Note: Listeners can tune into WXYC programming at 89.3 FM in the Chapel Hill area, by downloading the station’s iTunes app, or by livestreaming from wxyc.org.
Since launching in 1977 to Joni Mitchell’s “You Turn Me On I’m a Radio”, through winter storms and hurricanes, UNC’s student-run radio station WXYC has provided a steady soundtrack to life at UNC and around Chapel Hill.
These days are no different.
Amid the coronavirus outbreak and social distancing measures that keep people physically separated, listeners can still tune in to WXYC and connect to the music they love as the station continues to provide its all-day broadcast.
“It’s been amazing,” said station manager Elinor Walker, a senior Women’s Studies and History double major. “Our team has really stepped up with the skills they have to offer. Our station engineer and others have really figured it out. Everybody has been willing to devote any skills or time they have to making this work.”
As it became clear that access to their broadcasting studio in the Carolina Union could be limited by campus closures, WXYC leadership began to create a plan to stay on air. As the holder of an FCC broadcasting license, the station is required to document periods that they are not broadcasting. Going dark risks their license, and though the government may relax standards during the pandemic, WXYC didn’t want to take that chance.
Former station manager and current WXYC board member David Van Dokkum connected a remote server-based stream to hardware at the station. A playlist of the station’s music was then able to be disseminated to its radio and internet broadcasts.
For now, the station plays music from the remote server, and DJ’s can pre-record and upload programming as well.
“We’re also experimenting with how to do live shows,” van Dokkum said. “This would allow DJ’s to do shows from their own computers and do a show while we’re in exile. Certainly, we’re most excited about that, and are working on the mechanics of it.”
Beyond fulfilling FCC requirements, both Walker and van Dokkum agreed that keeping the station on-air provided an important community service
“We’re a radio station with a pretty big listener base, so I feel a sense of obligation to continue broadcasting not just to provide emergency information but also to give people some entertainment or something to do,” Walker said. “It’s important to maintain that right now.”
Van Dokkum, who even had a listener contact him to make sure everyone who worked at the station was okay, said that the WXYC community includes students and listeners, alumni who still feel closely connected to the station, and the team of DJ’s who love sharing music.
“I think we’re all excited to just keep doing radio,” he said. “There’s great potential in these times where people feel stuck at home to be able hear others and listen to voices from the community and know there is a connection there.”
Looking to build your leadership skills while you're away from campus? The Carolina Union's office of Student Life & Leadership will be providing regular leadership content and programs through the spring semester. If you need new material to stream, they've got something for you! If you want a workshop series that you can do with roommates or friends via Zoom, you've come to the right place!
“Heel Talks” is a podcast aimed to capture what being a leader means in today’s world. Hosts Bria Clyburn (Student Leadership Coordinator) and Anthony Wright (Leadership Development Program Coordinator) tackle leadership conversations with students, faculty, and staff from all walks of UNC life. Heel Talks is available on Spotify, iTunes, Google Podcast, and 4 other major podcast streaming sites! Like, comment, subscribe, and check us out!
SLL is also proud to present the LEAD DIY (Do It Yourself) Kits. Leadership development doesn’t have to look like an in person workshop or a facilitated conversation. Leadership development can also be done from the comfort of your home over video chat with your friends and family! The LEAD DIY kits give you the necessary tools to dive into leadership topics in a fun and engaging fashion. Workshops will be posted every Monday between March 30 2020 and the end of the semester! Due to these socially distant times, the LEAD DIY activities still count towards the completion of the overall LEAD Challenge (complete a minimum of 6 workshops and receive a certificate of completion and LEAD Lapel Pin). Lastly, the workshops are all designed to be done with others, so please connect with your family, your roommates, or whoever else through in person or virtual means and have some fun together!
Learn more and download the first LEAD DIY workshop at go.unc.edu/LEAD-DIY
The Carolina Union is launching a new weekly blog, Carolina from Home, written by student communications assistant Meg O'Shaughnessy. Meg, a senior from Hillsborough, NC, is sharing her thoughts and musings as she wraps up her senior year at her family's home.
