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News

Proposal would unite UH, TSU, Third Ward

Prof seeks grant money to fund series of block parties around campus featuring ‘community organizing' activities

by CHELSEA ADAMS
The Daily Cougar

An associate professor at the School of Communication has submitted a proposal for $400,000 in grant money for a program that will help strengthen the sense of community around UH.

Professor Fred Schiff's proposal aims to foster bonds between UH and Texas Southern University, to spark involvement in the Third Ward, to draw attention to concerns of area residents and to provide journalism students with opportunities to develop their skills.

The grant is awarded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation's Knight Brothers' 21st Century News Challenge for the most innovative ideas using digital media to build new communities and strengthen existing ones.

Schiff said the plan will require more than just the funding it may get from the organization. It will also need the efforts of students from both universities and for community leaders in the Third Ward to help plan and coordinate events.

"The project is part of what social movement activists call ‘community organizing,'" Schiff said.

A central idea in the proposal includes 24 monthly block parties with local rock, hip-hop, blues and reggaeton musicians podcasting to mobile vans parked around UH and TSU.

Student-run investigative news will be broadcast on the side of buildings in a so-called "News Slam," according to Schiff's proposal.

With festivals featuring corner musicians, cooking competitions, magicians and comedy acts, Schiff envisions a more involved and connected community.

Ashley Harris, co-president of the UH chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists, said she is excited about the project.

"It's a way to have bottom-up journalism and highlight the positive influences of the various cultures within the Third Ward community," she said.

Harris said she also likes the idea of creating venues for bringing together UH and TSU students.

"It's not unusual for college students to take the lead (in activism)," Schiff said. "In many countries, over many decades, young people have been among the most idealistic and motivated reformers."

The News Challenge seeks to improve the flow of information and news in the public interest and to develop communities through unique approaches and new media.

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation was founded in 1940 in memory of newspaper publisher Charles Knight and promotes journalism through grants.

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