Ovation TV Introduces New Arts Education Program in Partnership With Cable in the Classroom's Broadband Initiative

NEW YORK, Jan. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Ovation TV announced the launch of a national arts education initiative at an event for NY City teachers held at the New York Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center.  Working with Cable in the Classroom and the New York City Department of Education's Office of Arts and Special Projects, Ovation TV developed arts-related curriculum units and companion programs for educators that are now available through a newly created education portal.

Ovation TV's arts education initiative is the result of a year-long collaboration between Ovation TV, the NYC Department of Education and high school visual arts teachers and their students.  The network also partnered with Columbia Business School Executive MBA students to develop a relevant, digital arts education platform and marketing plan.  

"Advocating the importance of the arts in the education of our youth is a critical part of Ovation TV's mission," said Charles Segars, CEO, Ovation TV.  "This new arts education program not only represents a key element of our ongoing commitment, but also complements Cable in the Classroom's expanded broadband initiative by being digitally accessible to educators."

Ovation TV is the first network to produce and air a PSA addressing Cable in the Classroom's newly invigorated mission of fostering the use of cable content and technology to enhance teaching and learning.

For Ovation TV's curriculum units, the network engaged NYC-area art teachers in developing the lessons and selecting programming clips from Ovation TV documentaries.  The initial units focus on the works of Jackson Pollock, Daniel Libeskind and Robert Rauschenberg.  The curriculum was introduced to visual arts students from high schools in Manhattan, Brooklyn and Staten Island and teachers found that students learned to create and paint in the exact style and with the very techniques used by American masters.  This project and its outcome will serve as the cornerstone of Ovation TV's free web-based education initiative.    

"Ovation TV has found the best way to construct an education initiative -- from the ground up and with extensive collaboration with teachers," said Frank Gallagher, Senior Director of Education and Media Literacy, Cable in the Classroom.  "It's rare when a programming network goes to such lengths to produce resources that so perfectly align with the needs of educators."  

Ovation TV also provides a unique online art community where teachers and students can engage in discussions surrounding art in America, view the creations of others, and share their own work.

Paul L. King, Executive Director of the New York City Department of Education, Office of the Arts and Special Projects said, "We are delighted with the results of the collaboration with Ovation TV.  It is highly unusual when a programming network embraces the needs of arts teachers and students to this extent.  The quality of the programs and the effectiveness of the curriculum units will make this initiative very valuable to arts teachers throughout New York City high schools and across the nation."

The Ovation TV curriculum can be accessed by going to OvationTV.com/educators.  A new education resource will be added to the portal each month.

About Ovation TV:  Ovation TV is the only multi-platform network devoted to art and contemporary culture. The network creates and curates one-of-a-kind programming about all the art people enjoy most, from the popular to the avant-garde and everything in between. The channel reaches a national audience of 35 million households through carriage on DirecTV (channel 274), Dish Network (channel 157) and on cable and telco systems in major markets across the country. Ovation TV's programming is also available on video on demand (in both standard and high definition) in the US. Ovation TV's popular website www.OvationTV.com is a dynamic experience, featuring information about local and national happenings in the art world, as well as a vibrant community of artists who have uploaded over 100,000 pieces of original art.

About Cable in the Classroom:  Cable in the Classroom, the cable industry's education foundation, works to expand and enhance learning for children and youth. Created in 1989 to help schools take advantage of educational cable programming and technology, CIC has become a leading national advocate for media literacy education and for the use of technology and media for learning, as well as a valuable resource of educational cable content and services for policymakers, educators and industry leaders.  For more information, visit ciconline.org.

SOURCE Ovation TV