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Education Channel Earns County's Investment

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By ANN GOLDENBERG

Published: September 10, 2007

The current county budget eliminates all funding for Tampa Educational Cable Consortium (TECC), the non-profit that operates the Education Channel.

The $519,000 that the county contributes to TECC is a modest investment with big dividends in enhanced quality of life and educational opportunities for citizens. These are the attributes that spur economic growth and assure business that a stable, educated workforce is available.

TECC programs directly and positively impact local residents. Hundreds of thousands of students have studied, reviewed, learned and succeeded with programs on the Education Channel.

Over 25,000 students have received one-on-one, free tutoring using Math Homework Hotline. That's a value of over $1.2 million for one series. The relief in students' voices when they finally understand? Priceless.

Thousands studied for FCAT and exams watching FCAT Reviews and Algebra I tutorials.

Over 100,000 college students have taken over 50 different courses for credit.

Over 100,000 children have discovered reading with the Summer Reading Club, Book Talk and Scholastic Classics.

TECC's programming is consistently watched by over 44 percent of Hillsborough County cable subscribers.

Of the more than 300 channels available on cable and satellite TV in Hillsborough County, less than 1 percent are non-commercial, educational channels. The Education Channel is the only one controlled by a local board of directors representing all the major educational institutions.

TECC's funding also is consolidated and diversified. Funding comes from the city of Tampa, Plant City, the school district, individual memberships, grants, royalties for nationwide program licenses and sponsorships. Without a budget increase in seven years, we have still managed to find new resources and continue to offer excellent service. We recognize a diversified funding base is the model we must follow.

Building a foundation for the future takes years of work and preparation, and we have been steadily putting the building blocks of an endowment in place. However, the work for the future cannot continue and we cannot succeed without adequate funding now. Without the county's financial contribution in this budget cycle, TECC cannot fulfill its production contracts and will, therefore, lose even more of its funding and its ability to generate income in the long run.

We have devoted the last 20 years to developing educational programming that addresses our community's needs. This is our sole mission and the reason we are successful. We are accountable not only to the school district, but also to the other 16 educational and cultural organizations that comprise the Tampa Educational Cable Consortium, and to the whole Hillsborough County community of learners. What a waste it would be to throw away the last 20 years of research, relationships and resources that have built an organization nationally recognized as the best of its kind.

Ann Goldenberg is executive director of the Tampa Educational Cable Consortium.

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