Colorado Public Radio president Max Wycisk will be leaving the helm on June 30 after working with the radio station for 40 years.
Wycisk started at CPR as an on-air announcer, shifting to program director and then becoming president in 1978. He oversaw the shift from a single-signal radio station to one with 34 signals statewide and online.
“The organization is stronger than it’s ever been, a testament to our dedicated staff, the donors who support us and the hundreds of thousands of people who rely on us each and every day,” Wycisk said in a statement. “It’s been an honor to lead the development of a vital community resource that’s uniquely positioned to have an even greater future ahead.”
When he started, CPR was a dual news and classical music station. As he’s leaving now, CPR has separate full-time news and full-time classical stations as well as an additional third station called CPR OpenAir that plays new and independent music.
Wycisk increased CPR’s annual operating budget to $17 million and grew the staff to 122 employees, more than 30 of whom were hired in the past five years. He led CPR’s separation from the University of Denver, making it a fully independent nonprofit in 1984. He is credited with growing the organization’s broadcast and digital audiences at 600,000 and 200,000 listeners, respectively.
In 1996, Wycisk received the William H. Kling Award for Innovation and Entrepreneurship from Public Radio International.
CPR retained Blinkhorn LLC to conduct a nationwide search for Wycisk’s successor.
