By Emme Hogge, Associate Editor
On Dec. 2, members of El Camino’s KYDS radio club joined together in the S-1 media room to participate in a 24-hour Audiothon.
Audiothon is a charity event put on by the KYDS radio station and it’s held twice a year, once in the winter and another in the spring. During Audiothon, students who have been a part of the KYDS class or are a member of the club spend a full 24 hours in the media room, rotating on and off air.
This year, Audithon was held from 8 a.m. on Dec. 2 to 8 a.m. on Dec. 3.
Typically, the winter Audiothon raises money for the KYDS radio station, to buy things like t-shirts and equipment.
KYDS Radio Club Advisor Matthew Sumpter provided insight into the recipient of this year’s funds.
“This year, we’re doing a 50/50 with AVID—those funds can be used to help kids with field trips and also college [applications],” Sumpter said.
In the spring, KYDS plans to partner with a local charity. The previous year, Audiothon was able to raise a couple thousand dollars for Girls Rock Sacramento.
This year, the GoFundMe set up for Audiothon received $1,795 in donations, to be split evenly between AVID and KYDS.
Although Audiothon usually raises thousands of dollars for the KYDS program itself, Sumpter expressed his gratitude to the district, who helps to support their program with funds that come from the state. Because of this, operations costs are decreased, allowing for fundraising to become more about the students’ experience, and less about the money.
KYDS Radio Club President Camryn Craun (‘23) attended Audiothon and explained how things are run over the 24-hour long event.
“We have about 40 people participating in Audiothon—we have half an hour shifts right now, and every half an hour, we have new DJs going on the air,” Craun said.
Students spent their time between shifts playing games, hanging out with others and, in some cases, sleeping.
There was a table full of snacks and drinks for the students to share, and one student provided a VR headset. Adding on to the fun activities, the club hosted a karaoke event on the S-lawn during lunch for all EC students to participate in.
Joanna Gayoba (‘26) explained that for her first year participating in Audiothon, it was an enjoyable experience.
“Obviously we go on the radio, we interact with each other and we play games—basically just [hang] out,” Gayoba said. “It’s super exciting.”
Audiothon has been, and will continue to be, a great event that EC students have the opportunity to participate in. It gives students hands-on radio experience, provides benefits for different programs at EC and in the community, and is overall an experience that all participants have enjoyed over the years.
For more information about Audiothon, see Sumpter in S-1.
The Eagle Eye Newspaper 