American INSIGHT, Inc.
Think for yourself. Speak out and be heard!
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
In America today, 95% of our teenagers use cellphones to communicate. At the same time, Free Speech, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law are in decline in our country. Clearly, there is a need for independent leadership to reverse this trend, and to provide students with critical learning skills based on their latest multimedia technologies. Only by learning and exploring how to use their voice responsibly can the next generation promote and practice the core democratic values that have kept our nation strong for over 250 years. American INSIGHTs vision for the future imagines an ever-growing community of online students who learn to speak out to bring positive change to their lives, and to the world around them.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
FREE SPEECH FILM FESTIVAL
American INSIGHT’s Free Speech Film Festival celebrates the passionate innovations of independent filmmakers, and champions the ideas, perspectives and voices that prove vital to the future of Free Speech, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law around the world.
Designed to highlight prominent voices in today’s powerful Human Rights Movement, American INSIGHT’s Free Speech Film Festival invites filmmakers from around the world to submit films that present their unique perspectives in the fight against injustice. These filmmakers are encouraged to use the art of documentary to engage the global community in a deeper conversation about the complexities of Free Speech, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law within society.
By promoting these documentaries, American INSIGHT hopes to celebrate the fresh perspectives and compelling narratives that both amplify the voices of today’s Human Rights Movement and propel the conversation forward.
FREE SPEECH AWARD
American INSIGHTs annual Free Speech Award recognizes six independent films from among many that are submitted to our Free Speech Film Festival each year. These six films embody the core principles of Free Speech, Human Rights and the Rule of Law, and provides insight into how we as citizens can shape the future of the Human Rights Movement. From July 4 -14th, one Free Speech Award-winning film is chosen by people around the world eager to embrace the thought-provoking and extraordinary stories that are emerging out of this massive global movement.
FREE SPEECH STORYLINE
American INSIGHTs Free Speech Storyline presents an interactive and educational timeline of historically significant achievements in the advancement of Free Speech, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law from the sealing of Magna Carta in England in 1215 to the present day, chosen by members of our Free Speech Team. Students enrolled in our online course nominate and vote for a new Free Speech Hero every year.
INTERNSHIP PROGRAM
American INSIGHT’s Internship Program has provided two decades of college-age students with unparalleled online opportunities to improve their skills and develop their resumes. The Internship Program fills a critical need in our nation’s television and film production industry by providing real world experience in film festival and events management, archival research, audio and video production opportunities, community involvement, and social media outreach. This program has been approved by by over 50 colleges and universities on Handshake.
FREE SPEECH ARCHIVES
American INSIGHTs multimedia Free Speech ARCHIVES contain the rare video footage, edited and unedited original materials, audio tapes, sound tracks, documentaries, interviews, historical research, letters, photos and memorabilia of prominent poets, writers, artists, filmmakers, and media celebrities produced by American INSIGHT during its four decades of promoting Free Speech and the Spoken Word.
Free Speech Course: Make History Every Day!
Think for Yourself. Discover Your Voice. Speak Out and Be Heard!
American INSIGHT's new online course gives you a roadmap to understanding your right to speak freely, to find your inner voice, and to make a difference in your life, every day!
Sign up for our private online course, Make History Every Day! – a self-guided, self-reflective deep-dive through history that connects the core values of our nation to contemporary Free Speech FilmsTM and their filmmakers from around the world.
SPEAK EZ Virtual Gatherings
Our SPEAK EZ online interviews showcase Free Speech Award-winning directors and their crews. Viewers get an intimate look at the filmmaking process, and discuss the politics behind the creation of these independent films that have been submitted from more than 70 countries around the world.
Where we work
External reviews
Photos
Videos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Total number of filmmakers supported
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Artists and performers, Self-employed people, Activists, Academics, Ethnic and racial groups
Related Program
FREE SPEECH FILM FESTIVAL
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Number of countries represented by visitors
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Academics, Activists, Artists and performers, Self-employed people, Veterans
Related Program
FREE SPEECH FILM FESTIVAL
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Learn more at https://freespeechfilmfestival.org/
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
American INSIGHT's educational goals include the following:
● To establish a broader understanding of the rights of Free Speech, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law in the world today.
● To enable and inspire safe, authentic, and informed dialog among our students.
● To showcase individuals and organizations who are using their voices to maintain and improve the conditions of democracy and their social and political issues.
● To encourage students to act in the fight for the democracy and their social and political issues, and to inspire the lives of others.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
American INSIGHT is well positioned to achieve these goals. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit multimedia production company registered in Pennsylvania since 1983, its educational mission is To promote insight into the history and values of Free Speech, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law. The organization has a uniquely successful history in publicly promoting social justice and the Spoken Word for four decades.
Our new Make History Every Day! interactive online nonpartisan course is designed to inspire young citizens to explore and strengthen the meaning and value of Free Speech, Human Rights, and the Rule of Law, to discover their own voice, and to influence the future of our country. It is designed to provide students with private, safe, introspective environment to learn how to express their beliefs, question their peers, publish on our blogs, critique films from around the world, meet filmmakers and industry experts, and continue the interactive conversation that has created and sustained American democracy.
LEARN MORE about all of these programs here: www.americaninsight.org
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
On the forefront of technology as the Spoken Word made its way onto the Internet, the organization inspired and coordinated literary arts events across the state for the PA Council on the Arts; produced a series of annual symposia in Philadelphia that attracted national and international media attention; and initiated a six-year cultural exchange program through a Reciprocal Exchange Agreement with the USSR Union of Writers.
With the advent of the Internet, American INSIGHT rebranded itself, developed a multimedia Internship Program, and produced a documentary about a ground-breaking artist from Philadelphia. Based on years of research on Violet Oakleys 13 murals in the PA State Capitol Building in Harrisburg, American INSIGHT then developed its Free Speech Storyline and Free Speech Film Festival. Its Free Speech Archives contain forty years of our history in multimedia formats.
The Free Speech Film Festival, Storyline, Archives and blogs form an integral part of American INSIGHTs online course, Make History Every Day!
Our annual Free Speech Film Festival attracts films from (or about) 70 countries around around the world, and culminates in an annual Free Speech Award Ceremony. Our Internship Program has been accepted by over 50 colleges and universities across America.
All of American INSIGHT's online activities are closely monitored by our Board of Directors and professional advisors.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
American INSIGHT's Board of Directors is initiating a widespread effort to include community members in the management and promotion of all our activities.
Our annual Free Speech Film Festival and Free Speech Award are in their 11th year. Hundreds of films from over 70 countries have been submitted and judged, and one film each year is given the Free Speech Award.
The Internship program was initiated in 2001, and over 75 university students have participated in our social media outreach and multi-media production.
LEARN MORE about all of these programs here: www.americaninsight.org
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We share the feedback we received with the people we serve, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently, The people we serve tell us they find data collection burdensome, It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, It is difficult to get honest feedback from the people we serve, It is difficult to identify actionable feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
American INSIGHT, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 03/11/2024
Margaret Chew Barringer
American INSIGHT, Inc.
Robert Haskell
Siemens Healthcare, Retired
Michael Wood
Princeton University, Professor Emeritus
Karen Curry
Drexel University
Jennifer Beacom
Beacom Consulting
Alicia Galitzin
Galitzin Creative
Oliver St. Clair Franklin
British Consulate, Honorary Consul
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Not applicable -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 03/06/2024GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We ask team members to identify racial disparities in their programs and / or portfolios.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We measure and then disaggregate job satisfaction and retention data by race, function, level, and/or team.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.