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NEPM Partners with MA Dept. of Education to Provide Distance Learning Options During School Closures

Springfield, Mass. (March 20, 2020) -- With schools across the state closed in response to the COVID-19 virus, New England Public Media, the new alliance of NEPR and WGBY in Springfield, and WGBH in Boston are partnering with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to provide distance learning opportunities on broadcast television, ensuring students continue to have access to educational programs regardless of their access to broadband internet.

“Our goal with this partnership is to assist in the ongoing education of Massachusetts students and provide them with as much continuity as possible while schools remain closed,” said Martin Miller, president of New England Public Media.

New England Public Media and WGBH Boston will leverage their public media TV broadcast channels to reach teachers, students and caregivers across the Commonwealth, including English language learners. Students at home in western New England will be able to tune in to the WGBY WORLD Channel starting Monday, March 23, 2020 from noon to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The programming is being finalized. WGBY WORLD is a 24/7 channel that offers news and documentaries, and is now shifting some of its schedule to meet this urgent need.

WGBY WORLD is broadcast over-the-air on channel 57.2 and on Comcast 209. Spectrum carries it in the Pioneer Valley on 181 and in the Berkshires on 1275. Younger children can tune into WGBY for age-appropriate educational programming from 6 a.m.––5p.m. and WGBY Kids 24/7. WGBY Kids is also available to stream at WGBY.org.

“WGBH’s long standing work with educators and the station’s experience with children’s programming make their work with DESE a natural partnership,” Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Jeffrey C. Riley said. “Their willingness to partner with us in providing supplemental educational resources to students and educators during these unprecedented times is admirable.”

The new broadcast programming is in addition to three other useful resources from:

  • PBS LearningMedia, a free online service of thousands of compelling educational resources. Aligned to state standards and contextualized for educational use in grades PreK-12, resources include videos, comprehensive lessons, interactive activities, and support materials across subjects.
  • The newly launched WGBH Distance Learning Center (wgbh.org/distancelearning), makes these PBS LearningMedia resources more accessible to families, as well as educators, to support students PreK-12. The portal offers curated resources by grade and subject for use by students in remote learning situations, allowing them to self-pace and self-monitor their learning. Educators are also able to assign certain lessons and resources through Google Classroom and the PBS Learning Media assignment features.
  • PBS Parents (www.pbs.org/parents) is a trusted source for information on child development, early learning and expert tips on raising children. It provides educational kids activities and fun games for toddlers, preschoolers and children of all ages inspired by favorite PBS KIDS programs. Parents can sign up for a new weekday PBS Parents newsletter that is geared toward helping families whose children are at home amid coronavirus concerns.

“New England Public Media’s education team is deeply committed to serving educators, parents and children throughout western Massachusetts,” said Vanessa Pabón-Hernandez, senior director of educational engagement and executive producer of Presencia for NEPM. “While we can’t be in schools as we normally would right now, we are glad to be able to provide these resources virtually, and continue to support our community.”
ABOUT NEW ENGLAND PUBLIC MEDIA

Based in Springfield, Massachusetts, New England Public Media is the new alliance of NEPR and WGBY-TV. Through a deep commitment to independent local journalism, trusted educational content, inspired cultural offerings, and civic engagement, NEPM endeavors to share new voices and inspire new conversations. It provides audiences with a broad array of local and national programs across all media -- TV, radio, online, and mobile, including PBS and NPR programs as well as locally produced series, podcasts and specials. Its four digital TV channels, and two radio networks present news, jazz and classical music, documentaries, talk, drama, plus cultural and educational programming. New England Public Media is a community-supported, independent non-profit organization. nepm.org

ABOUT WGBY

With four digital television channels, video on demand, and streaming video, WGBY brings quality public broadcasting programs to audiences across western New England. WGBY is available over the air on digital channel 57-1 and on cable throughout western Massachusetts and northwestern Connecticut and can be seen in high definition in western Massachusetts at Comcast 857, Time Warner 1221, Spectrum 782, and over the air on channel 57.

ABOUT NEPR

NEPR's flagship signal, 88.5FM WFCR (and 5 repeating stations in Berkshire County), presents news, jazz, and classical music, while the six stations of the NEPR News Network provide the region with news, talk and cultural programming 24/7. NEPR.net offers three streams including an all-classical selection, NEPR-produced podcasts, and other digital offerings.

ABOUT THE NEW ENGLAND NEWS COLLABORATIVE

The NENC is an eight-station consortium of public media newsrooms. Our multimedia coverage delves into energy usage, climate, transportation, infrastructure, and stories of people and immigration affecting the region. The NENC includes Connecticut Public, Maine Public, New England Public Media, New Hampshire Public Radio, Vermont Public Radio, WBUR, WCAI, WGBH, WSHU, The Public's Radio. The collaborative's executive editor is Vanessa de la Torre.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Vanessa Cerillo
Senior Director, Marketing, Communications and Events
New England Public Media
WGBY-TV and New England Public Radio
413-735-6605
vcerillo@nepr.net

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