At Home Learning, a partnership between Arizona Public Media and Arizona PBS, will provide free at-home curriculum and daily programming for PreK through grade 12.
March 20, 2020 - TUCSON, ARIZ - With the recent decision by Gov. Doug Ducey to close schools as part of the effort to curtail the spread of the coronavirus in the state, Arizona Public Media and Arizona PBS have partnered to provide educational content to students and educators affected by the closures. The Arizona At-Home Learning partnership supports at-home learning for students through a suite of free digital learning resources and an educational broadcast schedule of programs aligned with state curriculum standards. The website and programming have been endorsed by the Office of the State Superintendent of Public Instruction and are slated to launch on Monday, March 23, 2020.
“As we continue to navigate the ever-changing coronavirus crisis, Arizona Public Media and Arizona PBS remain committed to our core mission of inspiring, educating, and informing audiences through trusted, quality programming,” said Jack Gibson, CEO of Arizona Public Media. “One of our top priorities during this trying time is to provide teachers, students, and parents with educational programming and resources while they deal with the new realities of widespread school closures.”
Despite any uncertainty about the situation the country finds itself in, PBS and PBS KIDS programming remains a safe and educational place for children and families. Starting Monday, March 23 both state public media stations will implement a weekday broadcast schedule, universally accessible by students, to supplement at-home learning plans.
“Our goal in this endeavor is to bridge the digital divide and provide equitable access to learning for all students at home, regardless of access to the internet or computers,” said Mary Mazur, General Manager of Arizona PBS. “As we all know, there are so many families who do not have internet access, and that is a concern that is front and center.”
On AZPM channels in Tucson and Southern Arizona:
- PBS KIDS programming for pre-k – grade 3 will remain in the 4 a.m. – 10 a.m. hours on PBS 6 then will continue uninterrupted on PBS KIDS or at pbskids.org.
- Programs for grades 9-12 will air on PBS 6 from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., after which regular news and primetime programming will resume.
- Programs for grades 4-8 will air on PBS 6 PLUS from 6 a.m. – 6 p.m.
- Livestreams for PBS 6 and PBS KIDS are available and many of the programs on the schedule are also available to view for free through the PBS Video App.
For more information on how to access channels in Southern Arizona over the air, visit tv.azpm.org/channel-finder.
On Arizona PBS channels in Phoenix and Northern Arizona:
- PBS KIDS programming for pre-k – grade 3 will remain in the 5 a.m. – 6:30 a.m. hours on Arizona PBS, then will continue uninterrupted on Arizona PBS KIDS or at pbskids.org.
- Programs for grades 4-8 will air on Arizona PBS from 6:30 a.m. to noon
- Programs for grades 9-12 will air on Arizona PBS from 12:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m., after which regular news and primetime programming will resume.
For more information on how to access Arizona PBS channels, visit azpbs.org/arizona-pbs-on-demand/our-channel-offerings/.
AZPM and Arizona PBS continue to promote PBS LearningMedia as a resource for educators in their efforts to provide content and support to students and their parents. Both stations will continue to coordinate with Kathy Hoffman, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, school districts locally, PBS member stations in the region, and PBS Kids & Education nationally to share updates as they become available. Resources for grades K-12 covering all subject areas will be added weekly to azpm.org/distancelearning.
Input from parents and teachers about specific needs for facilitating home learning is also welcome. Please contact Cheryl Gerken, AZPM Educational Outreach Coordinator, or Kimberly Flack, Arizona PBS Director of Education and Community Impact, with questions or suggestions.
About Arizona Public Media:
Arizona Public Media (AZPM) is an editorially independent, nonprofit public service of the University of Arizona (UA) and provides three television program services (-PBS 6, PBS 6 Plus, and PBS Kids), four radio services (NPR 89.1, Classical 90.5, Jazz 89.1 HD2 and the BBC World Service*) and a variety of online program offerings. AZPM is funded through the generous support of annual and sustaining members, the business community through program underwriting, fee-for-service production activities, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and direct and in-kind support from UA. Arizona Public Media® and AZPM® are registered trademarks of the Arizona Board of Regents, which holds the FCC broadcast licenses for all AZPM stations, for the benefit of the University of Arizona. More information about AZPM, including program schedules and Video-on-Demand offerings, can be found online at azpm.org.
About Arizona PBS:
Arizona PBS is one of the nation’s leading public media organizations, with four broadcast channels and a growing array of digital platforms. A trusted community resource for more than five decades, Arizona PBS fosters lifelong learning through quality programming, in-depth news coverage and critical educational outreach services. It is one of the country’s largest public television stations, reaching 80 percent of Arizona homes and 1.9 million households each week through four channels. Arizona PBS has been part of ASU since the station launched in 1961. Arizona PBS is a member-supported community service of Arizona State University and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication. For more information, visit azpbs.org.
Media contacts:
Jessica Stephens, Marketing Specialist
Arizona Public Media
520-621-1988 | jstephens@azpm.org
Katie Jones, Associate Editor
Arizona PBS
602-496-5437 | katie.p.jones@asu.edu
By submitting your comments, you hereby give AZPM the right to post your comments and potentially use them in any other form of media operated by this institution.