Fundraising falls short

CFRC 101.9 FM’s annual fundraiser below goal by $5,000

CFRC hoped to raise $25
CFRC hoped to raise $25

CFRC held its 9th annual on-air funding drive two weeks ago, raising 86 per cent of their funding goal of $25,000.

The drive, which ran from Feb. 7 to 16, raised just over $21,000.

The goal was to buy a new digital broadcasting console, which would replace the station’s current analog console, a relic of the 1980s.

The purchase of the new console is part of the station’s revitalization plan, presented at AMS Assembly on Jan. 30.

At Assembly, CFRC proposed an increase to their mandatory fee from $5.07 to $7.50. The proposal was passed, and is subject to approval at the AMS Annual General Meeting on March 18.

CFRC will become financially autonomous on May 1. The University plans to implement a new budget model where faculties pay rent for space, and CFRC will begin paying rent under this model in 2017. Because of this financial situation, CFRC is seeking to raise enough money over the next three years to cushion the blow of paying rent.

Although the on-air part of the funding drive ended without reaching its goal, Kristiana Clemens, the station’s Operations Officer, said she remained “cautiously optimistic”.

“There’s always a number of donors who send in their contributions after the on-air portion of the campaign has ended and whatnot, so it looks like we’re on track,” she said.

She also said the station doesn’t know yet the exact numbers of donations, and won’t for up to six weeks.

Regardless of whether they reach their goal, fundraising will remain important to CFRC’s future.

“What we are looking at now … is to focus our capital revitalization and our HR revitalization plans in this three-year grace period that we have, so that by the time we get to 2017 we’re not facing a huge number of costs to replace obsolete and broken equipment, and so that our operation can be streamlined a bit to help reduce our staffing costs,” Clemens said.

“We’re not going to become any less dependent on the support of the community moving forward, and we’re anticipating a steady and sustainable level of support in the form of donations as part of our plan for revitalization and fiscal sustainability.”

Student fees, which come from both the AMS and the SGPS, make up 50 per cent of the station’s operating budget. Fifteen to 20 per cent comes from grants, and another 15 to 20 comes from commercial activities including equipment or studio rentals.

Listener donations, the bulk of which Clemens said come during the funding drive, make up the remaining 15 per cent.

Whether or not CFRC eventually meets their fundraising goal — the station is planning further events — the broadcasting console will be replaced, although by a used analog console instead of a new digital one.

Clemens has been involved with CFRC since before the decision to transition to financial autonomy was made, and by 2017 will have seen the station through a number of major changes.

“CFRC is so special as the first and longest-running campus broadcaster in the world … I have a real love for history and connecting to the past, and CFRC is a place that brings that history alive, especially in an area that I am extremely passionate about,” she said.

Tags

Campus, radio

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