Harbert Hills Academy Raises Support for Radio Ministry in Annual Share-a-Thon

Harbert Hills Academy, Tenn., a self-supporting institution within the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference’s territory, hosted its annual Power of Praise Share-a-Thon earlier this month, receiving support from across the conference, including a visit from Conference President Steve Haley, who stopped in to encourage the school’s broadcast ministry during the three-day fundraiser.
The share-a-thon, held December 1–3, 2025, raises operating funds for the academy’s 100,000-watt Christian radio station, which depends on community giving to meet its roughly $100,000 yearly budget. Harbert Hills Academy President Steve Dickman said the annual fundraiser helps keep the station operating and gives listeners a way to support a ministry that reaches multiple counties in Tennessee and into northern Mississippi.

Founded in the early 1950s, Harbert Hills Academy has grown from a small training school into a campus serving approximately 70 students annually. The school follows a practical-education model and offers hands-on training through a farm, bakery, television studio, and even a 49-bed nursing home.

The academy’s radio station, created in the early 1970s, remains one of the most distinctive features of the campus. Originally assembled with donated equipment and volunteer labor, the operation eventually secured a full-power FM license—an opportunity Dickman said is nearly impossible to obtain today. After a major equipment loss from a lightning strike, the station was rebuilt with a fully digital system, expanded coverage, and studio upgrades. It now broadcasts LifeTalk Radio programming along with student-produced content 24 hours a day.

“Kids light up when you give them something practical like that, something they can get engaged in.” Dickman said. “Anytime you expose students to things they’ve not been exposed to before, it gives them an idea: ‘Okay, maybe I could do this someday.’”

The fundraiser included live music, testimonies, and student participation. This year, children from the Lawrenceburg School, Tenn., visited the station to sing on air and assist with the broadcast.

Haley toured the studio, met students, and joined a live interview about the role of Christian radio in the conference. At the end of his visit, he expressed appreciation for the academy’s mission.  

“For around 75 years, Harbert Hills has not only produced graduates who have gone on to bless God’s church throughout the conference, but also around the world,” Haley said. “The campus radio station, which is now in its 51st year of ministry, has also had a meaningful impact through broadcasting its life-changing mission of grace and biblical truth in South Central Tennessee. I view the missional contributions of Harbert Hills Academy, not in competition, but in support of the greater purpose of the Church in the Kentucky-Tennessee Conference.”