Taking Adelphi’s Student Radio Station Off “PAWS” and Putting an End to Adelphi’s Radio Silence

Sophomore Errah Fawad is relaunching AU PAWS Web Radio (PAWS) and reviving Adelphi's rich history of student broadcasting.

From 1972 to 1995, Adelphi was a force on the Long Island airwaves. During the peak of campus station WBAU's broadcasting history, future stars like rapper Chuck D '84, '13 (Hon.) and Yo, MTV Raps! host Dr. Dre were bringing in the sounds of the new hip-hop scene from New York City. More recently, Panthers have taken to the broadband waves with the web-only station PAWS. But in the last few years, PAWS had fallen silent. Sophomore Errah Fawad is looking to get Adelphi back on the air.

As a senator on the Student Government Association (SGA), Fawad has been organizing general interest meetings and surveying equipment and studios with plans to relaunch PAWS by the end of the year.

"I used to volunteer at the Panther Pantry in the basement of Earle Hall," Fawad said when asked about her decision to work on reviving the station. "I would walk through the hallway and just look across the rooms. And one day I see, oh, there's a radio station here. And I peek inside the window, and there are microphones and all this crazy equipment. I'm like, wait, what's happening here? Who runs this?"

A quick Instagram search showed Fawad that nothing had been posted on the PAWS account for the last two years. She started asking around and sending emails, and before long she was proposing PAWS as an SGA semester project.

"There was just this excitement across the room," she said. "People who hadn't heard of the station but had either prior experience or interest in radio were so enthusiastic. Everyone came up to me after the meeting was over, asking 'How I can get involved?' And I think at that point I realized, oh, this is a project that needs major undertaking."

Making audio connections

Ana Isabel Simón-Alegre, PhD, assistant professor of African, Black and Caribbean Studies, shares Fawad's excitement-and is her mentor on the project.

"Radio has been a constant presence in my life," Dr. Simón-Alegre said. "From early in the morning until late at night, my mother and grandmother always kept it on."

Dr. Simón-Alegre isn't just a lifetime listener; she's incorporated radio and podcasting into her classroom. During the pandemic lockdown, she recorded lectures to ensure she was connecting with students with her voice and had students create podcast episodes as a final project. Working with Adelphi's Innovation Center, she enlisted radio professionals to help polish and refine the projects. Through a Dean's Innovation Grant, she extended the effort to all of her classes.

"The most rewarding part of this project is not just listening to the episodes produced by the students each semester, but also seeing how it has inspired outstanding students like Errah Fawad," Dr. Simón-Alegre said. "After completing my class, Errah chose to continue exploring the world of radio and podcasts. Now, in the fall semester of 2024, thanks to her initiative and the support of her peers, the Adelphi radio club is active once again, and they have my full support to continue moving forward."

Community radio for all communities

Fawad is reaching out to her fellow Panthers, no experience necessary, and is looking forward to bringing her own studies and heritage to PAWS and encouraging classmates to do the same.

"I'm from Pakistan, and I have this rich Desi [South Asian] heritage," she said. "I'm a neuroscience major. I love brains. I love science. There's a whole part of me that's very nerdy. I'm still playing around with ideas. I have a bunch of people who reached out to me saying they wanted to collaborate one way or another. Like this one girl, she's Desi. She wanted to start this radio show with a bunch of other Desi girls on campus to create that safe space. I was like, oh, that's interesting, I might even end up joining them."