The WSRE-TV Foundation filed a first-in-the-nation, federal lawsuit today to prevent Pensacola State College from taking control of millions in funds donated by citizens in the region to support WSRE’s popular community programming.
Why this matters: For nearly 60 years, WSRE has been a trusted presence in Northwest Florida and South Alabama — educating generations of children, supporting classrooms, honoring military families, documenting Gulf Coast history, and providing reliable information when hurricanes threaten. The WSRE-TV Foundation — the nonprofit supported by neighbors, families, veterans, and local businesses — has long been the engine behind that service, sustaining the station with private charitable gifts from the public.
Today’s legal action seeks to protect those donations after Pensacola State College moved to sever ties with the Foundation and demanded control to sweep the donor-raised funds for use by the college.
According to the Foundation’s federal complaint, PSC’s president went so far as to “require the dissolution of a pre-existing private foundation and demand that funds donated by private citizens be turned over to the government entity, PSC.”
- “People generously donated these dollars because they believe in the education, community storytelling, and reliable local service that WSRE provides,” said Amy Day, Chair of the Foundation board. “They did not give so their gifts could be taken away and transferred into a government budget. Protecting the trust of our community and donors’ intent is our absolute responsibility.”
A Case About Protecting Private Donations
The Foundation emphasized that the lawsuit centers on a simple principle shared across the region: when private citizens step up to support a community mission, government should not be allowed to seize those charitable gifts for its own use.
- Individuals, families and businesses across Northwest Florida and South Alabama have donated to the Foundation — from small monthly gifts to major endowments — to support WSRE’s programming and community services. Those contributions were made voluntarily, with clear intent, and with the understanding that they would be used for public television, not college operations.
- The complaint also details PSC’s attempts to access the Foundation’s bank accounts and even intercept checks mailed by private citizens to support WSRE’s mission.
“Private generosity built and sustains WSRE,” said Day. “The people who gave these funds deserve to have their trust honored, not broken.”
- When Day sought to reach accord with PSC about having WSRE become an independent entity that could continue to raise public dollars to support PBS’ beloved programming, the college president summarily dismissed such a possibility with an emphatic ‘no.’
WSRE’s Community Role: Far More Than Television
WSRE has played a vital role throughout the region’s history, serving as a trusted resource to more than 1.2 million viewers during everyday life and during the Gulf Coast’s most challenging moments.
• Children’s education and early learning, through trusted, popular programming and WSRE’s Imagination Station centers
• Support for teachers and classrooms, including free curriculum-aligned tools
• Service to military families, with educational and cultural programming that reflects the region’s military heritage
• Local documentaries and storytelling that preserve the history and identity of the Gulf Coast
• Trusted storm information, including long-form hurricane preparation programming with the National Weather Service, local emergency managers, and school safety officials
• Support for teachers and classrooms, including free curriculum-aligned tools
• Service to military families, with educational and cultural programming that reflects the region’s military heritage
• Local documentaries and storytelling that preserve the history and identity of the Gulf Coast
• Trusted storm information, including long-form hurricane preparation programming with the National Weather Service, local emergency managers, and school safety officials
“Whether it’s the first day of school or the days before a hurricane, WSRE has been there for this community,” said Day. “That is what donors have invested in.”
PSC Chose to Leave PBS. Donors Did Not.
Earlier this year, PSC voted to end WSRE’s PBS affiliation. The Foundation affirmed that PSC has the right to make programming decisions for the college — but that choice does not give PSC permission to repurpose private charitable gifts.
- “PSC made its decision,” said Day. “But donors made theirs, too. And their support was for public television programming that we have been providing for decades.”
Looking Ahead
The Foundation is actively exploring pathways to continue offering PBS programming, local storytelling, and community services independent of PSC.
- “Our goal is simple,” said Day. “Keep public media in the hands of the community that built it. And keep the trust of the donors who made WSRE strong.”
