Southeastern NEWS
Southeastern Louisiana University
Public Information Office
SLU 10880, Hammond, LA 70402
504-549-2341/fax 504-549-2061
Date: 1/30/02
Contact: Rene Abadie, Southeastern
Bill Ferry, Charter Communications (cell: 205-837-1918; work: 205-443-3272
SOUTHEASTERN, CHARTER COMMUNICATIONS SIGN AGREEMENT
TO OFFER EDUCATIONAL ACCESS TELEVISION IN TANGIPAHOA PARISH
HAMMOND - Southeastern Louisiana University and Charter Communications signed
an agreement today (Jan. 30) to initiate an educational access television channel for cable
subscribers in Tangipahoa Parish.
The broadcast operation, to be called the Southeastern Channel, will be part of Charter's
basic cable offerings and will be aired in the parish on Channel 18. Reaching an estimated 23,000
homes, the station will be on the air 24 hours a day with an anticipated start-up date of April
2002.
Signing the agreement in a ceremony at the university's Alumni Center were Southeastern
President Randy Moffett and Ron Johnson, senior vice president of operations for Charter
Communications Gulf Coast Region located in Birmingham, Ala. Attending the event were other
representatives of Southeastern and Charter Communications, as well as area community and
school leaders.
"We envision this station developing into a tremendous educational asset for the citizens
of southeast Louisiana as well as for the students at Southeastern who are studying
communications," Moffett said. "We appreciate Charter's partnership, recognition of the potential
educational value of this broadcast operation and the company's willingness to provide space on
its basic cable line-up."
"Charter Communications is both proud and honored to be part of this joint venture with
Southeastern Louisiana University," said Johnson. "The launching of this educational channel
demonstrates our commitment to education, the university and the people of Hammond and
surrounding
communities."
Moffett said the new channel will carry college-level telecourses which can be taken for
credit at Southeastern. "We expect to also broadcast a wide variety of campus events such as
concerts and lectures, theatrical productions, public affairs programming and university athletic
events," he added. "It will broaden our reach to many more people in the parish who may not
always be able to attend events on the campus.
"The programming will be in keeping with our mission to help lead the educational,
economic and cultural development of this region," Moffett added. "It affords our citizens
opportunities to access
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educational information, helps us reach a new population of students and provides an additional
link
between the university, the community, area businesses and industrial organizations."
Plans call for the station to also carry workplace training programs, teacher professional
development programming, and educational series aimed at improving the performance of
elementary and high school students, said Interim Provost and Vice President of Academic
Affairs John Crain. He was charged with the task of coordinating the university's effort to
develop the programming and operations of the station.
In addition to programming produced by students and Southeastern's public information
and sports information departments, Crain said the university may also broadcast programs
produced by the Annenberg/Corporation for Public Broadcasting station, which is oriented
toward teacher and student development; the Research Channel, a broadcast operation produced
by a consortium of major research universities throughout the nation; and NASA Television,
which produces features and offers coverage of space shuttle missions and other space-related
programming.
Karen Fontenot, head of the Southeastern Department of Communication, said the station
will add a valuable component to the university's communications curriculum and generally
strengthen the program. Southeastern offers a bachelor's degree in communication with
concentrations in organizational and communication theory, mass communication and
journalism, and speech communication. This semester the department initiated a new graduate
program in organizational communication.
"The station will provide opportunities for student-developed programming, internships,
and job opportunities for our undergraduate and graduate students," Fontenot said. "It will add a
real-world component to our teaching and help us provide a highly relevant, hands-on curriculum
that will improve job and career opportunities for our students."
The Southeastern Channel will use existing television studio facilities located in the
University Center for studio programming, initially sharing the facilities with students studying
television production.
"The development of this station certainly gives us the impetus to enhance our studio
facility, upgrade our equipment and possibly expand our faculty and course offerings," Fontenot
said. "These are goals we are embarking upon immediately."
Southeastern Student Government Association President Kalen Miller said students are
excited about the new television operation.
"This venture will provide a real training ground for students interested in entering the
communications field," she said. "In addition, the availability of telecourses provides another
opportunity for individuals to access the academic programs offered at Southeastern."
Under the agreement signed by Southeastern and Charter, the university will use the
channel for educational purposes and university-sponsored events only. No commercial or
political programming will
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be broadcast. The university will abide by applicable Public Broadcasting Service Underwriting
Guidelines to maintain the non-commercial nature of the channel. Charter is assuming
responsibility for the costs and installation of the station's transmitter and the necessary fiberoptic
cable to connect Southeastern to the Charter system. The university is assuming the costs of
other equipment and personnel needs.
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