Gwen Ifill
PBS member station WTCI-TV announced that Gwen Ifill will speak in Chattanooga at WTCI’s 2011 Be More Awards ceremony. Ms. Ifill is managing editor and moderator for Washington Week, and senior correspondent for the PBS Newshour.
The deadline to apply for the 2011 Be More Awards is Nov. 5. Tickets go on sale January, 2011.
Ms. Ifill has covered six presidential campaigns and moderated two vice presidential debates - in 2004 the debate between Republican Dick Cheney and Democrat John Edwards and in 2008 the debate between Democratic Senator Joe Biden and Republican Governor Sarah Palin.
She is also the best-selling author of The Breakthrough: Politics and Race in the Age of Obama (Doubleday, 2009).
Before joining PBS in 1999, Ms. Ifill was chief congressional and political correspondent for NBC News, White House correspondent for The New York Times and a local and national political reporter for The Washington Post. She also reported for the Baltimore Evening Sun and the Boston Herald American. Her work as a journalist has been honored by the Radio and Television News Directors Association, Harvard’s Joan Shorenstein Center, Ebony Magazine and Boston’s Ford Hall Forum.
Ms. Ifill has received more than a dozen honorary doctorates and currently serves on the boards of the Harvard University Institute of Politics and the Committee to Protect Journalists; she is a fellow with the American Academy of Sciences.
A native of New York City, Ms. Ifill graduated from Simmons College in Boston.
WTCI honors local individuals and organizations dedicated to helping the community and all its citizens to reach their best potential with the 2011 WTCI Be More Awards. The awards, which are part of a national program for PBS stations, recognize excellence in the local nonprofit community, bringing accolades to those who share WTCI’s commitment to offer everyone opportunities to “be more.”
Awards will be offered in six categories, each honoring a different aspect of making a positive difference in the lives of people within the WTCI viewing area.
Categories include:
Be More...COLLABORATIVE
Partnership Award: Strong partnerships are critical to nonprofit organizations and help all those involved leverage resources and broaden their community impact in unique ways. This award recognizes an organization that has extended its reach into the community by developing meaningful partnerships. Example includes an organization that collaborates with other organizations to recruit and diversify its volunteer base.
Be More...CREATIVE
Innovation Award: Creativity and innovation set many nonprofits apart. This award recognizes an organization that displays the most imaginative and creative use of original ideas to achieve its mission. Examples include resourcefulness (i.e. limited budget) in creating a new project, program, or event, or developing a unique and inventive method to bring a particular initiative to fruition.
Be More...IMPACTFUL
Local Service Award: This award recognizes an organization that has responded to a community need and is making a significant difference in the community as measured by specific outcomes and by participation in its programs. Example includes an organization that demonstrates qualitative and quantitative outcomes.
Be More...ENRICHED
Educational Outreach Award: Nonprofit organizations provide a variety of educational and enrichment services to the community. This award recognizes an organization that strives to educate the community through guidance, knowledge, and/or a mentorship program. Examples include a program/project aimed at improving specific aspects of community life and introducing and/or conducting community enrichment programs.
Be More...COURAGEOUS
Individual Leadership Award: Many nonprofit organizations have been profoundly and positively impacted by volunteer leaders, who often serve behind the scenes without recognition. This award recognizes an individual who is a visionary leader, sometimes taking risks and facing adversity in order to make a difference in the community. Examples include someone who has founded a nonprofit, advocated tirelessly for societal change, or led an organization through difficult times.
Be More...ENGAGING
People’s Choice Award: PBS and WTCI are a service by the public, for the public; that is why this prestigious award recognizes the local organization that is most connected to the community and the people it serves. Through online voting, local citizens decide which organization they feel most exemplifies the spirit of the community.
Winners will be announced at the 2011 WTCI Be More Awards ceremony at the Chattanooga Convention and Trade Center on March 9, 2011. The luncheon will be a celebration of the best in the Chattanooga area’s nonprofit community. Local business leaders and nonprofit professionals will come together with WTCI viewers to recognize the winners.