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News Archive
Newsletter
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In The News
PBS Online Film Festival Kicks Off March 4
WCVE PBS one of 6 stations selected
 RICHMOND, VA; MARCH 1, 2013 – The PBS Online Film Festival will return for a second year, beginning March 4, 2013, and WCVE PBS is one of six PBS members stations selected nationwide! The festival will showcase 25 short films from PBS member stations and media partners, that feature a diversity of subjects, voices and viewpoints. The films will be accessible via all PBS digital platforms, YouTube and PBS social media channels.
WCVE’s inclusion is “LIVE ART”, a six-minute film about a groundbreaking educational program and concert event for children with and without developmental disabilities and hearing impairment, created and led by the School of the Performing Arts (SPARC) in Richmond, Virginia. In January 2012, documentary film makers Martin Montgomery (Martin Montgomery Films) and Bill Gaff (Humanstory Films) began recording footage of what was to become one of the most profound examples of performing arts education anyone has ever witnessed... LIVE ART.
Viewers will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite short film from March 4 through March 22. The film with the most votes will receive the People’s Choice Award. Show your RVA pride by voting for LIVE ART! More information and a preview video for the PBS Online Film Festival can be found at pbs.org/filmfestival. For updates on the festival, follow #PBSolff on Twitter.
About WCVE:
WCVE PBS is a part of the Community Idea Stations, which provides public TV and public radio for central Virginia. Every week, the Community Idea Stations reaches more than 300,000 people in Central Virginia of every age, demographic and economic circumstance. By providing the best of PBS and NPR programming and coupling that with a strong set of local, community-based programs and services, the Community Idea Stations makes an important impact in the areas of arts, news, history, science and education.
About SPARC:
SPARC inspires young people, ages 3-18, to reach their full potential through quality training in the performing arts. SPARC develops life skills among young performers, preparing them for productive lives and leadership.
- Contact: Lanny Fields, lfields@ideastations.org, 804-560-8226
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Faison Project Gets Tweaked
Richmond Magazine, August 2012
You can view the original article from Richmond Magazine here.
Faison School officials committed to Compassionate Community project
BY CHRIS DOVI
It’s been about two years since the old Executive Hotel — alternately an eyesore or a charming landmark depending on whom you asked — was reduced to rubble and signs went up on the vacant lot where it once stood heralding the impending arrival of a new landmark, the optimistically dubbed Compassionate Community.
Planned as a take on the popular mixed-use and mixed-income community development concept, but with a twist, the Compassionate Community as envisioned by the Faison School for Autism would be an innovative method of providing independent living opportunities for its clients. About two-thirds of the complex is envisioned as housing for professionals like teachers and medical professionals whose careers already touch the lives of individuals with autism.
The project had the misfortune of kicking off just as the economy kicked the bucket.
But as the weeds grow on the vacant Broad Street lot near Willow Lawn, Faison School officials say they not only remain committed to the project, they’re now seeing the delay as a good thing.
“We hit a market that wasn’t favorable,” says Wendy Kreuter, Faison’s vice president for operations and finance. The setbacks have allowed the school time to hone the programs that it plans to implement at the project, which may well be the first of its kind when it finally is built and occupied.
Helping to review those plans is Dr. Michael C. Strouse, a Kansas-based expert in support and independent-living options for people with autism and developmental delays.
Everything is being tweaked, Kreuter says. The original plans for the 78,000-square-foot facility are being reconsidered to better facilitate programming offerings.
On the programming side, ongoing research into how people with autism spectrum disorders learn has advanced greatly, and the downtime has allowed Faison to consult with Strouse and to literally design those new developments into the project’s blueprints.
The complex will offer not only independent living, Kreuter says, but also a unique ongoing habilitative and training program for people with autism spectrum disorders or other similar developmental delays.
“We’re committed to it,” says Kreuter, who adds that fundraising continues toward the $15 million project.
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Alan Kirshner
The Faison School for Autism congratulates Alan Kirshner, one of our founders, as the recipient of the Philanthropist of the Year award from the Central Virginia Association of Fundraising Professionals. Check out the RTD article here.
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Check out our informational video!
Created for our 2010 Art for Autism Gala, this video highlights the programs and services at our school and their impact on families and the community.
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The Faison School is a 501C3 non profit organization and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin or gender.
© 2006 - 2013 The Faison School. All Rights Reserved • contact@thefaisonschool.org • 804-612-1947
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