CHAPEL HILL – The Campaign for North Carolina Public Radio/WUNC-FM, a service of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, has hit its ambitious $3.25 million goal five months ahead of schedule, station leaders announced this week. The station will continue to make a strong push to raise funds to support campaign priorities before the capital campaign officially ends on Dec. 31, 2007.

The 3½-year campaign was launched in 2004 to secure the resources needed to respond with creativity and vision to the challenges of the next decade, and to build the strength and excellence of WUNC-FM. Funds raised through the campaign are above and beyond the station’s annual operating budget, which receives substantial support from more than 20,000 individual listeners.

 “The success of this campaign has been critical to the future of this station, boosting our capacity to do bigger and better things as we move forward,” said general manager Joan Siefert Rose. “Our goal is to serve our listeners, so it is particularly gratifying to see the level of support we have received.”

Generous contributions from listeners, businesses and foundations enabled WUNC-FM to reach its campaign goal, providing vital funds to support:

Launch and national distribution of “The Story” with Dick Gordon, a unique daily interview program produced at WUNC-FM, now heard by public radio listeners in more than 60 markets around the country (airs weekdays on WUNC-FM at 1 and 8 p.m.).
Creation of the Innovations Desk for Marketplace, the daily magazine of business and finance. Each week, more than 8 million Marketplace listeners nationwide hear daily reports by Janet Babin from the Innovations Desk based at WUNC-FM.
Production of the award-winning “North Carolina Voices” documentary series, which takes an in-depth look at complex issues that touch the lives of North Carolinians. The 2006 series explored the changing role of high schools and how to make secondary school education more valuable and relevant for students; the 2007 series will focus on health care.
New bureaus in Greensboro and Raleigh to expand the station’s reach and depth of news coverage across North Carolina.
Additional studio facilities and office space in Durham’s American Tobacco Historic District to accommodate the station’s growing staff and portfolio of programs and upgrades to production facilities and transmission equipment to boost current capacities and ensure adequate infrastructure for future programming.

“We are grateful to everyone who has contributed to the campaign,” said Jennifer Fusco, principal gifts manager. “We could not have reached our goal without the help of a passionate steering committee, led by co-chairs Michael Brader-Araje, Fred Hutchison, L. Richardson Preyer Jr. and Amy Tiemann and honorary co-chairs Carl Kasell and Jim Goodmon.”

WUNC-FM broadcasts at 91.5 FM in the Triangle and Triad, at 90.9 FM in Rocky Mount/Wilson and at 88.9 FM on the Outer Banks.

The Campaign for North Carolina Public Radio/WUNC-FM is part of the Carolina First Campaign, which supports Carolina’s vision to be the nation’s leading public university. Visit http://wunc.org/campaign for the latest tallies and information about campaign priorities.

WUNC-FM contact: Joan Siefert Rose, (919) 966-5454 or jsrose@wunc.org
News Services contact: Susan Houston, (919) 962-8415 or susan_houston@unc.edu