Meg's first entry discusses missing friends and Franklin Street, hanging out with her family cat, and a miracle on Zoom.
Visit go.unc.edu/CarolinaFromHome to catch all of Meg's writing!
Carolina students facing financial hardships because of the effects of the COVID-19 outbreak can apply for assistance through the Carolina Student Impact Fund. The fund will provide emergency support for various expenses, such as housing, food, travel and technology to students who are unable to meet the unexpected financial burdens resulting from the effects of the novel coronavirus.
Undergraduate, graduate and professional students who need assistance should email [email protected] or [email protected].
Those interested in supporting the fund should visit campaign.unc.edu/helping-heels.
In accordance with University efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19, the Carolina Union will be closed until further notice. All Union activities and reservations during this indefinite closure are canceled.
Visit unc.edu/coronavirus/ for all information and updates regarding University-related activities. For questions and information about Coronavirus, please visit the CDC website.
Tips for Mitigating Disease Transmission
The most important action you can take to protect your safety and that of others is to follow CDC guidelines, which include:
Wash your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol if soap and water are not available.
Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
Cover your cough or sneeze with a tissue, then throw the tissue in the trash.
Clean and disinfect frequently touched objects and surfaces.
Update: After this story was published, Carolina for the Kids held a successful Virtual Dance Marathon, raising more than $250,000 for UNC Children's Hospital during the event.
Set up that iPhone and get those “Renegade” and “Say So” dances ready, because the UNC Dance Marathon is going to be a virtual event this year.
Leaders of Carolina for the Kids, the UNC-Chapel Hill student organization that puts on the Dance Marathon fundraiser to benefit UNC Children’s Hospital, said they are moving the party online in accordance with UNC’s efforts to mitigate the spread of coronavirus, and they want people to participate any way they can.
“We’re going to make the most of it,” said Kalina MacKay, who serves as publicity chair for the group. “We can’t be together in person, but there are other ways to make it happen. I know the situations that many of the children and families are in at the hospital is so unpredictable and they never give up, so we’re channeling that right now. We need to not give up.”
A signature spring event at UNC, the Dance Marathon has taken place every year at UNC since 1999 and usually packs hundreds of dancers into Fetzer Gym for an all-day, all-night party. Participants pledge to keep moving for 24 hours in exchange for donations to the hospital.
This year, CFTK wants people to participate in a 24-hour social media campaign that will be led primarily through the group’s Instagram, Facebook and Twitter accounts. CFTK will be sharing videos, graphics and other content ideas for users to share to their social networks to help fundraise.
And, in Dance Marathon spirit, participants will be encouraged to share video of their own dance moves. “We’ll be asking people to submit videos doing TikTok dance challenges, so dancing will definitely be a part of this for those who want to do that,” MacKay said.
All social media content for the Dance Marathon can be tagged with #UNCVDM2020, and the festivities are open to everyone. The group has created a Google document with information on how to participate.
The group’s quick move to a virtual event came together following announcements from the University that events of 50 or more people on campus would be canceled. A chain of dejected group texts circulated among CFTK leaders, and the group initially settled on simply posting videos and other content they had created to social media as a way of recognizing the hard work of their members throughout the year.
But as MacKay and CFTK creative media chair Matthew Gibson began working on the materials they wanted to share, an idea struck them: As long as their group was posting to social media, why not just turn it into an event and ask everyone to join?
“It was heartbreaking not to be able to have the marathon the way we were used to, but then we saw a way to have a presence,” Gibson said. “We were like, ‘Alright, we’re gonna do this!’”
Even with the altered format of the event, CFTK executive director Michelle Cooley said the group has several objectives in mind. First and foremost is its mission to benefit patients and families at UNC Children’s Hospital. CFTK asked those who set event fundraising goals to still do their best to meet them, and all participants to try to raise at least $24 for the 24 hours that they would have been dancing.
Cooley also sees an opportunity to bring the UNC community together at a time where people may feel disconnected from their friends and loved ones. Cooley, a senior, said it’s a chance for her friends to fall back on a familiar and fun event even as many aren’t sure about whether they will have a chance to see classmates in-person again before departing Chapel Hill.
