the vision for wxpr was developed by peter nordgren, whose previous involvement in noncommercial radio was with wssu(fm) at the university of wisconsin-superior, as well as kbsb and kaxe. other early staff and supporters included mary kay foltz sherer, a fundraising specialist from minocqua who would go on to be development director at wisconsin public radio, retired army signal corps colonel elmer goetsch, and construction worker robert m. (mick) fiocchi of rhinelander, later wxpr's general manager. the first program director was w. scott yankus, later with minnesota public radio and marketplace (radio program); other staff included news director jeff gavin and programming staff rita rahoi, later a professor of communications at winona state university. wxpr was one of fourteen stations in underserved areas whose development in the early 1980s was supported by expansion grants from the corporation for public broadcasting.