadcasting college sports. FM was just starting to grow in popularity, with superior sound and stereo, although AM stations can be heard at much greater distances. Our DJ’s had freedom to play the music of their choice within the format. We had hourly newscasts, using a UPI teletype machine, and we also sold commercials which we produced for local Gettysburg businesses. I went to a College Radio Convention one year in Washington, DC, and learned that, compared to other colleges, we were pretty free to do whatever we wanted on the air. Lots of other schools had restrictions. In 1978, I left radio and went to an airline job, switching from “On The Air” to “In The Air.”