WMTN 93.1 & 103.1 at St. Andrew’s-Sewanee School captured two “best-in-show” awards Nov. 4, at the national competition for high school broadcasting called The Drury Awards. Winners were announced at North Central College in Glen Ellyn, Ill. The John Drury High School Radio Awards were created to recognize outstanding excellence in high school radio broadcasting. The awards are named in honor of award-winning ABC-Chicago news anchor, John Drury. Over 150 high school stations participated in the contest.

WMTN took home top honors in two categories — Best Radio Drama, and best Podcast. Additionally the students received a second place win in the Best Talk Show category. The win for Best Radio Drama came for the show “The Lodger.” Students included Luke Baird, Elliott Boyd, Kendall Elder, Thomas Billups, Charlie Relford, Cameo Smith, and Reagan Vaughan. Best Podcast honors went to Cameo Smith and Kendall Elder for their podcast titled “Sun & Moon, Episode 2.” The station also picked up a second place award for Best talk show for “Ask Elliot-holiday edition!” Students included Elliott Boyd, Kendall Elder, Thomas Billups, and Luke Baird. Honorable mention also went to Kenneth Simmons for his show “Music out of Time” in the the category of Best Specialty Music Show.

WMTN faculty sponsor J.R. Ankney was elated at the recent announcement. Ankney said “Our only goal for the first year was to enter and possibly secure one nomination. I was stunned when we received four national nominations. I am speechless that we managed to actually win in two of the most competitive categories and place second overall in a third category. The 2023-24 station manager Alex Colón said “I’m so proud of the student team that contributed to the shows. It came together beautifully, and I know that we’re only climbing higher.” Former station manager Luke Baird — who in his own right was instrumental in getting the new station off the ground — said, “WMTN is much more than a high school radio station. It’s a unique place where everyone can express themselves artistically, technically, and creatively. I’m excited to watch as WMTN radio continues on its journey.”

WMTN-LP has been on the air since 2004 at St. Andrew’s-Sewanee School and has experienced a renaissance in the last two years. Currently WMTN is on the air twenty four hours a day broadcasting a variety of music, shows, and news. The station is on the air at 93.1 & 103.1 locally and streams live at <www.sasradio.org>. Future plans for the “Voice of the Mountain” include an upgraded signal with a new antenna that will reach even more local listeners, more local programming, remote broadcasting, and the inclusion of voices from the members of our mountain community.

For more information about St. Andrew’s-Sewanee School and WMTN radio visit <www.sasweb.org> and <www.sasradio.org>.