WKAR general manager steps down after leading revitalization of station

EAST LANSING, MI.; May 13, 2016 -- After guiding Michigan State University's public broadcasting stations through a period of revitalization and growth, Michigan Hall-of-Fame broadcaster and University Distinguished Senior Specialist Gary Reid will be stepping down from his position as director of Broadcasting and general manager of WKAR, effective May 15.

Susi Elkins, WKAR television station manager, will be appointed as interim director of Broadcasting and WKAR general manager and will oversee both radio and TV operations. Susi is an accomplished and Emmy-winning media professional with 20 years of experience. With her vision, energy and creativity, Susi is well prepared to guide the station.

Gary Reid will remain with the college to shepherd a number of special projects and new initiatives, as well as teach in the media management and content creation areas.

"The college is in an exciting new era of teaching and researching content creation, new media platforms, new business models and the application and impact of emerging broadcast technologies," said Prabu David, dean of the College of Communication Arts and Sciences. "Our future includes the Media Sandbox, the forthcoming NewsRoom, the FCC AM Revitalization project, the TV Spectrum re-pack, the forthcoming ATSC 3.0 TV broadcast standard, and much more. We are fortunate to have Gary's creative energy and expertise to draw upon across all of these areas as the college continues to raise the bar for excellence in Communication Arts and Sciences teaching, research and service."

Gary Reid was named director of Broadcasting in July of 2011, as the WKAR stations were brought into the College of Communication Arts & Sciences.

In the nearly five years since, Reid's accomplishments include:

The launch of award-winning radio and television programs such as Current State, Current Sports, Curious Crew, Forte, Beneath The Pines and a variety of specials, even as the operating budget was trimmed by a third.

A record number of awards for the stations, including two national television awards for Curious Crew and the coveted Marconi Award for Noncommercial Radio Station of the Year from the National Association of Broadcasters.

Five consecutive Public TV Station of the Year Awards from the Michigan Association of Broadcasters, the most recent announced this past May at the Great Lakes Broadcast Conference.

Reid's initiative also led to recent FCC approval for the acquisition of a new FM Translator license, which will expand the WKAR-AM programming to the FM band with a 24-hour programming schedule.

Reid began teaching in the Department of Telecommunication in 1976 and joined the faculty full-time in 1977. Teaching all the audio and video courses at the time, he also designed and built the departments two television and six audio studios. In addition, he served for 25 years as the internship director and 8 years as the director of Undergraduate Studies.

No stranger to broadcasting, Reid was the general manager for WDBM-FM, MSU’s student radio station, better known as The Impact. He put that station on the air in 1989 and led it for 25 years. During his tenure the station was named College Station of the Year for eleven consecutive years. He was one of the founding members of the MAB Foundation, and is currently the Vice President of the Michigan Association of Public Broadcasters.

In 1999 Reid received the Distinguished Senior Specialist award from MSU and in 2007 he was honored with the inaugural Faculty Impact Award from the college. That same year he was inducted into the Michigan Broadcast Hall of Fame and in 2011 was the youngest person to receive the MAB’s Lifetime Achievement Award.

In the area of philanthropy, he is the namesake of the Reid Endowed Scholarship for Professional Development in CAS and the Gary A. Reid Endowed Scholarship with the Michigan Association of Broadcasters.