The Star Press from Muncie, Indiana • Page 35

Features Sunday The Muncie Star Introducing KZ 105 The Academic Advantage Obituaries Indiana News Classified Ads Sunday, January 12, 1986 Page 1, Section 'Someday' Is Thursday Muncie's Newest Radio Station KZ 105 Has Battled Years of Delay as Sign-On Day Nears Written by Rodney Richey Star Feature Writer on own baseboard. the drywall, hall, with bare Discarded new rooms Long carpeting smell John of tucked Silver fresh under paint boxes and empty cups from Rax Roast Beef clutter tables and spill over in trash cans. Stacked on every available surface are hundreds of blank tape cartridges, ringed by coils of aimless cable and sided by the occasional misplaced circuitry board. All around are desks and chairs and cabinets that have yet yet to find their own space. These signs of long days and hectic preparation greet visitors to the offices of WOKZ-FM 104.9, Muncie's newest radio station, which signs on the air at 6 a.m.

Thursday as a 24-hour stereo signal broadcasting mainly to Delaware, Madison, Henry, Blackford, Randolph and Grant Counties. Arriving at that point has been a long and arduous trip for all those concerned, ever since this particular FM license came on the market in the mid-'70s. The first bidders in 1977 were Muncie Broadcasting Corp. (former owners of WERK-AM 990 and run by the late Robert Poorman), Hoosier Favorite Station Inc. (a group of Muncie businessmen and residents) and Ben-Del Broadcasting Washington, D.C.

Muncie Broadcasting dropped out of the bidding early, leaving the two remaining parties to battle it out for years and years, until no one really knew who had the license, where it was or even if it had ever existed at all, until it became an urban myth, with people whispering about the phantom FM station that would someday appear on the horizon. "Someday" is Thursday. Kirk Ray, 30, an Anderson native and a 1978 graduate of Ball State University's Telecommunications Department, rides herd over the workers and air personalities who are, even as you read this, tightening delivery and finalizing formats for the big day. The general manager for "KZ 105," Ray has been on salary since August 1985, assembling the station from scratch, like a Heathkit, for hundreds of thousands of dollars. "I've done everything from pouring concrete to ordering," said Ray, who at 6 feet 8 inches tall is probably not out of his element in either capacity.

Star Photo by Kyle Evens Kirk Ray, general manager of KZ 105, poses inside one of the station's control rooms Originally, KZ 105 was to sign on Oct. 15. That was pushed back to Oct. 30. Then Nov.

15. Then Nov. 25. "We were waiting for the FCC," Ray explained, "and the FCC said, 'Yeah, soon. It's And it never changed.

So I just quit." What was "coming" was a settlement for the problem arising from KZ 105's assigned signal 104.9 which had been the domain of WWHC-FM 104.9 in Hartford City, which was then assigned 92.7, which meant that Kokomo's WZWZ-FM 92.7 had to jump to 93.5, causing Lafayette's WXUS to adjust to 92.7. That's the same signal as WWHC in Hartford City, but the distance between two points is wide enough that it makes no difference. All those assignments, though, had been puzzled out years before, and it was just a matter of those stations agreeing to institute the changes, with KZ 105 footing the bill. Working Together teacher and student at Muncie's The Academic Advantage A Helping Hand Academic Advantage Tutors on an Individual Basis By JULI NORTH METZGER who tutors secondary math. Star Staff Reporter The clientele at The Academic Advantage child hasn't grasped the particulars of varies in age from 7 to 17 and takes in most sociohis history lesson or just can't quite get the economic groups.

your of algebra, take heart. He's not alone. It is important that children realize they're "Sometimes individual being tutored because they need help in a attention is all it takes," particular area, the teachers said, not because they said Daena Hayworth can't learn or have a learning deficiency. Hiatt. "We all have strengths and weaknesses," said "Almost every child Hiatt.

"It's not necessarily a learning problem." could be tutored, or at As a special education teacher in Yorktown, least enriched," said Kay Hiatt works with students who have been identified Schnuck. "Maybe there is as having learning disabilities. She's been a teacher something that could be for 20 years. embellished. Most people Schnuck, who now teaches first grade, has don't know that they need taught for 21 years.

us." "It's hard to convince a little guy that he's The two women are bright when he's not doing what everyone expects," teachers for the Mount KAY SCHNUCK Schnuck said. Pleasant school system in At Academic Advantage, tutors stress the skills Yorktown from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. through the needed to become a good reader or good week. But in the evening, they run Muncie's only mathematician.

tutoring clinic, The Academic Advantage, "They're taught time management, how to private in 600 Court. listen effectively, how to take notes," Hiatt said. The clinic opened for business in June and has There are no distractions. Students work onebeen going strong ever since. one with their tutor or in small groups.

For $15 an hour, usually 2 hours a week, "There is no TV, no dogs barking," said students take classes tailored to their individual Schnuck. "It's a very busi atmosphere. needs. There is a $35 one-time fee for a diagnostic Everyone knows it's serious assessment test. Students are not given homework during the "The problem very often is in reading," regular school year, but they are expected to keep Schnuck said.

