100 Best Communities for Young People

Is your community one of the nation’s best places for kids?

America’s Promise Alliance invites you to apply for its 2011 Best Communities for Young People competition, presented by ING. The contest rewards and recognizes communities that make, “…extraordinary efforts to reduce dropout rates and provide outstanding services and support to their youth.”

Winning locations receive special media recognition, support for a local celebration, an online grant search subscription  and more…

Read details about the opportunity and apply here.

Application deadline is May 27, 2011.

Explore an interactive map of the 2010 winning communities:

NCME’s Desire Vincent Attends Launch of UN Women

In February, NCME’s student employee, UW-Madison senior Desire Vincent, was a delegate at the United Nations’ 55th Meeting of the Commission on the Status of Women. Although Desire was not there as an NCME or public media representative, her experience was relevant to some amazing community engagement efforts in public media. ITVS has been doing some great work with their Women’s Empowerment screenings in 2010, and we know more great things are coming soon from them in this arena!

As Desire describes below, what she learned at this globally significant meeting reflects key aspects of successful community engagement efforts. Her realization that being invited to be heard and speaking up could give her a greater appreciation for her own life experience highlights the importance of listening—not only as a listener, but also from the perspective of those being heard.

Resources from NPT’s “Next Door Neighbors” Webinar

The face of the nation is changing dramatically as new immigrants and unique cultures combine to create a more diverse America. Public media can play a vital role in bringing diverse neighbors together and building trust and understanding in local communities.

On March 16 we presented a webinar that explored Nashville Public Television’s (NPT) Next Door Neighbors project—an innovative model for engagement that uses documentary film and sustained community relationships to strengthen Nashville’s civic health.

We were joined by:

 

Kevin Crane, vice president of content and technology at NPT

 

John Creighton, a member of The Harwood Institute for Public Innovation’s national faculty;

 

 

Remziya Suleyman, policy coordinator at the Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition.

 

 

If you missed the presentation, you may view the archive. Or, just review the PowerPoint slides.

You can learn more about Next Door Neighbors by watching this short clip, or visiting the project’s website.

 

Inspire Literacy with “SUPER WHY!”

Join us on Wednesday, March 23 at 1 p.m. ET to learn more about Super Why Reading Camps from the PBS KIDS series SUPER WHY!

Read more and register to attend.

During the one-hour webinar we’ll be joined by representatives from WGBH, WNED, Iowa Public Television and the series’ producers, who will share new resources and advice for how to inspire young readers in your community.

Also, SUPER WHY! will have two life-size character standees to give away as part of drawings during the webinar.

Presenters include:

John Craig
Vice President of Education & Outreach
WNED

Mary Haggerty
Manager, Educational Outreach
WGBH

Trista Peitzman
PK-12 Coordinator
Iowa Public Television

Karen Samnick
Vice President of Marketing
Out of the Blue

 

 

Deadline Extension: CPB Community Hub RFP

Based upon applicant feedback and to ensure that stations can provide the best possible information on their eligibility, CPB is extending the application deadline for its Dropout Awareness and Youth Engagement Initiative Public Media Community Hub RFP.

The new deadline is 11 p.m. EST Wednesday, March 2.

CPB will award twelve, $200,000 grants to public media stations that develop and implement effective plans to positively impact the dropout crisis in partnership with local education, community, civic, corporate and other relevant organizations.

Want to learn more? Access the grant RFP and application tool. Have questions? Check out FAQs, or e-mail CPB representatives Michael Fragale, Doug McKenney or Fiona Macintyre.

$60M Doc Film Effort to Connect Storytellers with Scientists

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) has announced that it will be creating a $60M initiative to produce science and education-themed documentary pieces for television. HHMI has a history of funding science programming in public media (such as NOVA scienceNOW), and dedicates $70M annually to science education.

HHMI will be working to bring on board an executive producer who will be responsible for the direction of the initiative. In addition, “HHMI will collaborate with broadcasters and other partners to develop, produce, and disseminate programs and specials. ‘We are looking forward to working with organizations that will help us bring great stories to large audiences.’ [HHMI’s vice-president for science education Sean] Carroll noted….”

With this initiative, HHMI appears ready to create opportunities to connect communities around science education: “The documentary film initiative also includes a major educational component…HHMI’s staff…will work hand-in-hand with the executive producer and filmmakers to repackage the film footage into materials that can be used by teachers and students at both the high school and college level.”

Resources from “The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!”

NCME welcomes KQED Wednesday, February 16 for a special webinar to introduce PBS station outreach, education, and community engagement staff—along with educators—to opportunities for educational community engagement around The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!™

We’ll highlight available resources, report on successful educational outreach, and suggest ways of connecting with your community. Panelists include: Kim Storey, consultant with KQED and creator of The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!™ parent and teacher websites and educational resources; Amy Puffenberger, Manager of Outreach, Education Department, WQED; and Yovel Schwartz, Project Supervisor for The Cat in the Hat Knows a Lot About That!™ at KQED Presents.

Register here to participate.