As innovative technologies embrace our society, encouraging and strengthening civic participation, conversation, and interaction through web-based also mobile applications and social networks, great concern exists regarding the accessibility to credible and up-to-date information amongst communities of color – Latino, Native American, Pacific Islander, African American, and Asian American – as well as low income and senior citizens.
Today’s public media must do more to fully reflect the public’s needs and personal welfare; do more to engage community members at the local level. America needs “informed communities,” places where democratic values of openness, inclusion, participation, and empowerment thrive across all appropriate media. The practice of such a model ensures that communities are open, officials are accountable, and that the public is engaged.
Based on other service corps models, such as Teach for America, the PMC is a new national service that proposes to promote and extend broadband adoption in underserved communities by placing Fellows skilled in technology, media production, and outreach in residencies at underperforming high schools, public broadcast stations, and non-profit community anchor institutions. Working in regionally managed teams, the Fellows will develop interactive web-based and mobile applications driven by compelling local public interest content; design and run training programs for influential community members who can extend the training into the wider community (including educators, parents, youth leaders and social service providers); and observe, document, and analyze patterns of use to inform the evolving national standards around 21st century skills and the recently announced national broadband plan.
The PMC beta project will focus on African American and Latino communities in Washington, DC from June 21, 2010 to December 31, 2010.
On Thursday, June 9, 2010, the National Black Programming Consortium announced the selection of 15 Fellows from a highly competitive pool of applicants, and public media and community partners to kick off the beta launch of the Public Media Corps in Washington, DC.
Each Fellow will serve a full-time paid six-month residency in local partner organizations that serve predominately Latino and African American residents in Columbia Heights and East of the River in Wards 7 and 8, respectively to develop interactive web-based and mobile applications, design and run training programs for parents, teachers, students, social service providers and community leaders and connect communities to public media infrastructure partners, including PBS and local stations WHUT and WETA. Check out the Fellows, and keep an eye out for their coming community campaigns. PMC public media and community partners include:
ANACOSTIA COMMUNITY MUSEUM
SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION
The mission of the Anacostia Community Museum (ACM) is to challenge perceptions, broaden perspectives, generate new knowledge, and deepen understanding about the ever-changing concepts and realities of ‘community’ while maintaining its strong ties to Anacostia and the D.C. Metropolitan region. Founded on September 15, 1967, ACM has been a leader in providing a myriad of formal programs including; exhibitions, research, tours, lectures, performances, and demonstrations. The Museum has afforded unique learning opportunities through its Museum Academy Program, which offers after-school and summer cultural enrichment programs, career awareness days, and internship components for children in the District of Columbia. ACM is committed to providing the catalysts for critical thought about issues that impact people; to further developing collections, exhibitions, programs, and research that examine the development of communities and provide provocative insights on future possibilities; to employing cutting-edge approaches in the museum and through outreach activities to present social and cultural issues that impact communities; and to be the convener of stakeholders and collaborations around shared community issues.
ANACOSTIA NEIGHBORHOOD LIBRARY
The community of Anacostia, one of the oldest residential areas in Washington, D.C. The District of Columbia Public Library has provided library services for the Anacostia community since 1936. The current location on Good Hope Road was home to the first permanent branch in 1956 until it was replaced with a temporary structure in 2007 in preparation for a new environmentally sustainable building opened on May 26, 2010. The inviting, two-story library is 22,000 square feet and features: separate spaces for adults, teens and children decorated with public art by Ward 7 artists, 40,000 books, CDs, DVDs, and other library materials, 40 public access computers and free Wi-Fi Internet access, mobile laptop cart with 20 computers, a large programming room for up to 100 people, and conference rooms and quiet study rooms. The state-of-the-art environmental friendly site has energy efficient lighting, roof that reflects sunlight to keep the building cooler in the summer, solar panels on the roof to heat water for the building, bio-retention pond that removes pollutants from rain water that flows into the Anacostia river, and lots of natural lighting and outdoor scenery. The Anacostia Neighborhood Library is a vibrant center of activity for residents. The library provides environments that invite reading, learning and community discussion and equips people to learn all their lives, to embrace diversity and to build a thriving city. We are proud to be a recognized force in the community for engaging the mind, expanding opportunities and elevating the quality of life.
ANACOSTIA SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL
Anacostia Senior High School is located at 1601 16th Street, SE and serves 1087 students in grades 9 to 12. The school underwent an academic restructuring in 2008-09 that resulted in the creation of four distinct learning academies within the greater Anacostia Senior High School body, each with its own principal, dean, counselor and staff of teachers to provide a level of personalization and support comprehensive instruction to each of Anacostia’s student populations: incoming 9th graders, those students over-age and under credit, and 10th through 12th graders. All Anacostia students may participate in the numerous extracurricular clubs and sports or pursue accelerated and AP coursework. To complement its internal restructuring, Anacostia will undergo a full modernization this spring, welcoming its students back to a fully updated edifice in spring 2011.
CENTRONIA
CentroNía is a nationally recognized, award-winning educational organization providing affordable, high quality education, professional development and family-support services in a bilingual, multicultural environment to more than 1,500 children, youth and families in the greater Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. CentroNia strives to be the premier educational leader for bilingual, multicultural children, youth and families in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. Success will be measured by our ability to: raise educational achievement of all children and youth served, increase support for professional development of educational and community leaders, develop adults to be strong child advocates, and create a new generation of educational centers that will inform the work of bilingual, multicultural communities and organizations throughout the country.
