WHJE is a student-run radio station broadcasting an Alternative format, licensed to Carmel, Indiana, United States. The station is currently owned by the Carmel Clay School Corporation. The transmitter is located atop Carmel High School, in Carmel, Indiana. WHJE is a Non-Commercial Educational high school station. All radio staff members are Carmel High School students ranging from sophomores through seniors WHJE was founded in 1963 by Carmel High School Principal Earl F. Lemme, and has been in continuous operation since then. From 2006-07 to the 2016-17 school year, the program was managed by Mr. Brian Spilbeler. Mr. Dominic James now oversees the program, and has been in the position since the 2017-18 year. The Chairwoman of the Carmel High School Communications Department is Mrs. Terri Ramos. WHJE has several notable alumni with prominent roles in broadcasting, including positions with the Indiana Pacers, Indiana Fever, National Public Radio and ESPN.
Content and Coverage
The station broadcasts 15 varsity and junior varsity Carmel sports live from August to June, with the most listened-to games being varsity football in the fall, boys varsity basketball in the winter, and varsity baseball in the spring. Other prominent sports broadcast by WHJE include soccer, girls varsity basketball, junior-varsity basketball, Carmel Icehounds hockey, and varsity softball. Most years feature 100 or more individual sporting event broadcasts. Students occupy all the roles of live broadcasts, and have recently broadcast from the Indianapolis Colts' Lucas Oil Stadium, and Banker's Life Fieldhouse. Students have also had the opportunity to broadcast Carmel Greyhounds baseball games from Victory Field, the home of the Indianapolis Indians "AAA" Minor League baseball club. Students produce between 10 and 20 different weekly live shows, and produce between 10 and 15 weekly podcasts, depending on the time of year. Many of the episodes are now available for listening on the iTunes Podcasts app, TuneIn Radio, and other streaming services. For the past 5 years, the most popular show on the station has been "The Breaking Point" created by Jackson Ammons and Ryan Ruthrauff. The "Breaking Point" show has won multiple awards at both the state and national level for high school and college radio.
Awards
WHJE has won many awards at both the state, regional, and national level. In 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2020, WHJE was named "Best High School Radio Station" in the state of Indiana by the Indiana Association of School Broadcasters. In the 2018 Intercollegiate Broadcasting System High School Radio Awards, WHJE was nominated for 25 categories, and took home 10 1st-Place trophies. In the 2019 edition of the IBS Awards, 62 submissions by WHJE were chosen as finalists in 45 categories, with over a dozen 1st-place awards. They were also been named one of "The 40 Best Little Radio Stations in the U.S." by Paste Magazinein September of 2010.
