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Leadership Giving Overview » The Curious Families Initiative
The Curious Families Initiative
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As part of “The Nation’s Largest Classroom,” Connecticut Public empowers the minds of Connecticut’s children and youth. We enrich their learning with outstanding educational programs while providing trusted resources for parents, teachers, and caregivers.

Connecticut Public delivers PBS KIDS content on multiple platforms including TV (Cable, OTT streaming and statewide over-the-air), mobile apps for videos and interactive educational games, Web, e-newsletters, podcasts and in-person activities.

PBS KIDS public-media programming is an American treasure:

  • PBS KIDS was ranked the #1 educational media brand for children, compared with a host of other children’s media providers.   
  • 81% of those surveyed named PBS KIDS the most educational media brand for children.   
  • 84% of parents agreed that PBS KIDS helps prepare children for success in school, ahead of Nick Jr. (71%), Disney + (71%) and Netflix (46%).   
  • 82% of parents agreed that PBS KIDS is a trusted and safe source for children to watch television and play digital games and mobile apps.

PBS KIDS 24/7

With an over-the-air TV channel, a free live stream on digital platforms, and an interactive gaming feature, PBS KIDS 24/7 multiplatform service is a triple play that supports our mission to reach all children in our state with high-quality educational content. The PBS KIDS 24/7 channel reaches an audience that is distinct from our primary CPTV children’s daily programming.

The Curious Families Initiative

Connecticut Public has curated a rich, multimedia collection of educational (and entertaining!) content, resources and learning activities that are especially useful for parents, educators, home-schoolers, and those participating in distance-learning and independent study.

PBS LearningMedia covers curriculum areas in Social-Emotional Development, School Readiness, Science, Social Studies, Math, Language Arts & Reading, Engineering & Tech, Physical Education & Health, The Arts, and World Languages for grades Pre-K through 12 and beyond, including Professional Development for educators and tips and resources for parenting. Through this initiative we build awareness and engagement with this excellent media collection, and make it free and accessible to all people in our state.

We are engaging with an ever-widening array of local community groups serving families and children — working together to enhance the learning opportunities and feed the curiosity of our state’s young minds. Special collaborations include a “Childrens’ Librarians Takeover” of our newsletter during National Reading Month, and the distribution of PBS KIDS learning materials with mission-aligned non-profits like the United Way and local Science/Nature/STEM venues and programs.

"Learning Snacks” Newsletter

Each week, we pack up a fresh variety of “Learning Snacks” from PBS, PBS KIDS and PBS LearningMedia that focus on an educational theme or current issue in the news, and deliver them via email to parents, caregivers, educators and after-school programs. Our subscriber base continues to grow.


Giving Opportunity:
Donors and Grantors are welcome to support the  Curious Families Initiative as we seek to build an important foundation with community groups, families and educators and share educational tools and content provided by PBS and Connecticut Public.

Please contact Deidre Tavera at dtavera@ctpublic.org or (860) 275-7275 to learn more.


THANKS TO THE LEADERSHIP DONORS AND GRANTORS THAT SUPPORT THIS WORK:

  • Connecticut Humanities with funding from Connecticut’s Department of Economic and Community Development, the Office of the Arts and the State Legislature
  • The Hearst Foundation 
  • The Robert & Marguerite Derx Foundation 
  • The Susan Howarth Foundation 
  • Andy and Bonnie McKirdy 

Make Your Leadership Gift Today:

About Leadership Giving:

Investment Priorities:

Planned Giving & Bequests:

Philanthropic Giving:

The Institutional Advancement Team:

Ipsita Ganguli
Director | Foundations and Special Projects
About Ipsita »
Email: iganguli@ctpublic.org
Phone: (860) 275-7306
Janet Headley
Nicole Kimball
Annual Giving and Operations
About Nicole »
Email: nkimball@ctpublic.org
Johnnie Malloy
Senior Director | Major Gifts, Fairfield County
About Johnnie »
Email: jmalloy@ctpublic.org
Phone: (860) 275-7259
Deidre Tavera
Chief Development Officer
About Deidre »
Email: dtavera@ctpublic.org
Phone: (860) 275-7275
Holly Winters
Senior Director / Major Giving
About Holly »
Email: hwinters@ctpublic.org
Phone: (860) 275-7344
Shannon Sullivan-Murnane
Senior Leadership Giving Manager
About Shannon »
Email: smurnane@ctpublic.org
Phone: (860) 275-7250