Over the last couple of days, I have been proud to participate in the Youth Media Summit, sponsored by the McCormick Foundation and coordinated by AED, specifically the Youth Media Reporter, at Lake Forest, IL. The goal of this Summit was to gather together youth media organization leaders, funders, and researchers to share their experiences, insights, and knowledge about youth media in an attempt at field-building.
Our convening began with a reception hosted by YouMedia, a part of the Chicago Public Library that is a space created for teens to interact with and use both print and digital media tools in an interactive and supportive learning environment. Funded by MacArthur Foundation and the Pearson Foundation, this space was created from the work of Drew Davidson and Jesse Schell from the Entertainment Technology Center at Carnegie Mellon University.
Then, the work began as we met in small groups to discuss a range of key field building issues. This is probably no surprise, but I chose and was placed in the Research & Evaluation group, a group that was comprised of leading researchers and scholars in the field (Kathleen Tyner from University of Texas-Austin and JoEllen Fisherkeller from NYU) and prominent leaders of youth media organizations with longstanding, high quality work with youth (Sue Hayman from Wide Angle Youth Media, Steve Goodman from EVC, and Lynn Sygiel from Y-Press). What an amazing group of people with whom to work with toward determining the type of research and evaluation would be needed as a field of youth media! I learned so much from spending time with these great thinkers, thinkers who also have extensive practical experience researching and working with youth.
It really was amazing to be a room full of such passionate and knowledgable people. Plus, I got a chance to reconnect with some past connections (hey, Rebecca!), while forming new connections. It gives me hope for youth media and a renewed purpose as I continue on with my dissertation work.
Also, and surprisingly, I had a great conversation with a young youth media artist who wants to be a photo journalist. Although we only spoke for a short time, I was able to share a little bit of the resources I know with her, some of which I found out about from people there, e.g., One in 8 Million (thanks, Lynn), which will be next week’s blog post b/c it is remarkable, and some I had found out about along the way, e.g., vi.sualize.us and Flypmedia. What I realized, though, is just how much I miss teaching. Really, spend 5 minutes with a passionate youth, and you’ll see what I mean! And, that’s exactly what this Summit was all about fundamentally. Truly worthwhile.
How can I make money from my Music Compositions?
Are you a professional journalist? You write very well.
That’s a good question, but I only study how youth media works in organizations, so I’m not sure how you can make money with your music. My best advice to you is for you to find youth media organizations in your area (googling them should work: search with tags, such as youth, media, non-profits). They are the best resources for you as you begin your music career. Also, believe it or not, public libraries are good sources of information not only about music stuff but also about finding the organizations. And, some even partner with people who are helping young people to create media (see in the blog post for YouMedia for an example). Good luck!
I’m glad you liked the post. But, no, I’m an English teacher and student. But, I do A LOT of writing of different kinds, and I’ve taught it for many years. Thanks!