Guess what? Brentwood has its own radio station. Maybe you’ve heard about it. Maybe you’ve even listened to it. Now let me tell you a little about it. The station is WXBA, and it’s located at 88.1 on the FM dial. It is a student-run station out of Brentwood High School, currently broadcasting 47 hours a week. It is owned and operated by the Brentwood Public School District at a radiated power of 180 watts, under the authority of the Federal Communications Commission. Students who work at the station must pass a rigorous training course and receive an FCC license. For on-air positions, they must be trained on the equipment and pass an audition.

WXBA began in 1975 out of a small studio and office on the second floor of the Ross building.  Its initial output was ten watts, so the station barely made it to the Brentwood/Central Islip border three miles away.  It was upgraded to 180 watts in the summer of 1981.During the 1988-89 school year, the station moved to better facilities in the DiPietro Learning Center.  It is currently on the air Monday to Saturday 10 am-11 pm with a mixture of music, talk, news,reviews,and comedy.  But one thing you won’t hear is commercials.  WXBA is strictly nonprofit and gets its funding wholly from the School District.

Among the many alumni of WXBA are Long Island radio and TV personality Rick Belyea; filmmaker Bill LiBrandi; former Villanova basketball star Chuck Everson; and radio DJs Christine Cono, Alison Fariington, and Helen Howard.

-N.  Ziino, Local History Newsletter, April 2007