PBS 45 & 49 President’s Report
Fall 2004
EDUCATION PROJECTS
Ohio PBS stations launch Chalkwaves: Imagine a classroom where a teacher can have instant access to instructional video and lesson plans that meet most of Ohios state content standards. Chalkwaves Ohio does just that. Its content consists of state-leased video from the most respected media producers in the nation as well as from Ohios own public television stations. Schools buy a hard drive and pay $1.45 per student to receive this material. Ohios prison system has also purchased this program for 30 adult facilities throughout the state. To learn more, visit www.ohiodigitalclassroom.net/about.asp.
"One State-Many Nations" professional development workshops: "Beyond outstanding!!!" wrote one teacher in her evaluation after attending a One State-Many Nations workshop. "This is the best packet of information I have acquired in my teaching career! What a tremendous gift to teachers! My sincere thanks!" PBS 45 & 49s multimedia project based on the history of Native Americans in Ohio, designed for students in grades 4-8, has become the best-received package we have ever produced. To date, our Department of Educational Services staff has trained 230 teachers to use the materials, which include video, Web and print components. Four more workshops are planned for late fall and early winter. To learn more, visit www.pbs4549.org/onestate.
Martha Holden Jennings grant to fund training and materials for multimedia packages: The Martha Holden Jennings Foundation recently funded training materials for four of PBS 45 & 49s multimedia curriculum packages. Covered in the grant are costs for 10 One State-Many Nations workshops; 10 Its a Gas: Math & Science of the Blimp workshops; three 108 Stitches: The Physics in Baseball workshops; five Sharing Performing Arts workshops; and print and tape duplication costs for Sharing Performing Arts.
Update: Sharing Performing Arts: Video production continues for Sharing Performing Arts, which is scheduled to premiere on PBS 45 & 49 in January. The series provides a behind-the-scenes look at theater production, from the actors to the set designers to the directors.
Ready To Learn enters seventh year in partnership with State of Ohio: Our Ready To Learn service begins its seventh year in partnership with the State of Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services. In the 2004-05 year, we will present 56 workshops for family childcare providers. Workshops will be conducted on topics such as brain development and math, social-emotional development, the physical environment of the classroom, language and literacy, and behavior management. All of the Ready To Learn workshops will correlate with the new Pre-K state standards.
Ready To Learn curriculum training under way with Jumpstart-Akron: PBS 45 & 49 is in the process of training volunteers and staff of the Jumpstart-Akron program in Ready To Learn curriculum materials. Jumpstart-Akron is a local/national program of AmeriCorps that believes every child should enter school prepared to succeed. To accomplish this, the organization recruits and trains college students to work one-on-one with preschool children to develop early language and literacy skills. Our local Jumpstart partner is housed at The University of Akron and serves 40 children in the Akron Head Start system.
Ready To Learn service report for FY04: Bree Silski, PBS 45 & 49s Ready To Learn coordinator, recently reported that in the 2003-04 year, the station delivered 66 workshops to 530 childcare providers and parents who care for 3,467 preschoolers.
Three new projects under way for 2005: Trauma and Loss will include short videos for K-8 students and an extensive video for professional development to help teachers work with students who have experienced trauma and loss. The Math and Science of Cooking will include five videos, a teachers guide and a Web site and will be directed at students in grades 4-8. The third project is called You Be the Producer. The videos will follow groups of students as they create documentaries. The multimedia package will also include a teachers guide and a Web site.
PROGRAMMING & LOCAL PRODUCTIONS
September broadcast of 2010 Moving Ahead creates buzz: PBS 45 & 49s Sept. 22 broadcast of 2010 Moving Ahead: A Forum for Reporting Progress, subtitled Race and Youngstown 2010: Vision or Division?, created a virtual buzz in the community. Community Development Agency Director Jay Williams moderated the intense and compelling live conversation among community members about issues of race in Youngstown and how those issues might affect the outcomes of the Youngstown 2010 plan. The program received front-page coverage in the Youngstown Vindicator the next day, and the conversation continued on talk radio in the market for several days after.
