About WERU

WERU provides programming that is diverse, engaging, surprising, alternative, worldly and local.

WERU's sound is made possible by volunteer power, listener support and community participation. We offer diverse music and cultural programming, alternative news and community-centered public affairs programming.  We are an independent and locally owned and operated community radio station, offering noncommercial programming to, for and by folks living in our signal area in Eastern Maine.  We invite you to browse our web site to find out more about WERU Community Radio.

WERU’s Mission

• to provide a community-based, noncommercial radio service for the people living in the areas covered by the station's signal;
• to broadcast programs designed to serve the needs of those not currently served by other broadcast media;
• to be a voice of many voices offering a wide variety of people an opportunity to share their experiences, concerns, and perspectives with their neighbors over the WERU airwaves.

Mission Statement Draft Revisions – August 2008

The following versions of the WERU Mission Statement were crafted by various members of the WERU Board, staff and volunteers and submitted for volunteer consideration in the monthly internal e-newlsetter in July and August.  The Board of Directors is in the process of very gradually considering suggested updates and modifications to the mission statement in order to make sure that it both remains true to the original vision and current circumstances of the station.  Feedback is welcomed and can be emailed to the station’s General Manager, Matt Murphy at matt@weru.org.

• WERU’s mission is to provide a community based non-commercial radio service for people living in the areas covered by WERU’s signal; WERU will broadcast programs designed to serve the needs of those not fully served by other broadcast media; WERU will be a “voice of many voices” offering a wide variety of people an opportunity to share their experiences, concerns, and perspectives with their neighbors over the WERU airwaves. (This is the current mission statement.)
• WERU will provide a community-based, non-commercial radio service that will be a “voice of many voices” for a wide variety of people, empowering them to share music, information and perspectives through WERU’s broadcast channels with emphasis on serving the needs of those not fully served by other local broadcast media in Eastern Maine.
• WERU will provide a community-based, non-commercial radio service that will be a “voice of many voices” from and to a wide variety of people, empowering them to share music, information and perspectives over the airwaves and Internet, with emphasis on serving the needs of those not fully served by other broadcast and electronic media especially in (but not restricted to) Eastern Maine.
• WERU’s mission is to provide a 21st century community based non-commercial radio service for people living in the areas covered by WERU’s radio signal; WERU will broadcast programs designed to serve the needs of those not fully served by other local broadcast media; WERU will be a “voice of many voices” offering a wide variety of people an opportunity to share their experiences, concerns, and perspectives with their neighbors through WERU's broadcast channels.
• WERU Community Radio serves as a mirror and voice to connect its listeners with each other and the world through diverse, quality programming.

The Future of WERU (Strategic Plan Update)

WERU Strategic Plan Objectives (2008 – 2012)

DRAFT (8/28/08)

Introductory Notes:

• This draft five-year strategic plan identifies a series of objectives and actions intended to achieve the overall goal of making WERU as strong and successful as it can be, success being defined by the station’s mission statement and operating principles.
• At this point many of the action items have not been assigned to anyone or any group at the station, and a timeline of projects has not been established.  This will be done by the Board and GM once the objectives have been accepted by the Board.
• The genesis of this plan was the WERU Board of Directors’ annual planning retreat in March 2008, followed by discussion of various items and areas covered by the plan at subsequent Board meetings, Committee meetings and WERU Review informational radio programs, as well as written materials in the Family Funnies and Salt Air publications.  (The WERU Review scheduled for August 29 will be dedicated to strategic planning as will be the fall All Station Meeting on October 25, 10 a.m.)
• Discussion of the draft strategic plan will continue throughout the fall until the Board feels it has had sufficient airing and amending, and then the Board will vote on the plan, probably in November or December.
• Once the plan is ratified it will be the responsibility of the General Manager and Board to manage and oversee the implementation of the strategic plan over the next five years. 
• These notes were prepared by Matt Murphy, General Manager, 8/28/08

VISION STATEMENT: By implementing this strategic plan WERU will maintain a strong community broadcast service in the present while preparing for a future of sustainability and adaptability.

• Identity:
• Media Role: Examine the role of WERU in an age of rapidly changing communications technology and make plans for adapting to those changes so that WERU will remain relevant to the community it purports to serve as a multi-platform community media organization.
• Leadership Roles: Examine the kind of networking and leadership role we want WERU to have in the local community, community radio movement and community media movement, and make plans to pursue activities and projects that will make the organization relevant and useful to those communities.
• Mission & Principles: Examine the organization’s mission statement and operating principles to determine if they are accurate and sufficient for the current and future work of the station (as best as it can be determined), and to determine if the station is living up to the original mission statement as seen by station founders.  We will make changes and updates were it is determined through the station’s collective decision-making process that changes are necessary or desirable.
• Policies & Procedures: Examine the organization’s primary policies and procedures to determine if they are accurate and sufficient for the current and future work of the station (as best as it can be determined).  We will make changes and updates were it is determined through the station’s collective decision-making process that changes are necessary or desirable.