"There is just so much more of it as a a log of their work and progress. child gets older." "It's part of the time management that we And sometimes, a child just isn't ready for what stress," Hiatt said. "Children have to learn to cope he's expected to learn, the teachers said. with responsibility." "Whoever said 6 was the magic age said The women commended the efforts made by Schnuck. "Some are ready at 4 or years; others parents to get additional help for their children.

aren't ready at 7. "It takes a great amount of caring," Schnuck "Everyone learns at a different rate," she said. said. "And a lot of effort." "And if they're not ready, it creates bad feelings Scheduling can be flexible, but the clinic about themselves and about school in general." normally assigns students to Monday and In addition to Hiatt and Schnuck, there is Wednesday or Tuesday and Thursday evenings. The Yorktown High School math teacher Jack Jordon, school is closed on Friday.

happened to call the owner. And it just so happened that the general manager had decided at just about that time not to come to Muncie. And so he said, 'Yeah, it just so happens I am looking for a general The owner was James W. Beatty, former owner of WTLC in Indianapolis and one of the partners in Broadcasting, Indianapolis, the company which ultimately ended the stalemate by buying out the license from Hoosier Favorite Station and Ben-Del. Ray acknowledges that KZ 105 will have to compete, not only with the FMs in Muncie, but also WFBQ, WNAP and WZPL in Indianapolis.

"Fortunately, we're far enough away from Indianapolis that their signals aren't real good. If we can offer a similar product that people really enjoy, and do it well, I think they'll stay with us." KZ 105, Ray said, will not be an "oldies" station, nor a "gold" station. Its play list will rotate top-40 songs, not every 3 hours, like most stations, but every 4 or more hours, so that the popular songs do not receive undue play. He added that the average radio station has a library of about 800 songs, while KZ 105, targeted at listeners 18-49 years-of-age, has a library of 2,500 songs, from the '60s, '70s and '80s. "We're not just going the top three or four songs from 1960," he explained.

"We may play the top 100 songs from 1960, or the top 100 songs from 1 1961 or 1962." KZ 105's air personalities will include Randy Tanner, E.Q. Kimble, Drew Carey, Stan Atkins and Phil Carter, plus one very familiar name to Muncie: Randy Robinson, who worked for various stations, including WERK, before moving to WAXT. The obvious question, though, is that by building a station from the ground up rather than purchasing an ongoing concern, will KZ 105 make it? "There's no doubt in my mind," Ray said flatly. "This format is going to be very, very well accepted by Muncie and Delaware County. There are absolutely no doubts in my mind.

"We're not going to 'contest' people to death and that sort of thing. We're just going to be an entertaining music station. And I hope that's what people want." KZ 105 offices are at 1100 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. just west of Lighting by Reflections near the Tillotson overpass.

just should've come out several months ago and said, 'OK, you've got 2 months to do Ray said. "We could've been on the air a month ago." Ray, whose interest in radio began during his days at Madison Heights High School in Anderson, worked at a series of jobs in radio, such as WLSR Radio in Lima, Ohio, in Oneonta, N.Y., Radio in Richmond, and then WLKI in Angola, Ind. He was offered a position at WAXT-FM 96.7 in Alexandria, as sales manager. He hired on in October 1981 and left in May 1985, under terms that Ray admits were "not exactly friendly." He and a business partner tried to buy several stations, but they were not successful. Getting hired at KZ 105 was an accident.

"I just, sort of by mistake, found out that this station was getting ready to go on the air. And I just Star Photos by Brad Sauter Chris McGaughey, son Timmy and Kermit the Frog teach Spanish to Kristin Thoman A Secret Code Learning a Foreign Language Can Be Fun for Kids hris enter foreign grade McGaughey languages school. says to the children best is time before to teach they sons She are proof believes of in all the her children pudding. theory have and the said her three "Basically, the younger the child, the easier it is "Generally, ability to another reproduce any sound," she said. "By the time they for him to language," are 2 or 3 years old, though, they lose some of that learn McGaughey said.

"They think of it as a game." ability because haven't heard of those McGaughey is offering courses sounds. If 4-week in they some and Spanish to pre-schoolers through The them." they can they explore those sounds, French a and develop Academic Advantage, private tutoring diagnostic center in Muncie. year-old McGaughey's Andy and children 6-year-old Ben, each 4- "It's like a secret code," she said. "Nothing at 2-year-old Timmy speak that age is impossible." Spanish to a certain degree. McGaughey said learning foreign languages "They know phrases or words," she said.

"I helps children to develop other skills as well. For speak to them in Spanish." instance, there is memorization. It's important, McGaughey said, that children "The more a child practices memorizing, the not become afraid to learn. better," she said. "It helps him so that it isn't so While it's best to begin foreign language tedious later in school.

They're more inclined to be training with pre-schoolers, McGaughey said, her challenged." classes will not be limited to any age group. She Foreign language skills also enhance a child's said parents of several 7- and 8-year-olds had ability to learn English and to develop an inquired about the course. appreciation for other cultures, McGaughey said. McGaughey said parents and students would "They learn a lot of other things like the ability see some progress after classes, but she added that to recognize countries on a map," she said. students would retain the new knowledge only if "Children have a hard time envisioning an area they continued to use the skill.

other than the places they frequent. This helps "The child will know some of the basic things," them know there are other places in the world she said, "phrases, lots of words, colors, numbers, besides home and school." etc. Lessons were supposed to begin Jan. 6, but "They'll retain what they've learned with McGaughey has postponed the sessions until later continued practice," McGaughey said. "If they in the month.

She said she would limit enrollment never do it again until they go to high school, they to five students in each class. won't retain it." Several parents already have enrolled their McGaughey said it was a shame that foreign children in the course. language skills were not used more in this country. Classes are $90 per child, per session. "Eight to 15 percent of the American McGaughey said parents had learned about the population is Spanish speaking," she said.

"Years courses through flyers and word-of-mouth. Most ago when immigrants were coming to this country, have asked about Spanish classes. they wanted to assimilate so much, they didn't "There have been quite a few people teach their children their language. Everyone interested," she said. "I'm willing to do what ever wanted to speak English." the parents really want." Now, she said, more and more people want to McGaughey has master's degrees in French and know those "other" languages, and they want their Spanish and is working toward a doctorate in children to know the them.

Spanish. Juli North Metzger.