“Everything seems flipped upside down and turned around in every direction, especially for seniors,” Cooley said. “We hope that this is a chance to maintain continuity instead. Hopefully it brightens people’s outlook and gives them a way to come together.”
Darian Abernathy, a junior human development and family studies major, has been elected chairperson of the Carolina Union Board of Directors for the 2020-21 academic year. Abernathy will succeed the current board chairperson, senior Jaylen D. Evans, in April.
Abernathy has been deeply involved in the Carolina Union since her first days on campus, participating in multiple Union leadership programs and serving as a student employee. Her initial experience at the Union came during her first semester at Carolina when, as a UNC Lookout Scholar, she took a class designed to help first-generation students with their transition to college life. The course was led by Shauna Harris, associate director of the Carolina Union's Office of Student Life & Leadership.
"That's where I discovered that there was this amazing place at UNC called the Carolina Union," Abernathy said. "I knew it was going to be a formative part of my college experience."
During that class, Harris encouraged Abernathy to apply to other Union programs including leadership development programs such as Leadershape and Carolina United. She also landed a job at the Union as professional development coordinator, and the Union has served as an unofficial campus home for her ever since.
Abernathy, who is from Hickory, North Carolina, credited her mother with instilling a desire to achieve and encouraging involvement beyond the classroom. “My mom’s goal was always to make sure that my three sisters and I went to college,” Abernathy said. “She’s a pretty amazing woman to send four girls to college. She was so intentional with keeping us involved with our community, making sure we had good grades, and being at teacher meetings. I know all of that was hard on her, but I’m thankful for all of it, because without it, I could have gone down a very different path.”
During its regular March meeting, the Union's student-led board elected Abernathy as its next chairperson after presentations from three candidates. "Her passion for and experiences at the Union set her apart," said Evans, the current chairperson. "I have no doubt that she will do a fantastic job."
Abernathy said that her approach as board chair will be to find out where she can help and try to serve others. “I never considered myself a leader until other people called me one,” Abernathy said. “I just thought, ‘No, I’m just being me.’ But I think the courses I’ve taken helped me see that I have a leadership style. I consider myself more of a servant-leader and that is going to be my approach as board chair. To lead by serving others, and asking what they need and giving back.”
Abernathy said her primary goal will be to create more programming that helps round out student experiences beyond the classroom. “I love everything that the Union does in helping students and fostering the whole student rather than just the academic part,” she said. “I think that’s the Union at its best, and that’s what I want to help foster more of. I want to help the Union have that impact on more students because it has meant so much to me.”
Abernathy also pointed to the need for the Union to serve UNC’s graduate and professional students. “They pay student fees so they pay for this facility and they deserve to have it serving them,” Abernathy said. “I want to help integrate them more into this building that they pay for and close the gaps between serving undergrads and grad students. I know understanding how to serve them better has been a priority this year, and it will continue to be a priority for me.”
Fellow students described Abernathy as a thoughtful leader who brings compassion to her work. Junior Shadi Bakhtiyari worked with Abernathy as a Union student employee and said that Abernathy would often set aside her own projects when other co-workers needed help.
"She has the heart to serve and the heart to lead," Bakhtiyari said. "The Union will be stronger with her leading the way."
After a weekend of listening, sharing, and collaboration, five UNC students who attended the ACC Leadership Symposium in Louisville, Ky., are prepared to apply new strategies to achieve social change at Carolina and beyond.
The ACC Student Leadership Symposium is an annual leadership conference that brings together students from across Atlantic Coast Conference member schools. This year’s conference, held February 28 to March 1, explored the theme of “Reaching Social Change Through Storytelling.” The symposium had students craft and share stories that promoted their vision for social change and justice.
The Carolina Union’s office of Student Life & Leadership (SLL) sent five student delegates to the symposium: seniors Cam Brown and Rebecca Menard; junior Tyler McNeil; and sophomores Erin Lee and Abigail Pearson. Anthony Wright, Leadership Development Program Coordinator in the SLL office, accompanied the students as their advisor.
