From WANT to WNAA: N.C. A&T Celebrates 60 Years of Campus Radio
WNAA – Tony Welborne and fellow students 1966
Long before radio became a familiar part of campus life at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University, Aggie students were experimenting with technology that allowed their messages and voices to travel past Greensboro.
In 2026, North Carolina A&T State University commemorates 60 years since WANT began operating as the university’s campus radio station, marking a milestone in a broadcasting tradition shaped by student initiative, technological innovation and a commitment to serving the community.
WANT officially began operations in February 1966 from Julian Price Hall. But A&T’s connection to radio stretches back more than three decades earlier, when students studying electrical engineering built equipment, operated amateur stations and communicated with radio operators across the United States and abroad.
By the early 1930s, radio had already become part of the learning experience at A&T.
One of the university’s early amateur stations, W4JW, operated through the electrical engineering department and gave students hands on experience with wireless communication during a period when radio was rapidly changing the way people shared information.
Archival editions of The A&T Register document the station communicating with amateur operators throughout the United States and across several continents. Using Morse code and equipment they learned to operate themselves, students gained technical experience that moved their education beyond the classroom.
That spirit was also evident in the work of student W.A. Armwood Jr., who installed and operated amateur station W4ASX in 1931. Armwood later served as president of A&T’s Radio Club, reflecting the growing interest students had in wireless technology.
Radio soon became more than a technical exercise. It also offered A&T another way to connect with the public.
During the 1930s and 1940s, university musicians, faculty members and other representatives appeared on programs carried by Greensboro radio station WBIG. Broadcasts featuring A&T organizations and events introduced listeners throughout the area to the university and helped establish an early connection between Aggieland and the local airwaves.
Those experiences helped set the stage for what would eventually become a permanent student broadcasting operation.
Aggies Build a Station of Their Own
The next major chapter took shape in the 1960s.
What became WANT grew from a student-centered project that required Aggies to do much more than stand behind a microphone.
Anthony “Tony” Welborne, who would later become a longtime leader at WNAA, recalled being one of four students who helped build and operate the original AM station as part of a class project. Students worked alongside faculty members to transform donated and existing equipment into a functioning broadcasting operation.
Their work reflected the same hands-on approach that had defined A&T’s connection to radio since the 1930s.
Faculty members also played an important role in the station’s development. Melvin T. Alexander helped guide the project and gained additional broadcasting experience through professional development opportunities before WANT went live. Support also came from Greensboro’s professional broadcasting community, including WEAL Radio, which donated equipment to help make the station possible.
After months of planning and installation, WANT began broadcasting in February 1966.
The closed-circuit AM station operated from Price Hall and initially served the campus community. Students could tune their radios to 620 on the AM dial, with the station’s signal distributed through low power transmitters throughout campus.
Although its physical reach was limited, WANT opened a much larger world of possibilities for students. Aggies learned announcing, programming, production, news, technical operations and station management while helping shape the sound of their own campus.
The station was also about more than music. Students learned how to deliver news, operate equipment, write for broadcast and communicate clearly and professionally on the air. News resources eventually became part of the station’s operation, giving students experience working with timely information as well as entertainment programming.
At a time when many stations serving Black audiences offered limited news coverage, WANT created space for students and listeners to hear information alongside music and other programming.
The station also exposed students to important conversations taking place beyond campus. Guests connected to the civil rights movement appeared at the station, giving young broadcasters an opportunity to engage with people and issues shaping the country around them.
WANT quickly became both a communications laboratory and an important part of student life.
From WANT to WNAA
As the years progressed, A&T began looking beyond the limitations of a campus-only AM operation.
The university pursued FM broadcasting, opening the possibility of reaching listeners throughout Greensboro and surrounding communities.
By the late 1970s, WANT was transitioning into WNAA FM.
The change represented more than new call letters. It reflected an effort to combine professional broadcast training with public service.
Welborne remained closely connected to that growth. After graduating, serving in the military and later returning to A&T, he played a major role in the continued development of the station.
He later described one of his proudest accomplishments as helping build the original AM operation and then, years later, helping convert WANT AM into the full power WNAA FM and eventually high-definition operation.
That transformation dramatically expanded what university radio could accomplish.
WNAA grew into a 10,000-watt station capable of reaching listeners well beyond campus. Its programming included jazz, gospel, blues, rhythm and blues, reggae, public affairs, talk programming and other formats that reflected both the university and the surrounding community.
News remained an important part of that mission. Welborne advocated for strong news and public affairs programming that addressed issues affecting students and the Black community while also giving young broadcasters experience working in a professional environment. The station developed its own identity by offering listeners programming they did not always hear elsewhere.