• Programming Service – Technical:
• Signal Pattern Improvement: Implement the FCC Construction Permit we were granted in June 2008 and change our antenna configuration and signal pattern from “directional” to “non-directional” in order to improve signal covered in north and north-west directions, particularly increasing signal strength in the Bangor area.
• New Transmitter: Utilize the $110,000 matching CPB grant to purchase and install a new transmitter that can broadcast in both FM and digital/HD Radio (initially utilizing only the FM capacity but being prepared to add HD when it seems advantageous to do so or when required by the FCC).
• Microwave STL: Utilize the $110,000 matching CPB grant to purchase and install a new microwave STL (studio-transmitter link) to replace the balanced dedicated phone lines we currently lease from the phone company.
• Stand-by emergency power: Purchase and install back-up power generators at both the transmitter site and studio facilities, utilizing a PTFP grant if our application is successful.
• Web Site: Design and construct a new web site that has a more robust and easier to manage “back end” and that is more user-friendly and offers more options to the public.  The web site will increasingly be seen, internally and externally, as the “second channel” of WERU.

• Programming Service – Content:
• Remote Broadcasts:
• Niche Services: Explore existing and potential niche audiences that are underserved by other local broadcast and electronic media and devise ways to better serve these audiences.
• Volunteer Recruitment & Training: Continue to develop and evolve volunteer recruitment and training processes so that we have sufficient numbers of enthusiastic, dedicated and trained volunteer to achieve other station objectives.
• Program Development: Continue to develop and evolve the processes by which WERU creates new programming, both in order to meet community needs and provide volunteers with forums for their creative and journalistic work.
• Web Site/Internet Programming: Develop new content for the new WERU web site that will compliment existing content (that will be transferred to the new site) and be guided by the station mission statement and operating principles, just like on-air programming.

• Development, PR & Outreach:
• PR & Marketing, Bangor Area: Create and implement a PR plan for the improved Bangor Area signal in order to attract new listeners and members.
• PR & Marketing, General: Create and implement an annual PR plan and procedures for publicizing station activities, events and news.
• Event Partnership Program: Create and implement event partnership program to work with other nonprofits to gain positive exposure for WERU through other organization’s events.
• Membership: Increase membership support by a third; much of this will come from the Bangor Area but some will come from traditional signal area using such methods as “Tell a Friend” new member recruitment campaigns.
• Underwriting & other Business Support: Increase underwriting and other business support by a third; much of this will come from the Bangor Area.
• Major Donor Program: Create and maintain an active annual major donor program.
• Innovation & Experimentation: Explore other innovations in fundraising, utilizing DEI and NFCB communities for ideas.

• Capital Campaign:
• Brand Recognition: Emphasize the theme of the campaign internally and externally: “Signal, Space & Sustainability” so that it is clear to everyone involved what we are raising funds in order to accomplish.
• Timetable: Complete campaign “asks” by Autumn 2010.

• Financial Sustainability:
• Budget Responsibly:
• Avoid Financial Risk:
• Fundraising Culture: Change the fundraising culture at station to include a major donor program and endowment as normal and accepted parts of our annual fundraising.
• Efficiencies: Explore and implement ways to save money through efficiency of office systems and energy use at the station.

• Physical Plant & Facilities:
• Renovate Green: Renovate the current space and expand as necessary/able using sustainable methods and materials, with the goal of LEEDS certification if feasible.
• Sufficient Space: Create space sufficient for operations until 2020 with physical accommodations made for facility improvements.
• Renovation Plans: Develop renovation priorities and implement those priorities in renovation plans and building design.
• Equipment Plans: Establish equipment priorities and implement so that we have the equipment necessary to deliver our programming to our audiences.
• Maintenance: Establish a sustainable maintenance plan and implement.

• Governance & Operations:
• Systems & Processes: Examine our current governance and operating systems and processes and determine if and how they may need to change for the future.
• Leadership: Determine what will be required of station leadership over the next five years and how it may differ from current leadership duties.
• Paid Staff: Determine how big the station’s paid staff will have to be in order to meet leadership and operational needs over the next five years.
• People Power: Determine how best to attract, recruit, train, develop, support and retrain the people we need to sufficiently fill board, staff and volunteer roles.

