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Tier Turmoil: KNDS on Year-long Probation

North Dakota State’s student-run radio station, KNDS 96.3 FM, is now on a year-long probation.

The move to probation comes from the Finance Advisory Board, which voted to move the group to probation on Feb. 23.

Student government issued a survey to the student body via listserv in mid-February, asking students questions about KNDS. Of the 703 respondents, 538 — or about 76.5 percent — did not know what KNDS Radio is.

The 165 respondents who did know what KNDS Radio is were prompted to answer a second question, asking how often they listened to KNDS. Approximately 75 percent, or 123 respondents, said they listened to KNDS once a year or less.

Details of KNDS probation have not been set as of press time, and there is no precedent for KNDS’s probation as no NDSU tier I organization has been placed on probation before. Details will be worked out at a FAB meeting taking place Wednesday.

The student-run radio station has set goals to improve upon during its year-long probation to improve upon over the next year.

Goals include getting awareness of KNDS’s existence to 40 percent, up from its current 23 percent. The station also aims to get once-a-month listenership up to at least 15 percent of all listeners.

Minutes from the Feb. 23 FAB meeting state the radio station aims to “dramatically increase online and social media presence.” The minutes also state the station would “like to put more towards an events coordinator which would work on bringing it into more of an on-campus organization.”

About FAB

The FAB consists of representatives from every Tier I student organization as well as Mathew Warsocki, student government’s executive commissioner of the congress of student organizations, who represents Tier II and Tier III organizations. Spencer Moir, the student body president, sits on the board and represents student government.

Each member of the FAB has one vote to cast except for the chair, being student government’s executive commissioner of finance Mason Wenzel, who votes in the need of a tiebreaker.

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