WQED and SLB Announce Funding for iQ Kids Radio

WQED and SLB ANNOUNCE FUNDING FOR iQ KIDS RADIO

The Junior League of Pittsburgh, Inc. has selected iQ Kids Radio
 as its next three-year signature project.

PITTSBURGH - - iQ Kids Radio www.iQkidsradio.org is an innovative new model of engagement for children and families that meets the need for an all-education, trusted radio channel that caregivers can rely on. Developed as a collaboration between WQED and SLB Radio Productions (SLB) and set for launch in early 2013, iQ Kids Radio will be a noncommercial streaming radio that provides a safe, entertaining, and fun way to learn, listen, laugh and much more.

Seed funding for iQ Kids Radio is provided by The Junior League of Pittsburgh, Inc., a founding partner.

Grounded in more than 75 years of combined experience in delivering high-quality public radio to our region and beyond, this new, innovative model leverages the assets of WQED, PBS, SLB, and the popular Saturday Light Brigade radio show to develop a streaming media platform for families with children ages birth to 12 as well as programming for teens and parents.

Children, families and caregivers can sign up now at www.iQkidsradio.org to receive information about the channel in advance of its 2013 premiere. The site includes a section where parents can submit suggestions about the type of content that may appeal to their children and includes more information about iQ Kids Radio.

The need for iQ Kids Radio

Multimedia and technology are changing daily. Youth ages 8-18 use media- television, music players, computers, and video games - for nearly eleven hours each day, and kids under age eight spend eight hours with multimedia each day. We know that media shapes children’s cultural beliefs and norms in powerful ways. While there are numerous media offerings “for children” across various media platforms, very few adopt high-quality educational standards.

The concept of iQ Kids Radio

iQ Kids Radio will blend age-appropriate content from multiple disciplines-language, science, music appreciation, geography, and more - into a 24/7 streaming audio format as well as offer individual programs for on-demand listening, podcast and national distribution. For example, shows may feature storytelling, language lessons, music from diverse genres and music listening tips, children's literature, food chemistry, and other subjects that strengthen academic achievement, sharpen core life skills, and engage children and adults together. Programming also will include youth-created music, storytelling, and news/commentary based on listener submissions and SLB’s work with more than 8,000 children annually.

The Junior League of Pittsburgh (JLP), a founding partner, has selected iQ Kids Radio as its three-year signature project. Through this award, the JLP will provide administrative and volunteer support to launch iQ Kids Radio as well as financial support totaling $45,000. JLP members will focus on two areas of iQ Kids Radio: business and opportunity planning and event planning. Additionally, JLP members will design and implement signature events that will be critical to the project’s growth. At the conclusion of its three-year partnership, iQ Kids Radio will be poised to be self-sufficient and prepared to expand its capacity as an innovative resource, created in Pittsburgh, to support families and children around the country.

For more information about iQ Kids Radio, please visit www.iQkidsradio.org.
Photographs are available for download from WQED’s pressroom at www.wqed.org/pressroom.

WQED Multimedia www.wqed.org

The people of WQED Multimedia produce, create and distribute quality content and services to engage, inform, educate, and entertain the public within their community and around the world. WQED was the nation’s first community-supported television station and went on the air on April 1, 1954.

The WQED Education Department has an illustrious history of service and innovation to local and national students, families, educators, and care providers. Today, WQED’s Education Department helps provide effective lifelong learning to the entire region. WQED’s new six-year strategy, iQ: smartmedia, launched in September of 2010 and has been aggressively aiming for its goal – to transform the way media is used for education – ever since.

With a lineup that attracts children from toddlers to teens, WQED is an essential part of every childhood. WQED commits 12 hours of every weekday schedule to high quality children's programming parents can count on. In addition, WQED offers connections to PBS KIDS, PBS Teachers and PBS Parents through its website, wqed.org. WQED has enriched the lives of children with their own productions as well as the educationally robust and entertaining lineup of PBS KIDS’s programming on subjects as diverse as global thinking, reading, and science. WQED was also the home of Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, produced by Family Communications, Inc. (now the fred Rogers Company) for more than 40 years. More information is available at www.wqed.org/education.



SLB Radio Productions, Inc.

A non-profit with twelve employees, SLB began pursuing its mission in 1978 with The Saturday Light Brigade, a Saturday morning public radio program that blends acoustic music, live performances by youth and adults, participatory puzzles, on-air telephone calls, and interviews with other community-based nonprofits serving youth and families. Programming grew substantially between 1990 and 2000, as SLB built a strong and loyal audience, winning 10 local, state and national awards. In 2004, with support from the broadcast industry, foundations, corporations and individual donors, SLB opened a $250,000 broadcast studio and training complex in the expanded Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh. SLB has since emerged as a hub of community and educational activity. Its work today focuses on (1) continued production of The Saturday Light Brigade radio program and its extension as a vehicle to promote youth voice and (2) school and in-studio workshops in which experienced radio broadcasters and sound engineers work with children to explore self-expression as well as the tools used to collect and process audio into a creative work. More information about SLB is available at www.slbradio.org and www.neighborhoodvoices.org.



Junior League of Pittsburgh, Inc.

The Junior League of Pittsburgh’s 400 women volunteers collectively contribute 10,000 volunteer hours annually in the Pittsburgh community. Over the past ten years, the League has donated in excess of $500,000 as either community donations or grants. The League educates and trains its members to provide effective volunteer service, to research challenging community needs, and to initiate pilot projects or expand services to meet those needs. It provides administrative, financial, and volunteer support for projects and facilitates the permanent sponsorship of programs by other community organizations. In October 2012 the Junior League of Pittsburgh will celebrate 90 years of service to the Pittsburgh community. Additional Junior League of Pittsburgh information is available at www.jlpgh.org.

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Posted on behalf of Dreamweaver Marketing Associates.  Joyce Kane is the owner of Cybertary Pittsburgh, a Virtual Administrative support company, providing virtual office support, personal and executive assistance, creative design services and light bookkeeping.  Cybertary works with businesses and busy individuals to help them work 'on' their business rather than 'in' their business.  www.Cybertary.com/Pittsburgh