My Source Highlights:
Nashville Public Television (NPT) and WAMU 88.5
Portrait artist Michael Shane Neal is highlighted in a charming My Source spot from Nashville Public Television (NPT).
In the audio spot from WAMU 88.5, a new listener explains why she made the switch from a music station to idea-provoking public radio.
Learn more about My Source
Check Out NCO's Mapping Resources Bookmarks
Community Engagement Process Online
A fresh look for our site and expanded tools means better impact for you. Follow the five steps of the community engagement process as you think, plan and build your efforts.
- THINK & STRATEGIZE encourages you to think big and understand your role in thecommunity.
- PLAN & DESIGN leads to new resources that complement our core tools like PlanIT! and the Pipeline.
- EXECUTE includes practical information and guidelines to help you connect with your community.
- RENEW & UPGRADE invites you to strengthen your current efforts, organization and partnerships.
- COMMUNICATE IMPACT helps you tell your station's story and promote your good work.
- MY WORKSPACE remains your place to work on your specific projects. Check out the upper right part of the navigation bar on each page to log in and access your files.
Grant Opportunity for
THE NATIONAL PARKS: America’s Best IDEA
WETA is pleased to offer 50 station engagement grants for Ken Burns's THE NATIONAL PARKS: America's Best IDEA. Apply by December 1 to be considered for grants ranging from $7,000 to $10,000. Applications are accepted in PlanIT!
Do Not Go Gently Mini-grants
Here's an opportunity to reach an older adult or intergenerational audience. NEWIST/CESA 7 is making six $2,500 mini-grants available to support creative community engagement around a broadcast of Do Not Go Gently. Visit PlanIT! for more information and to apply. Application deadline is January 30, 2009.
Peer-to-peer Dialogue: Improving Community Partnerships
Bulding strong partnerships is a challenge for all engagement professionals and a topic that regularly comes up during peer-to-peer dialogues. Next month's Peer-to-peer Dialogue will be devoted to improving community partnerships. Join us as we grapple with the issue on Wednesday, Dec. 10 at 2 p.m. ET.
Email nco@ncoengage.org to register and be ready to share your own tips about improving partnerships.
To start the conversation, we asked a few broadcast professionals to share their insights on partnerships. Their suggestions make up a new tool that will evolve as you contribute your ideas. Take a look.
MAPPING is a great way to identify local assets, networks and opportunities in your community. Using data and some free tools available on the internet, you can create a visual display of key community organizations, partners, and related issues. For a taste of what mapping can do, check out new NCO tools created for The Takeaway radio stations.
More News
Engagement for To the
Best of Our Knowledge
NCO is partnering with Peabody Award-winning To the Best of Our Knowledge to create community engagement projects in five markets. The projects are an extension of the series "Dreamers, Schemers and Visionaries" and will engage people to consider the impact of visionaries on their lives and communities. To the Best of Our Knowledge is produced by Wisconsin Public Radio and is distributed nationally by PRI.
NCO surveys station
use of social media
Academic research increasingly indicates that those who engage online are more likely to also engage offline. With that in mind, NCO recently reviewed 322 local station Web sites to gauge their use of social media tools for engaging their communities. Not surprisingly, stations that embrace the use of online social media appear twice as likely to engage in-person. Download the report.
The DTV Transition –
Advice From Those Who've Made the Switch: Dec. 4
As you continue planning for the February transition, now is the time to turn to your colleagues who have already converted for insight. Kerri Hanlon, of the PBS DTV Team, will moderate the discussion with Rus Peotter, General Manager of WGBY in Springfield, MA, and Mary Preuss, President and General Manager of WNIT in South Bend, IN, as they share their experiences from making the transition.
Contact Kerri Hanlon for more information.
Game Playing Tied to
Civic Engagement
If you've never considered adding games to your station's Web site, perhaps you should. In the first national survey of its kind, the Pew Research Center found that gaming is universal, diverse, often involves social interaction and can potentially cultivate teen civic engagement. The survey was conducted by the Pew Internet & American Life Project and was supported by the MacArthur Foundation.
Public Radio's
Makers
Quest 2.0
The Association of Independents in Radio, Inc (AIR) is celebrating its 20th anniversary with the Makers Quest 2.0 or MQ2. With support from CPB, MQ2 is identifying "media makers" within and outside broadcasting that will lead public radio to new formats and platforms. Media makers from seven countries (including Scottish musician Billy Bragg) and every region of the U.S. submitted nominations. Thirty of those have been chosen to submit proposals. For the list of finalists, visit www.MQ2.org.
Mister Rogers'
Sweater Drive Toolkit
Carry on a tradition of giving in your community with the Mister Rogers' Neighborhood Sweater Drive. With this unique project, everybody wins: the people who make the contribution, those who benefit from the sweaters and public broadcasting stations that demonstrate their value in a caring way. Family Communications, Inc. offers a toolkit with fun ideas for implementing a drive. Visit NCO's Community Engagement Pipeline for details.
KIDS COUNT Data Book
Every year, the Annie E. Casey Foundation publishes its KIDS COUNT Data Book, a national and state-by-state profile of the well-being of America's children. It ranks states on 10 key measures and provides data on the economic, health, education, and social conditions of America's children and families. An online version of the book is available.
IRS Statistics
Data for every county in the U.S. is available from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Based on year-to-year addresschanges in addresses on individual income tax returns, it is a great indicator of where new residents in a community come from. An online tool developed by the Charlotte Observer will help you obtain local data.
Repository Pick: KRCB’s
National Parks Las Vegas
Last month, Vegas PBS rolled out its initiative National Parks Las Vegas: An Unlikely Adventure. They gathered community partners to draw diverse populations to local national parks. The effort will include geocaching activities for kids, video kiosks of the broadcast and opportunities for people to share stories about their park visits online. Get more details at NCO's Repository
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