After winning Station of the Year from the International Student Broadcasting Championship back in January, WJCU 88.7 FM was given both local and international recognition for this accomplishment on April 14.
ISBC founders Annwen Burrows, Phil Vinciullo and Marcel Marais travelled from Australia to the campus of JCU to formally present the award to the staff of WJCU. WJCU General Manager Jasen Sokol praised their “really good perspective on what is good in college media” and the insights they provided to students during their visit.
More locally, the work of WJCU was recognized by University Heights Mayor Michael Dylan Brennan, who proclaimed April 14, 2025 as WJCU Station of the Year Day in University Heights. This designation commemorated the work of the students and staff at the radio station, in the ISBC awards and in their daily commitment to excellence.
WJCU DJ Justin Funkhouser was “surprised to see all the commotion” at first, but was happy to see that “so many students and officials from ISBC, JCU and even the mayor had all joined in on celebrating this momentous occasion.”
Sokol was proud of this recognition, calling it “a testament to the work that the students have done— they’re the ones that do the hard work.” Though he is grateful for all the awards given to individual students, he emphasized that an award for overall excellence means that the work of the station as a whole “is not going unnoticed.”
