FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: USE THE NEWS FOUNDATION ANNOUNCES NEW NATIONAL RESOURCE FOR NEWSPAPER IN EDUCATION PROGRAMS

(San Francisco, CA, August 12, 1998) Use The News has announced today the establishment of the Use The News Foundation. Use The News is the nation’s foremost purveyor of educational guides and materials that enrich school and university courses through the use of newspapers in the classroom.

“Use The News Foundation will meet the need for an independent, nonprofit organization that can foster partnerships with education and NIE programs and their business sponsors,” said Foundation President Dr. Betty L. Sullivan. “We are very pleased to be able to provide nonprofit fiscal sponsor services to the Newspaper in Education programs nationwide.”

In addition, Use The News Foundation will provide technical assistance on strategies for grant proposal development, project verification and evaluation. The Foundation will also develop educational materials that use the media in teaching and learning activities, focusing on human rights issues, multicultural education and diversity.

The Foundation’s services are available nationally to the more than 700 newspapers sponsoring NIE programs, including dailies, nondaily and community newspapers. Further, the Foundation will provide consultation and referral services to educators at all levels and to college and university students conducting research on the use of media in education.

Use The News Foundation was established by Dr. Betty L. Sullivan, an internationally known media and education consultant who began in NIE by using the newspaper with her students in the public schools of the Mississippi Delta. Having held various educational services positions with USA TODAY, New York Newsday and The Commercial Appeal of Memphis, TN, she has also served as the national director of education programs for the Newspaper Association of America Foundation.

She is a founding member of the Newspaper in Education Committee of the World Newspaper Association and has advised organizations such as the American Society of Newspaper Editors, Children’s Television Network, PBS, National Coalition for Literacy, International Reading Association, Literacy Volunteers of America, National Council for the Social Studies and National Association of Partners in Education.

Dr. Sullivan has served for two terms on the national board of directors of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG). She is a member of the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA) and is currently president of the Bay Area Career Women (BACW). Contact her at bettysnie@aol.com