Bernard’s Story

When a recent high school graduate and star athlete was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the fall of 2010, the residents of the small town of Reading, Ohio came together to take a stand for justice. This is the story of what happens when ordinary people do extraordinary things.

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The New School Montessori

It was the 1970's. The times were ripe for change. A group of visionary educators and parents came together to create a better kind of educational experience for their children. The New School was the first school in Cincinnati to offer Montessori education for children ages 3 - 12. Forty years later, the founders return to the school, share memories, revisit its vision, and reflect on the future. Today the New School sustains the original vision of the founders, while providing an exceptionally educational experience for present and future students.

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Building a New Metropolis: Denver, Colorado

Developers often complain that while urban infill development projects seem attractive, they are economically unviable. Developer Jonathan Rose takes a different view. In this video, he demonstrates that green and equitable projects can also be profitable and beautiful. The Highlands’ Garden Village development project in Denver is an example.

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Building a New Metropolis: Gary, Indiana

This webisode tells the story of the decline of one of America’s great industrial cities—Gary, Indiana—and its connection to the suburbs that have grown up around it. Ordinary citizens, such as Reverend Cheryl Rivera of the Interfaith Federation of Northwest Indiana, are working to rebuild these cities and inner ring suburbs in the face of enormous challenges.

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The New Metropolis: A Crack in the Pavement

The New Metropolis is a pair of films that document some of the implications of our suburban migration. Both films illustrate how the plight of first suburbs is critical to the overall health of our metropolitan areas. A Crack In the Pavement unravels the national infrastructure and regional land use policy debate through the stories of two first suburban public officials from southern Ohio. Starting with a short history of Eisenhower era policies, the program chronicles some of the policy issues that prevent revitalization. The film then points towards possible solutions through balanced growth and regional cooperation strategies.

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The New Metropolis: The New Neighbors

The New Metropolis is a pair of films that document some of the implications of our suburban migration. Both films illustrate how the plight of first suburbs is critical to the overall health of our metropolitan areas. The New Neighbors tells the inspiring story of two ordinary people, one black and one white, who made racial integration the centerpiece of revitalizing Pennsauken New Jersey, a first suburban town of Philadelphia and Camden, New Jersey. Working with an integration specialist, the documentary shows how the town council and residents implemented a unique strategy of “stable integration” in their housing market. Pennsauken has become one of the most vibrant, integrated towns in the country.

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Election Day

Forget the pie charts, color-coded maps and hyperventilating pundits. What's the street-level experience of voters in today's America? In a triumph of documentary storytelling, Election Day combines 11 stories — shot simultaneously on November 2, 2004, from dawn until long past midnight — into one. Factory workers, ex-felons, harried moms, Native American activists and diligent poll watchers, from South Dakota to Florida, take the process of democracy into their own hands. The result: an entertaining, inspiring and sometimes unsettling tapestry of citizens determined on one fateful day to make their votes count. A co-production of Independent Television Service (ITVS).

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Rising Waters

Andrea Torrice’s national public television documentary, Rising Waters: Global Warming and the Fate of the Pacific Islands, follows Pacific Islanders on a journey through several of the smallest nations on earth, showing what they believe are the first signs of global warming. It interweaves the portraits of four people from the islands of Samoa, Kiribati, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and Fiji into the larger international discussion over what to do about global warming. The program also discusses the potential impact of climate change of the island of Manhattan.

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