Corporation for public broadcasting partners with the Educational Publishing Group and WGBH to produce bimonthly publication; Innovative English/Spanish Newsletter Complements Public Television's "Ready to Learn" Educational Initiative

Business Wire, Nov 8, 1995

BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Nov. 8, 1995--The Educational Publishing Group (EPG), a leader in providing informational resources for parent involvement in children's education, announced today a contract award of $1.2 million from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

These funds will be used to produce, in partnership with WGBH-TV, a bi-monthly publication to complement PTV: The Ready to Learn Service on PBS. EPG, the lead partner in the project, will produce and distribute the newsletter, PTV Families, to over 44 stations and on the Internet, beginning in January 1996 and continuing through December 1997. Total circulation of PTV Families will exceed 5 million.

PTV: The Ready to Learn Service on PBS, developed by public broadcasting to offer television programming in concert with well-conceived and effective educational materials and children's books, integrates a variety of goals which EPG has shared since its founding five years ago. Ready to Learn strives to prepare preschoolers for early childhood curricula and involve parents and adult caregivers in school readiness programs. EPG's success in that area has been recognized by the Secretary of Education, nonprofit educational organizations, and dozens of corporations which distribute EPG's well-known flagship publication, Education Today.

In developing PTV Families, EPG draws on extensive experience garnered from Education Today, which provides the employees and customers of corporate clients such as AT&T, Bristol-Meyers Squibb, Southern California Edison and Bank of America with information about educational and parenting issues.

"This collaboration is a significant milestone in public-private partnering for children's education," said Carolynn Reid-Wallace, senior vice president for education and programming at CPB. "CPB chose EPG for its educational philosphy that engages families and its reputation as a distinguished publisher both in English and in Spanish. This ensures that the new publication will help parents connect television viewing with books and other educational materials for their children."

"WGBH's extensive experience in educational print production and local and national community outreach is critical in creating editorial content that will service the public television stations and educators," said Beth Kirsch, WGBH's director of educational print and outreach. "Our partnership with EPG will further enhance our capacity to extend our mission of educating and informing the audiences we serve."

"EPG is pleased to be recognized for its long-term goal of improving the quality of children's education, and this partnership with WGBH allows us to share our expertise with a new audience," said Carroll Miller, publisher of Educational Publishing Group. "The broadcast and print components of the Ready to Learn service combine the best of public television and the best of educational publishing, and we look forward to a long and fruitful relationship."

CPB funding for PTV Families comes from the Department of Education and will cover the entire cost of the publication. Under the terms of the agreement, EPG and WGBH will develop a four-color, eight-page newsletter, published in English and in Spanish and distributed through local PBS stations. EPG's well-known Education Today and the Spanish-language Educacion Al Dia form the core of EPG's publishing mission: to give parents quality information which empowers them to provide their children with the educational tools that will allow them to succeed at school. Bridging the gap between early childhood and high school, the newsletters address topics ranging from conflict resolution for elementary schoolers to methods for easing communication between parents and teachers.

The success of Education Today spurred the publication of the ET Parent Involvement Handbook, the ET College Guide, and the ET Computer and Software Guide, which complement the focus of Education Today and are offered in tandem with subscriptions. EPG also publishes educational materials for the National Science Foundation and associated programs. EPG's online service for families, caregivers and communities, The Family Education Network, will be launched on the Internet in 1996, with partners including Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), the American Association of School Administrators (AASA), and Reading is Fundamental (RIF). -0-

Educational Publishing Group, founded with the goal of providing parents with the resources they need to take an active role in their children's education, publishes Education Today, Educacion Al Dia, and several supplementary guides and award-winning handbooks offered in tandem with subscriptions to the newsletters. Its online service for families, caregivers and communities, The Family Education Network, will be launched on the Internet in 1996.

Corporation for Public Broadcasting is a private, nonprofit corporation created by Congress in 1967 to oversee the development of public radio, television and online services for the American people. The Corporation is a grantmaking organization responsible for funding more than 1,000 public stations. CPB is the industry's largest single source of funds for national public radio and television program development and production.