Mission: Press Pass TV is an award-winning organization that uses the power of media arts to provide meaningful education and employment for youth living in under served neighborhoods. We offer creative outlets as an alternative to violence, teach life-sustaining skills and empower communities to find shared solutions and envision a better world.

Results: 97% of our students go on to college, 60% of them to pursue media careers. Our work has received awards from the Boston Center for the Arts, the Emerson LA Film festival, the Roxbury International Film Festival, the “Did it their Damn Self” Award from the Do it Your Damn Self Festival and “Best Short” from Adobe Youth Voices. Our work was featured at the United Nations Global Voices Film festival, The Museum of Fine Arts, the North End Performing Arts Center Film Festival and the Do it Your Damn Self Film Festival. Press Pass TV was awarded the Universal Forum of Cultures Award by the United Nations in 2010.The official aims of the Universal Forum of Cultures included support for peace, sustainable development, human rights and respect for cultural diversity. Our work will be seen through broadcasts, and screening opportunities around the world. Received Official Citation from Massachusetts Senate for our ongoing work using media to empower youth and communities Our “Youth Way on the MBTA” video empowered the Boston Youth Area Organizing Project to win their campaign to extend MBTA hours to 11pm for young people in the city. Our “Dumped Justice” video focusing on illegal trash transfer sites and created in partnership with the Roxbury Environmental Empowerment Project led to the closing of those sites and the improvement of air quality in Roxbury (which has the highest rate of asthma in Massachusetts and the worst air quality in the state). 3 of our young media producers from Science Club for Girls were awarded scholarships to study at Tufts while interviewing the Dean of the Science Department. Our highly acclaimed Professional Youth Development Model was published in the nationally recognized and distributed Youth Media Reporter as “industry standard” and has been offered as a workshop at several conferences including the Youth Workers Intensive and the DELTAS Bridging the Gap Conference. Journalism Center on Children and Families at the University of Maryland Journalism School is building a curriculum based on our Anonymous Boston Project to teach the next generation of reporters The Museum of Fine Arts launched a resource site for teachers which now features our work and curriculum Members of the advisory board for the National Survey of Media and Youth Organizing in partnership with the Global Action Project out of NYC Our youth broke the story of Wal-Mart coming to Roxbury and worked with the Boston Phoenix to release an in-depth investigative report. We were able to provide the tools and information necessary for organizations to effectively block the unwanted construction. Part of a media delegation to Pine Ridge Native American Reservation in South Dakota where used media arts to combat the suicide epidemic amongst teens Collaborated with 5 time Grammy Award winner Malik Yusef to co-write for the Huffington Post Partnered with Violence Transformed to create an anti-violence multimedia project called What is Beautiful Never Dies which debut at the State House and at Roxbury Main stage

Target demographics: Our Population at a Glance:
•Percentage of youth from low-income homes: 77%
•Number of languages spoken by youth: 8
•Percentage of youth who use their wages to help their family: 84%
•Percentage from Single parent household: 55%
•Percentage of youth attending under-performing schools: 65%
•Percentage of youth planning to attend college: 95%
•48% Male and 52% Female
•87% youth of color
•Serving 200 youth 11-21 years old from the low income neighborhoods of Boston (primarily Dorchester, Roxbury, South Boston and Mattapan) and in Worcester. Our content serves communities at large, building bridges through storytelling and inspiring people to come together toward action

Direct beneficiaries per year: 200

Geographic areas served: Massachusetts

Programs: We achieve our mission through three programs. In our Site Based Program, we partner with community-based organizations and schools, to develop programs that give students the tools and skills to make a change in their communities through media arts, including video, photography, music, and writing. Through our Community Connect Program, we take on media projects on a pro-bono basis with partnering non-profits. We work with them to create a comprehensive media strategy and produce content to further the reach and impact of their mission. To this end, we train our Community Connect Partner’s youth participants to produce empowering multi-media content. In addition, Press Pass TV’s Youth Producers are placed in a leadership position by facilitating workshops and guiding the media production process. Designed for program alumni and students who are on track toward media careers, the Media Leadership Institute (MLI) is a comprehensive training and development program designed to meet the holistic needs of our youth participants. Operating year-round, the program provides challenging projects and leadership positions. In the summer, Media Leadership Institute’s youth stipends are funded in partnership with the Private Industry Council, John Hancock, ABCD and the City of Boston.