Join community media professionals from all over Massachusetts at this interactive annual event. The day features informative workshops, a vendor showcase, legislative updates, meaningful round-table discussions and much more. This year we will hold the event in Norwood, at the Four Points by Sheraton hotel on Friday, June 14, 2019.

Legislative Update: From FCC to the State House

Legislative Update

This session will provide new information about groundbreaking legislation that we hope will secure future funding for Massachusetts PEG centers. Joel Winston of the Cohen Law Group will take attendees through the background of this legislation and the research they have conducted to date. Winston will also answer questions that you have about Cohen, the FCC’s proposed rulemaking and the upcoming legislation. Melinda Garfield and David Gauthier will be joined by Lindsay Toghill and Cayenne Isaksen of O’Neill and Associates to let you know legislation details and the important steps that will need to be taken when a bill number is issued. By working together we have a stronger chance in getting the legislation passed. We hope you will attend this session to find out what you can do to get the word out so we can secure PEG funding in Massachusetts. #StrongerTogether

Want to be a better professional? Want to improve your ability to communicate with people whether it be a peer, a member or a government official? What about making sure you stand out, grow in your job and potentially make that jump into management? Success in all of these areas comes down to the platinum rule and emotional intelligence. Learn from business coaches Bernie Heine and Philip Ashcroft on how to understand the personality of yourself and others to create greater relationships and increase productivity.

SESSION TWO: – 11:00am to 12:10pm

Production Serivces: Where to Begin and How to Make it Work

Looking to start to offer services to clients for profit? Some stations have started their own Production Services division as a way to generate alternative revenue.  But don’t forget, as a non-profit you are limited to the amount of income you can receive, and a certain amount is taxable. Get an inside look of how stations are utilizing production services as an alternate source of revenue.

Beneficial Ties: Developing Relationships with Local Officials - 11:00am to 11:45am

It’s vital for community media centers to not just call on officials in a time of need, but to have relationships with them that are meaningful and give the media center a seat at the table. Hear from experts from both sides of the table as they discuss topics such as developing relationships and working to acquire “buy in” from officials. 

Capitalizing on Curiosity: Non-traditional Ways to Attract Foot Traffic

Maker Spaces? Poetry Slams? Art Galleries? Super Smash Brothers Ultimate Tournament Night? These are a few non-traditional ways to get residents of all ages through the doors of your center. Eric Sack of Lowell Makes, Sean Leary of Marshfield Community TV and Cheryl O’Malley of Artistic Creations will discuss how you can bring new community members into your studio.

Stronger Together: Building Community Partnerships

When people think about access stations they thing about the productions we produce. But as managers, who do we think of when planning our productions? In this session, learn how to think outside of the box when partnering with community organizations that you may not be considering. Meet Katie Trapani and Becki Lauzon of the Accept Education Collaborative in Natick along with Marshfield Community Television’s Executive Director Jonathan Grabowski to talk about how they enrich their stations and their own programs by partnering with other organizations.

SESSION THREE: 12:45pm-1:25pm

TelVue Demonstration

Advanced PEG Workflow from TelVue – Discover the latest features from TelVue that will streamline your workflow, save you time and expand your audience. Learn how you can easily, and inexpensively, provide Closed Captioning services, increase distribution by streaming to social media and OTT apps, and simplify workflow for Live Events including broadcasting to and from YouTube and Facebook Live.

Cyber Security: How to Protect Your Center -

Blue Box Cyber Security Seminar – This seminar is conducted to educate and equip the members of your organization with the utmost knowledge and solutions availability to protect their business and client data from cyberattacks. Presented by Andrew Calore of BCI Computers.

Time is Money: Fundrasiers That Really Work

Thinking about holding a fundraiser? Hear both a broad and local perspective in this session. Fernando Martinez of Massachusetts Nonprofit Network will discuss the implications of the 2017 federal tax law on charitable giving, specifically on the disincentives–and opportunities–it created for individual donors. Learn about important statewide trends as you launch or continue your fundraising efforts.  Carol Courville, AOTV & WVAO Executive Director will share what Athol Orange Television has learned in the 23 years they have been holding their television auction. Courville will provide best practices and what it really takes to raise tens of thousands of dollars.

Election Coverage: Producing Results in the Digital Age

Due to the decline of local print media and the pool of misinformation that can be found online, the community media center plays an important role in educating the public about those who are running for local and regional office. Share ideas and best practices on candidates programs, forums and election night coverage.

SESSION FOUR:  1:30pm to 2:25pm

Roundtable: Creator Award Winners

The Mass Creator Awards recognizes exceptional multimedia being produced across our state. This past January, the second annual awards was held in Boston, with 15 productions being awarded first-place trophies. This roundtable will bring together a few of the winners, who will talk about what goes into their award-winning productions, from staff dedication, production time and working with community partners. This should be a good session for those looking to walk away from the conference with new ideas on how to produce content at your station.

Podcast Roundtable

Join us for a conversation about podcasts! We will cover podcast from beginning to end and answer questions like, “How do you create meaningful content?” “How do you keep people engaged?” “What platforms do you use” “How do you promote your podcast” and “What determines if the podcast was a success?” The experts at the PRX Garage will be on hand to lead the discussion. PRX Podcast Garage is a community recording studio and classroom dedicated to the craft of audio storytelling.

Roundtable: Artweek Community Collaboration

Massachusetts is fueled by the passion, commitment, and vision of creative communities, but few realize that community collaboration is often the secret behind many success stories. Using examples from ArtWeek partners in small rural towns and large urban centers across the state, this workshop will highlight how community-level collaborations have helped activate civic engagement, galvanized new sources of support, increased awareness and visibility, sparked cross-community partnerships and inspired public momentum. 

Roundtable: Municipally-Run Centers

Some PEG centers are either municipally run, or have recently made the transition to do so. What are the challenges that Municipal PEG centers face rather than the traditional non profit? This roundtable discussion will focus on Municipally run PEG Centers. Join the discussion with a few stations who are municipally run or have recently made the transition.

SESSION FIVE: 2:30pm to 3:25pm

Finding the Funds: Supplementing Income Though Grant Writing

As many of us face the uncertainty of future funding for PEG channels, we will need to think of different ways to generate revenue. One way is applying for grants. There are numerous grants out there for the taking, but where do you start? Come join Program Director Michael Ibrahim from the Mass Cultural Council to discuss grant writing, and what you can do for your station.

A website in an organization’s greatest marketing asset, but attracting people there, keeping them engaged, and getting them to take action can be tricky. Look into ways to optimize a website to attract the right people via Search Engine Optimization and we’ll evaluate why creating a positive user experience is important (and easy to do!), with tips for conversion rate optimization, in order to acquire more leads and subscribers. Presenter: Angie Ward, Co-founder of Enroll Media Group, LLC

College Internships: Giving and Getting Positive Results

 How do you recruit college interns when you are not near a university or near public transportation? How do you develop a curriculum for your college interns? Where do you start?

Join Diane Bell, Director of the Internship Program Office at Bridgewater State University and Jeff Fowler, Station Manager of Bridegwater Television to discuss their successful internship program and how  they all work together to produce a successful internship program.

Showcasing Artistic Visions: Creating Your Own Film Festivals

100 Seconds, 48 hours & beyond! If you’re looking to inspire creativity in your community or see how video festivals are being run at the local level, stop by this session. We’ll talk about planning, execution and of course, showing off the finished product