University News
WQPT Award-Winning Dropout Crisis Program Featured on National Public TV Website
July 2, 2013
MOLINE, IL – A WQPT-produced program about the U.S. dropout crisis is being featured on the Association of Public Television Stations (APTS) website. To produce the program, "Tackling the Dropout Crisis," WQPT-PBS teamed up with other Quad Cities' community organizations, including Achieve Quad Cities and American Graduate. The one-hour award-winning video featured a panel of local educators, as well as Chamber of Commerce and industry leaders, who discussed the crisis.
According to the experts featured in the program, "Tackling the Dropout Crisis," nationally, one in five high school students will not graduate. In the Quad Cities, 760 high school students dropped out in the 2008-2009 school years, and there has been a 32 percent increase in high school dropouts in the QC.
In addition to be being featured on the APTS website, the program is now prominently featured on the organization's home page (see the rotating top-feature stories on www.apts.org).
This past spring, "Tackling the Dropout Crisis" received the highest award at the 34th annual Telly Awards, garnering a Silver Honor. According to the Telly Awards' website, the competition "honors the very best film and video productions, groundbreaking online video content, and outstanding local, regional, and cable TV commercials and programs."
Producers of the program (WQPT, Archive Quad Cities and American Graduate) said the organizations plan to increase mentoring efforts for QC students and host events that foster discussions about ways to increase graduation rates for high school students.
WQPT is a public media service of Western Illinois University-Quad Cities. Visit WQPT online at www.wqpt.org.
For more information, contact WQPT at (309) 764-2400 or toll free at (877) 413-2424.
Posted By: University Communications (U-Communications@wiu.edu)
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