LATIN AMERICAN YOUTH CENTER
Founded in 1968 and incorporated as a non-profit 501(c)(3) in 1974 for the purpose of serving immigrant Latino youth, the Latin American Youth Center (LAYC) has grown from a small grassroots recreation center to a nationally recognized organization serving all low-income youth and families across the District of Columbia and in Maryland’s Prince George’s and Montgomery Counties. LAYC achieves its mission by operating a regional network of youth centers and public charter schools with a shared commitment to meet young people where they are and help them make a successful transition to young adulthood. LAYC provides multi-lingual, culturally sensitive programs in five areas: Educational Enhancement, Workforce Investment, Social Services, Art + Media, and Advocacy.
PARKLANDS COMMUNITY CENTER
Parklands Community Center (PCC) is a community-based organization with a past firmly planted in success through years of accomplishments and commitment to residents living east of the river in Washington, D.C. Since its founding in 1980, PCC’s services and programs have made it possible for children, youth and parents to have positive and clear choices that improved their standard of living.
Through perseverance and longevity, PCC has developed many branches of year-round programming for children, youth and adults: community festivals; city-wide family strengthening conferences; computer training; family bonding activities; parenting workshops; youth leadership training; and life-skills workshops and family strengthening support services. We strive to prepare our clients to meet the evolving challenges and expectations of society.
PBS
PBS, with its nearly 360 member stations, offers all Americans – from every walk of life – the opportunity to explore new ideas and new worlds through television and online content. Each month, PBS reaches more than 110 million people through their local stations and nearly 19 million people online, inviting them to experience the worlds of science, history, nature and public affairs; to hear diverse viewpoints; and to take front row seats to world-class drama and performances. PBS’ broad array of programs has been consistently honored by the industry’s most coveted award competitions. Teachers of children from pre-K through 12th grade turn to PBS for digital content and services that help bring classroom lessons to life. PBS’ premier children’s TV programming and Web site, pbskids.org, are parents’ and teachers’ most trusted partners in inspiring and nurturing children’s curiosity and love of learning.
SPINGARN SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL STAY
The mission statement of Spingarn STAY is to create life long learners and to foster empowerment amongst our students. The staff of Spingarn STAY strives to provide students with a safe and nurturing environment where student learning and success is the priority. In partnership with the students, parents or guardians and the community, the staff of Spingarn STAY will ensure that each student reaches his or her potential by maintaining a level of high standards and integrity through a comprehensive program which addresses the academic, vocational and socio-emotional development of each student.
WEAA
WEAA is a leading provider of Jazz, news and public affairs programming, and the home of the new, daily public radio program, “the Michael Eric Dyson Show.” WEAA’s national news and talk programming are complemented by award winning locally produced interactive content. Consistent with public radio’s core values of integrity, credibility and respect of our listeners, we maintain the highest journalistic standards. The station is a professionally staffed, member and community supported broadcast service of Morgan State University. As a broadcast training facility, we are committed to the use of emerging technology to provide a more interactive approach to content development, music and cultural expression.
WETA
WETA is the flagship public broadcasting station of the national capitol region. WETA’s mission is to produce and broadcast programs of intellectual integrity and cultural merit that recognize viewers’ and listeners’ intelligence, curiosity and interest in the world around them. As an independent and not-for-profit public broadcaster and producer, WETA provides its viewers and listeners with quality, compelling programs and serves a broad community with educational projects and Web-based initiatives.
WHUT
WHUT is the only public television station in the public broadcasting system licensed to a historically black college, Howard University. Founded in 1980, the station, over the years has been hailed as a forum for local issues and for its unique original productions. By 1990, the station was producing a live weeknight edition of its flagship series, Evening Exchange. This series, now a weekly, has been airing for over 25 years and its host, Kojo Nnamdi, has become a local celebrity. The station’s signal reaches over 2 million households in the greater Washington metro area. In fall 2007, WHUT also began a digital simulcast to this viewing area, the ninth largest media market in the United States. WHUT has thousands of loyal viewers and donors who tune in daily to its unique mix of PBS series such as NOVA, The American Experience, Sesame Street, and its original productions on local and national topics. Specials also highlight special events and reknown speakers at Howard University, such as Cornel West, Toni Morrison and Nobel Laureate Ivar Giaever. WHUT airs more than 3,500 hours of public affairs and educational programming each year. WHUT has won 13 Emmys, and numerous other awards such as the Telly, Aurora, and Cine Golden Eagle. Founded in 1867, Howard University has produced some of the nation’s great black historical figures in literature, law, education, and all areas of the arts.
WPFW-FM
The purpose of WPFW-FM Pacifica is to provide outlets for the creative skills and energies of the community, to contribute to a lasting understanding between individuals of all nations, races, creeds and colors, and to promote the full distribution of public information. WPFW’s commercial free programming is principally a mix of Jazz, Third World music, news and public affairs. Through its programming, the station acts as a networking agent for the community at large as an accessible media outlet for Blacks, Hispanics, cultural groups, women, seniors, youth and other ethnic and under-represented groups. WPFW’s programming makes the concept of community radio real by providing the local population with important and relevant education, information and entertainment and is dedicated to programming, which reflects progressive social change and democracy.
