Akron Public Schools AAA “91.3 The Summit” WAPS Akron/90.7 WKTL Stuthers/Youngstown, OH will have a new Program Director for the first time in 30 years.
Bill Gruber, who announced his retirement earlier this year, will be replaced by Brad Savage. Savage has been with Saga AAA “106.1 The Corner” WCNR Charlottesville, VA since its launch in 2006 and has previously programmed AAA 107.1 WQKL Ann Arbor, Alternative 96.3 WMAD Madison, and Active Rock 100.1 KBBM Columbia, MO.
Brad Savage has been named PD of Akron Public Schools Noncomm AAA 91.3 The Summit, WAPS/Akron-Canton, OH and WKTL/Youngstown, OH. Savage has been with Saga AAA 106.1 The Corner WCNR/Charlottesville, VA since its inception in 2006. He succeeds PD Bill Gruber who retires after 30 years with WAPS.
Savage remarked, “After 9 years with WCNR 106.1 The Corner, I’m so proud of the station, staff and the legacy brand we’ve built in Charlottesville. I was standing in the control room when we launched the signal in 2006, so I feel tremendously close to The Corner. It’s very difficult to move on from a world class company, area and station. But I’ve been eager to learn the Noncomm Triple A universe for quite some time. The Summit (WAPS/Akron-Canton and WKTL/Youngstown) is a well-established leader in Noncomm AAA/music discovery, and I am also particularly excited about the HD/Streaming side-channels Summit Flashbacks, KIDJAM! Radio™ and Rock & Recovery™. As PD Bill Gruber is retiring after 30 years at WAPS, 91.3 The Summit is positioned smartly for growth into the next 5-10+ years, thanks to their brilliant staff and vision across all platforms. Radio’s future is yet unwritten and it will be this special tier of mission-based music discovery stations blazing the trail for the next steps. Local service and music curation is what makes radio remarkable and I am so proud to be the chosen to lead these stations.”
Among Savage’s first tasks will be to help select the MD/midday host at WAPS, which has been vacant since Liz Felix left in May to join WNKU/Cincinnati. The Summit is also seeking touring bands to perform in their 70-seat “Studio C” performance facility located in their broadcast building. Studio C listener sessions are also featured as a local weekly PBS TV program on Western Reserve Public Media (PBS-TV 45 & 49/WNEO & WEAO-TV).
106.1 The Corner was recently named AAA Station Of The Year (Markets 50+) at the FMQB Triple A Conference in Boulder, CO. Savage has been named Best Local Radio Personality by Cville Weekly each year since 2011. WCNR was voted as Best Local Radio Station in Cville Weekly’s “Best of Cville” in 2015. Savage has also been named AAA PD Of The Year (Markets 50+) each year since 2010 at the FMQB Triple A Conference.
Savage launched Saga sister AAA 98.1 The River (W251AO-WOXL-HD2/Asheville, NC) in 2008. Prior to WCNR, Savage was PD with AAA WQKL/Ann Arbor, Alternative WMAD/Madison, and Active Rock KBBM/Columbia, MO. He began his career in the Twin Cities area doing on-air work with REV105 (KREV/WREV) and Cities 97 (KTCZ).