When the Community Answered the Call
As WNAA’s reach expanded, so did its relationship with listeners. That connection became especially clear in 1991.
Facing a significant reduction in state funding, the station turned to the community through fundraising efforts that included its annual radiothon and the “Save Our Station” campaign. The goal was $50,000.
Listeners responded. By the end of the campaign, WNAA had surpassed its fundraising target, demonstrating the value the station had developed.
At the time, the 10,000-watt station depended heavily on volunteers and unpaid student announcers. Its signal reached listeners well outside Greensboro, and its mix of music, news and public affairs programming had built a loyal audience.
The campaign showed WNAA was no longer simply a student training station. It had become a community resource.
A Training Ground for Generations of Aggies
Even as its public audience grew, WNAA remained rooted in education.
Welborne emphasized that one of the station’s primary responsibilities was preparing students to become professional broadcasters.
Students worked in an environment designed to reflect professional radio. They learned to follow program logs, produce public service announcements, prepare news, operate equipment and meet the expectations of a real broadcast schedule.
For some students, the preparation was so effective that commercial stations recruited them before they had completed their degrees. WNAA alumni went on to work in radio and media markets across the country, carrying with them skills they first developed at A&T.
Among the Aggies who spent time at WNAA was “Terrence J” Jenkins, a 2004 graduate who later became a nationally recognized television host, actor, producer and media personality.
While attending A&T, Jenkins gained broadcasting experience at WNAA 90.1 FM, making the station part of the foundation for a career that would later extend into national television and entertainment.
His story is one example of a broader legacy. For generations, WNAA has given students a place to develop their voices before carrying them into professional media.
That tradition was also championed by professionals such as Deirdre Cherie “D Cherie” Lofton, WNAA’s longtime program and music director.
Lofton spent nearly two decades with the station, balancing on-air responsibilities with programming and mentoring student interns. Former students later credited her with giving them early opportunities, encouraging them and helping them develop confidence in broadcasting.
Her influence reflected one of the station’s most enduring characteristics: experienced broadcasters helping the next generation learn the profession.
Evolving with the Industry
WNAA continued adapting as technology changed.
By the early 2000s, the station was upgrading its operation with digital equipment, helping students gain experience with the technologies increasingly used throughout the media industry.
The station eventually developed into an FM and HD operation while also building an online presence.
By 2017, WNAA was broadcasting around the clock, with listeners tuning in locally and online.
“WNAA has connected people through music, conversation, culture and community. It is a true honor to have worked at WNAA for more than 20 years and to be mentored by two local radio legends, D. Cherie Lofton and Tony Welborne,” said Ezinma Leak-Murphy ’15, program and music director and interim general manager of WNAA-FM/HD. “I’m proud to be a part of a station where generations have found information, inspiration and a sense of belonging. To me, that’s the true meaning of Aggie Pride!”
The transformation was striking. A station that had once been limited to a closed circuit AM signal on campus had become a full-time broadcast and digital operation with a loyal audience.
Still, the station continued to serve as both a communications resource and a learning environment where students could develop practical skills in journalism, production, programming, engineering and broadcasting.
More Than a Frequency
Across nearly a century, radio at A&T has never been defined by microphones, transmitters, call letters or frequencies, but rather opportunity.
For engineering students in the 1930s, radio created the chance to experiment with new technology and communicate across great distances.
For the students who helped build WANT in the 1960s, it became the chance to create something of their own while learning how a radio station worked from the inside out.
For generations who followed at WNAA, it became a place to learn broadcasting while serving a real audience.
A&T radio has moved from Morse code to AM, from AM to FM, and from analog broadcasting into the digital and online era. Equipment has changed. Programming has changed. Generations of students have come and gone.
“As we mark 60 years of being the broadcasting voice of North Carolina A&T State University, we celebrate more than an anniversary. We celebrate a legacy of excellence, opportunity, and service,” said Leak-Murphy. “WNAA has empowered countless students and community volunteers with hands-on experience while providing a platform that informs, entertains, and uplifts our community. It is a privilege to be a part of this enduring tradition.”
But the fundamental idea has endured: Give students the tools, guidance and opportunity to learn, and then give them an audience.
From W4JW and W4ASX to WANT and WNAA 90.1 FM, generations of Aggies have stepped behind microphones, worked at control boards and used broadcasting to connect their university with the world around them.
Sixty years after WANT first went live, the anniversary represents more than the history of one station. It recognizes the students who helped build it, the faculty and professionals who guided them, the listeners who supported it and the generations of Aggies who discovered what was possible when they were given the opportunity to be heard.
Radio at A&T is ultimately a story of connection between students and their education, the university and its community, and one generation of Aggie broadcasters and the next.
