For Little Rock Public Radio, this is Dan Boice, with Naming Arkansas.
The federal government began approving call signs for radio stations in 1912. The first stations had three-letter call signs, but since the 1920s, new stations have had four letters. And since 1923, stations east of the Mississippi River have had call signs starting with W, while stations on the west side start with the letter K. At about this time, station KUOA – for the University of Arkansas – began broadcasting from Fayetteville’s Engineering Department. It has since been sold and now broadcasts music from Siloam Springs.
UA-Little Rock received a permit for a station, which went on the air in 1986 as KUAR. For ten years, the university jointly operated with the Little Rock School District both KUAR and KLRE, which stands for Little Rock Education. In 1995, UA-Little Rock took over both stations, and in 2023, a century after the first U of A radio station, KUAR became Little Rock Public Radio.
For the University of Arkansas at Monticello this is Dan Boice.