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WERU Staff

WERU Board of Directors

WERU-FM is licensed to Salt Pond Community Broadcasting, a non-profit corporation actively run by an all-volunteer board of directors from the community that WERU serves. Board of Directors meetings are held at WERU.  Click here to find out when the next Board meeting is scheduled. 

As well as other various governance committee meetings, Board meetings are open to the public. The current board members are:

Kathleen Rybarz - President-Lamoine
Lisa B. Martin- Vol Rep & Vice President - Monroe
Lynn Soucy- Treasurer - Dedham

Heather Martin-Zaboray - Secretary- Surry
Alfred Bourgoin - Vol. Rep.Winterport

Matt Murphy- Ex Officio - Penobscot

John Greenman - Old Town

Roland Magnan -Sandy Point
Susan Pierce - Northport
Jean Bourg - Unity

WERU Community Advisory Board

The WERU Community Advisory Board holds periodic "listening sessions"  for members of the WERU audience and general public. Please call the station at 207-469-6600 to find out about the next such meeting. For more info about this, click here. 

The current CAB members are:

WERU’s History & Info

• On May 1, 1988, after eight years of planning and work by a dedicated group of volunteers, WERU-FM 89.9 began broadcasting from the top of Blue Hill Mountain on the coast of Maine. Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary was the station's first benefactor and WERU first broadcast from studios in his converted chicken coop, affectionately known as "The Henhouse." In 1997 the station moved to its current location on U.S. Route 1 in East Orland, and is currently conducting a capital campaign to pay for the purchase of this permanent home.
• From its inception WERU-FM has been a grassroots, nonprofit, noncommercial, volunteer-powered and listener-supported community radio service. Striving to be "a voice of many voices," WERU trains members of the community to be on-air programmers and behind-the-scenes producers. It provides access to the airwaves for individuals, musicians (local and beyond), nonprofit community organizations, and many others in the station's signal area. Community Radio is a place for people to share music, information, ideas and more, and thus is a vibrant resource for community-building over the airwaves.
• WERU-FM is a noncommercial educational radio station licensed by the FCC to Salt Pond Community Broadcasting, a nonprofit corporation run by a volunteer board of directors drawn from the station's service area.
• The station's management and governance structure includes our small paid staff, which supervise and maintain daily operations, and several volunteer committees whose job it is to work with the staff and other volunteers on various aspects of the station (programming, fundraising, etc.) and make recommendations to the Board. Consensus is sought on all major decisions through a process of collaborative decision-making.
• WERU is proud of its active volunteer base of 150 people and its paid operations staff of four full-time and four part-time employees.
• Financial support for WERU comes from its listeners and members (over 2,500 supporting members, including individuals, families, organizations and businesses), and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and special events such as the station's Full Circle Summer Fair, held each summer.
• WERU-FM transmits from Blue Hill Mountain at 89.9 MHz with 15,000 watts of power (since 1988), and at 102.9 MHz in Bangor with a 50 watt translator (since 1997).
• WERU is a member of the National Federation of Community Broadcasters, the Maine Association of Broadcasters, World Association of Community Radio Broadcasters - AMARC, Maine Association of Nonprofits, and is a founding member of the Grassroots Radio Coalition.

Annual Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO) Report:

2008 ANNUAL EEO PUBLIC FILE REPORT

Salt Pond Community Broadcasting Company

FULL-TIME POSITION HIRING

INITIATIVES

The information required by FCC Rule 73.2080(c)(6) is provided in the chart that follows.

The employment unit engaged in the following broad outreach initiatives in accordance with various elements of FCC Rule 73.2080(c)(2):

Please direct any questions about this report to:

Matt Murphy
General Manager
207-469-6600
matt@weru.org

Improving FM Reception

Do you live on the fringes of WERU's broadcast signal?  You can try to improve your FM reception.  Click here for directions and diagrams to help improve your FM reception!

You can also contact the folks at Directive Systems, who have created special receiving antennas for some serious WERU listeners who couldn't catch the signal at home. 

Directive Systems, 177  Dixon Road, Lebanon, Maine 04027

Phone: 1-207-658-7758       Fax:  1-207-658-4337

info@directivesystems.com        www.directivesystems.com

Better yet, if you want to know just about everything about radios including how to build your own transmitter check out this useful site: electronics.howstuffworks.com/radio

If you live on the fringes of WERU's broadcast signal, are frustrated with fuzzy reception, and you have access to the internet... you might try listening to WERU online.  Click here to listen online.