The broadcast only scratched the surface of race issues in the region. A second installment of 2010 Moving Ahead: A Forum for Reporting Progress: Race and Youngstown 2010: Vision or Division? Part II aired Nov. 30 on PBS 45 & 49 and simulcast on WYSU-FM.
2010 Moving Ahead funded for FY05: Right on the heels of PBS 45 & 49s very successful 2010 Moving Ahead broadcast in September, the Tony Lariccia family has stepped up to sponsor the series for a second year. That funding will make four quarterly reports possible on PBS 45 & 49..
Forgotten War Forgotten Warrior: Youngstown native Ron Jongelings documentary featuring compelling stories from area Korean War veterans aired on PBS 45 & 49 on Sunday, Nov. 7. The program profiles members of Mahoning Valley Chapter #137 of the Korean War Veterans Association. Jongeling produced the program as part of a masters degree requirement in KSUs Journalism and Mass Communications program.
High school football returns: Thanks to funding from the Cleveland Browns, Cuyahoga County Community College and U.S. Bank, PBS 45 & 49 is broadcasting its second season of The PBS 45 & 49 / Classic Teleproductions High School Football Game of the Week. Featuring match-ups between northeast Ohios best football teams, the series broadcasts games in their entirety. (The games are aired on tape-delay basis because the Ohio High School Athletics Association does not allow live broadcast.) Play-by-play is delivered by Dave Bacon and color commentary by Bill Boronkay, both of Classic Teleproductions of Twinsburg. Classic Teleproductions produces the series for PBS 45 & 49.
PBS 45 & 49 and Classic Teleproductions have added a new feature to the series this season: Student of the Week, sponsored by U.S. Bank. A student from one of the competing schools is recognized for extraordinary academic achievement and community service in a halftime feature story, and the student receives $250 toward a savings or checking account at U.S. Bank.
Stark County Alive!: PBS 45 & 49 premiered a new local series in September that focused on the people and places of Stark County. The weekly Stark County Alive! took viewers to destinations in the region to tell the stories of its economic renaissance and to meet the individuals making a difference. The series was produced by Canton native Ron Ponder.
The Contractor pilot: PBS 45 & 49 aired the pilot episode of a series called The Contractor in September. Produced by Paris Township resident Vadim Eelen, the series follows a Canton-based contractor named Joe Reese to document what it actually takes to get a house built. Future episodes of the series are pending.
OUTREACH & EVENTS
PBS chef Lidia Bastianich makes appearance for dinner and book signing: The host of Lidias Italian-American Kitchen was in northeast Ohio in November to do three events for PBS 45 & 49. On Saturday, Nov. 13, she signed books at The Grand Cru Shoppe in Beachwood Place Mall, and on Sunday, Nov. 14, she signed books at West Point Market in Akron. On Sunday evening, she was the guest of honor at a wine dinner at Vaccaros Trattoria in Bath, where 100 guests enjoyed a special menu and premium Italian wines. All proceeds benefited PBS 45 & 49.
KidsFair Akron 2004: PBS 45 & 49 participated in the fifth annual KidsFair Akron event at the John S. Knight Center in downtown Akron. Four PBS Kids characters headlined the event. Organized by the Shaw Jewish Community Center, the event drew about 10,000 people.
An Evening With Mark Russell: PBS 45 & 49 and E.J. Thomas Performing Arts Hall in Akron co-hosted an appearance by political humorist Mark Russell on Thursday, Oct. 7. About 750 audience members enjoyed the show, and 100 attendees stayed after the performance for a reception with Mark Russell.
Station partners with CVNP for Tim Janis appearance: PBS 45 & 49, the Cuyahoga Valley National Park and the Cuyahoga Valley National Park Association co-hosted a performance by composer Tim Janis on Saturday, Oct. 23. Janis, whose PBS special aired nationwide in March 2004, did the concert free of cost as part of a national tour for PBS stations.
PBS 45 & 49s Make It Myself! Expo: The 2005 Make It Myself! Expo is scheduled for Sept. 23-25 in Akron. The international Craft and Hobby Association has already signed on as a major sponsor of the event. The next Make It Myself! Expo will feature a consumer show as well as variety of hands-on workshops in crafts, sewing and quilting with national public television personalities and local instructors.
