Originally airing on Jan. 15th, 1954, WKAR has been producing media for the mid-Michigan area through all forms, including television and radio. At the time, WKAR was one of three educational broadcasting stations in the country, WKAR Communications Manager and Online Coordinator Bill Richards said.

Assistant Director of Development ShaDonna Crosby said the WKAR would not have become so successful without community outreach.

“I think it says a lot about the local support we get from the community,” Crosby said. “We just would not exist without that support. We’ve been going strong, I think the programming is supported and I just hope we have another 60 years plus.”

“Back then it was Michigan State College still,” Richards said. “The number two station in the country didn’t survive the first year, so that makes WKAR the second longest-running educational TV station in the country.”

During this time, the whole station was university-related, with a lot of early programming featuring content related to Michigan State Agricultural College.

Once the 1960s rolled around, the educational broadcasting at WKAR started incorporating public broadcasting and programming. The later transformation to digital broadcasting also allowed the station to provide their content to consumers through online, on-demand, through smartphones and gaming consoles.

“We had the transition to the corporation for public broadcasting,” Richards said. “This is the place where you will find Sesame Street in kids programming and dramas like Masterpiece, political and public affairs program with William F. Buckley all the way through up to today where we’re broadcasting digitally.”

Crosby said WKAR’s programs are a direct reflection on what the community wants and stressed how important the local community is in keeping it going.

Corporate Development Director Melissa Nay said the station aims to keep up its momentum with new shows, which will be released later this year. But for the most part, she said, keeping their presence means staying the same.

“We’ve got a bunch of new shows on TV that we’re going to be starting,” she said. “We don’t want to switch things up too much because people like the way it is.”