The Education Connection Project

Project Administration & Partnership

Coordination & Partnership, Evaluation

Can we demonstrate the practical expansion of this process within the Delaware Valley and throughout the country?

Approach: There are three reasons why WHYY, a Public Broadcaster, would be interested in managing something as complicated and as costly as the Education Connection Project. One reason is has to do with the merging of Television, Computers and Radio through the Internet. If Public Broadcasters are to remain a vital education & community communications partner, it is imperative that we participate in the dissemination of the new technologies. If we do not participate in the dissemination of these new technologies we may find ourselves lacking the appropriate experiences in order to remain innovative when these technologies become mainstream.

The second reason has to do with a Public Broadcaster's financial model. Specifically, a Public Broadcaster is able to perform a service that would be unprofitable from the perspective of a for-profit media company because a Public Broadcaster can depend on additional funding from viewers who will pledge in order to cost the costs of maintaining worthwhile programs. This model is so strong that over half of the revenue at WHYY comes in the form of individual pledges. Because of Public Broadcasting's unique financial model, we can invest in projects and programs that are seen as worthwhile but would be financially unfeasible from the perspective of a for-profit media organization.

The third reason has to do with the unique relationship a Public Broadcaster has with its community. Because they receive such a high percentage of their funding from their local community, Public Broadcasters depend on their community's vitality in order to be successful themselves. The result is that that WHYY has a very important connection with the success of workforce development and schools in its broadcast area.

The Education Connection is an example of a project that fulfills all of WHYY's missions. It allows us to gain experience in the use of a technology before it is widely disseminated, it performs a service that is seen as worthwhile yet is too expensive to be undertaken by a for-profit entity, and its effect is to raise the vitality of our local community. Seen together, the Education Connection should become a model for every Public Broadcaster in the country.

Partners: WHYY, Public Allies

Page last updated on 08/13/00

Send comments to the Education Connection Project Director, Jay Cohen

Table of Contents

Title Page

About the project

Low-Cost Home Technology

Workforce Dev. Technology Support

Standards-Based Content

Administration & Partnership
   Coordination & Dissemination
   Evaluation

Project Links
   Calendar (in development)
   Tech-Support (in development)
   National Project
   Project Materials (in development)
   Student Pages (in development)