Students returned from the weekend in Louisville ready to implement the practices and strategies they learned from their symposium experiences.
Menard, a Human Development Studies Major at UNC, said that she appreciated the opportunity to build meaningful connections with fellow students. “This year’s focus on storytelling as a tool for social change emphasized the importance of starting and continuing conversations with people we otherwise wouldn’t think to through the sharing of compelling narratives,” Menard said. “I’ve grown close to people up and down the coast and I’ve been able to walk away with valuable skills on how to share my own story.”
For Pearson, who majors in Global Studies and Management and Society, the symposium altered her understanding of storytelling. “I've learned that what constitutes a "story" is not deterministic and is at the discretion of the author,” Pearson said. “We were exposed to varying storytelling mediums--from information science, to poetry. I am grateful for this opportunity to not only investigate a new strategy for social change, but to have conversations across geographic differences.”
Lee, a Global Studies and Peace, War, and Defense double major, took inspiration from the strength of those who shared the stories of their own circumstances. “By attending the symposium I learned so much about how to apply myself in professional settings and think critically about the way stories take many different shapes and forms,” Lee said. “One of the speakers in particular inspired me to explore tools I hadn't previously considered, and my fellow students had a lot to share about their own circumstances and courage. I am grateful for this opportunity and look forward to encouraging others to apply for ACC in the future.
The Carolina students were accompanied by advisor Anthony Wright, Leadership Development Program Coordinator in the Carolina Union’s office of Student Life & Leadership. Wright says students had an opportunity to both embrace and personalize this year’s theme around social change.
“People sometimes think social change has to happen on grand or global scale,” Wright said. “This is an opportunity to look at it through personal storytelling and what can be shared through stories. It’s a chance for students to reflect on their own stories and others, and bring those stories back to their respective campuses.”
The Carolina Union is hiring! Working at the Union is an incredible opportunity that gives students the chance to get involved on campus, learn valuable skills, and get paid. The Union offers a fun, friendly, and energetic work environment, as well as professional development opportunities, flexible hours, and the chance to make lifelong friendships. The Carolina Union’s student employees work with professional staff with a wealth of experience, and are encouraged to take initiative and gain real-world experience for themselves. Additionally, Union employees have the opportunity to work with students and student organizations from all across campus and the Carolina family.
Carolina junior and Box Office Lead DeNesha Graham pointed out that working in the Union has allowed her to gain professional experience for her future career. “It’s not just a job for right now,” she stated. “I can actually use these skills for whatever I decide to do later on in life.” Carolina senior and senior design supervisor Emma Barber added that they’ve loved their experience working directly with clients, as well as the community atmosphere of their department. “Working in a place with a lot of other creative people- that’s a very good environment for flourishing as a creative person.”
“The biggest thing I’ve learned is how to interact with people and how to appreciate different people and different cultures,” said Carolina senior and Union employee Griffin Deadwick, stating that his experience with the Union has helped him meet and learn from a huge variety of students and student organizations. Carolina Sophomore and Guest Relations Lead Spencer Robinson agreed, adding “The Union is a very inclusive environment, everyone’s ideas are heard - their thoughts, ideas, suggestions- everyone is welcome to speak freely.”
The Carolina Union is more than just a workplace- it’s an opportunity to learn, grow, and connect with fellow students and professional staffers. The Union is proud of being the center of student life at UNC- come join the Union family that helps make student life happen. As Robinson said, the Union is not just a place to work. “It’s a great big family.”
The Carolina Union is hosting and will be tabling at the February 11 On-Campus Employment Fair along with more than a dozen other UNC Departments. Please stop by the fair, or visit go.unc.edu/CUApply to learn more!
The Carolina Union's Communication and Creative Services (CCS) student employees' graphic design and photography work are on display in the Carolina Union Art Gallery through the month of February.
CCS is full service marketing department in the Carolina Union located on the ground floor of the Union. Led by professionals and staffed by experienced students, the department works with student organizations and university departments to tell their unique stories through creative and professional projects. Students are hired as graphic designers, photographers, videographers, and communications assistants. These jobs allow for learning more about the industry and assist students in building portfolios for their future careers.
