SLB Radio Productions, Inc.

Core Programs

Capture and Production: School workshops (SLB provides after-school and classroom workshops either in studio or on location); Oral histories (in “Crossing Fences,” African American boys gather stories from men in their neighborhoods and in “From There to Here,” students interview immigrants and refugees who now live in Pittsburgh); Youth Media Advocacy Program (it strengthens skills in self-advocacy and creation of persuasive media); Youth Express (youth use tools and practices of professional media while reporting on events and issues of interest to them); Youth Radio Documentaries (students create insightful and focused works using rigorous production methods). SLB has been recognized internationally for its work in innovative educational programming.

Publishing: Live Radio (on air since 1978, The Saturday Light Brigade is the weekly public radio show that led to the launch of SLB in 2000); Youth Express (from poetry to talk shows, hip hop to string quartets, it delivers authentic youth voices); Archive (includes more than 10,000 assets for public download and streaming); Podcasts (published weekly).

Studio Expansion

Since its 2004 co-location in a non-ticketed area of the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh (CMP), SLB has operated from a 348 sq. ft. broadcast studio suite. When it opened, it was an all-volunteer operation with a budget of about $30,000 and hands-on service to about 100 youth annually. Fifteen years later, it employs a staff of 10, has a budget of nearly $800,000, and provides direct services to 5,000 youth each year from elementary through high school across more than 50 schools and community centers.

Because it has not expanded its studio since its launch, it often uses conference rooms, offsite classrooms, and other less-appropriate spaces to manage the demand. The Youth Media Center expansion is long overdue and will allow SLB to provide youth with a more engaging learning environment and better access to equipment and staff. In preparation for the current expansion, SLB has spent the past several years benchmarking peer facilities throughout the country and prototyping programs. In addition, the board has recently completed a strategic planning process.

While our radio and internet broadcasts are designed to reach a broad population, our direct services are focused on providing middle and high school students with an emphasis on youth who would not otherwise have access to the facilities and opportunities we provide.

We currently serve about 8,000 such youth each year at our own studios on the Northside as well as multiple Pittsburgh Public Schools (including Langley, Faison, Brashear, Perry, Schiller, Sterrett, Allegheny, Westinghouse, Greenfield, King, Lincoln, Manchester, Miller, Milliones, Sunnyside and Woolslair) and other districts (including Woodland Hills, Clairton, Wilkinsburg). In addition to our work with these schools, SLB has developed and led youth media projects in eighteen city neighborhoods, including Homewood, Northview Heights, Hilltop, Sheraden, the Hill District, and the West End.

In 2018, we published three new volumes in our Crossing Fences oral history project, a program where African American boys collect oral histories of African American men in their neighborhoods. The 2018 editions showcase men in Hazelwood (in collaboration with Center of Life), Hill District (in collaboration with Carnegie Public Library, Hill District) and Homewood (in collaboration with Carnegie Public Library, Homewood) and brings the series to eighteen volumes in which over 200 boys and young men have interviewed over 200 adults. A spinoff series connecting African American girls and women is now being piloted in the Hill District.

Brashear Brings You the World gives voice to immigrant and refugee public school students and has featured 58 students from 21 countries to date, including Tanzania, Uzbekistan, Yemen, Rwanda, Nigeria, Somalia, Kenya, Syria, Iraq, Nepal, Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and more. Eighteen languages and dialects have been represented. Their families have all settled in the South Side/South Hills neighborhoods of Pittsburgh; roughly 25% of the PPS Brashear student population falls into that demographic. Some of the stories have needed professional translation.

Schools and programs participating in SLB programs in 2019 included Pittsburgh Langley, Pittsburgh Propel, Pittsburgh Sterrett, Homeless Children Education Fund, Higher Achievement, and Manchester Academic Charter Schools—all of which serve under-resourced populations.

Founded in 2000, our staff of ten uses well-honed methods to acquire, edit, and publish authentic and compelling stories of children, youth and adults. In addition to work conducted in our state-of-the art studios co-located in the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh, SLB maintains a range of field equipment to conduct high quality interviews at over fifty schools, community centers, neighborhood events, and other community spaces every year.

SLB has long been recognized for its innovative approach to delivering world-class programming. An international jury recently selected the SLB Youth Express program to represent the City of Pittsburgh at the forthcoming Fall 2019 hundrED Education Innovation Summit in Helsinki, Finland.

Other recent include the Allegheny Partners for Out of School Time (APOST) 2017 Partnership Award, Pittsburgh Service Summit 2017 Award for Child Advocacy, three 2015 Public Radio Exchange (PRX) Best Youth-Created Radio awards, Pittsburgh Technology Council 2013 People’s Choice Award, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh 2013 Partner of the Year Award. SLB also is consistently recognized by Great Nonprofits as a Top-Rated Nonprofit.

Other major accomplishments include:

1. “From There to Here,” an experiential learning program where students learn about immigration by interviewing people born in other countries. From 2011 to 2019, more than 270 students have created profiles of 90 immigrants.

2. “Crossing Fences,” a program connecting African American men and boys through storytelling. From 2013 to 2018, more than 200 boys and young men from Homewood, Hazelwood, the Hill District, and twelve other neighborhoods have published stories from over 180 men.

3. Youth Documentaries, an SLB curriculum where teens create short documentaries on issues that concern them. Since 2009, over 250 teens across five counties have created 105 documentaries, some of which have aired nationally on NPR.

4. Story Boxes, an SLB-created on-demand audio device for display at libraries, schools and community centers with more than 100 installations to date.

5. Youth Radio Benchmarking Tour, during which SLB visited 12 peer facilities across the country to assess practices, develop new relationships, and inform our strategic plan.

6. Professional development programs for teachers, including a tool kit and class in collaboration with Remake Learning, AIU, and WQED

7. Youth Express, the nation’s first radio service devoted exclusively to original writing, music and conversation by teens, including a 24/7 service and cross-platform app.

8. iQ Kids Radio, a 24/7 station created in partnership with WQED Multimedia for children from birth through age 8.

9. Afterschool Programming, including serving as core partner in 21st Century Community Learning Center programs in 10+ locations.

In addition to the above, the SLB Radio Network has grown to include of six noncommercial FM radio stations and five internet services that together serve 15 Pennsylvania counties as well as parts of Ohio, South Carolina, Arizona and Colorado with a radio program featuring over 400 youth writers, musicians and commentators annually.