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Monday, February 28, 2011

There is no Progress in Darkness


Photo Credit: Eyes Witness News.



Every Nigerian is gifted in one way or the other but due lack of energy we cannot realize our potentials.

Any government in power that cannot provide 24 hours light for Nigerians is worthless because there is no progress in darkness.

~ By Hope Obioma Opara,
The Publisher/CEO, Supple Magazine, http://www.supplemagazine.org/



Natalie Portman and other winners of the 83rd Academy Awards


Actress Natalie Portman (R), winner of the award for Best Actress in a Leading Role for 'Black Swan', poses in the press room during the 83rd Annual Academy Awards held at the Kodak Theatre on February 27, 2011 in Hollywood, California.
Photo Credit: Zimbio.


The leading lady of the silver screen Natalie Portman won the Oscar for Best Actress to add to the Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Motion Picture – Drama, the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role, the BAFTA Award for Best Actress for her classic performance as "Nina Sayers" in Black Swan.




"I want to thank my parents ... for giving me my life," she said with a smile. "And for giving me the opportunity to work."







Actor in a Leading Role



  • Colin Firth in “The King's Speech”


Actor in a Supporting Role



  • Christian Bale in “The Fighter”


Actress in a Leading Role



  • Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”


Actress in a Supporting Role



  • Melissa Leo in “The Fighter


Animated Feature Film



  • “Toy Story 3” Lee Unkrich


Art Direction



  • “Alice in Wonderland”
    Production Design: Robert Stromberg; Set Decoration: Karen O'Hara


Cinematography



  • “Inception” Wally Pfister


Costume Design



  • “Alice in Wonderland” Colleen Atwood


Directing



  • “The King's Speech” Tom Hooper


Documentary (Feature)



  • “Inside Job” Charles Ferguson and Audrey Marrs


Documentary (Short Subject)



  • “Strangers No More” Karen Goodman and Kirk Simon


Film Editing



  • “The Social Network” Angus Wall and Kirk Baxter


Foreign Language Film



  • “In a Better World” Denmark


Makeup



  • “The Wolfman” Rick Baker and Dave Elsey


Music (Original Score)



  • “The Social Network” Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross


Music (Original Song)



  • “We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3" Music and Lyric by Randy Newman


Best Picture



  • “The King's Speech” Iain Canning, Emile Sherman and Gareth Unwin, Producers


Short Film (Animated)



  • “The Lost Thing” Shaun Tan and Andrew Ruhemann


Short Film (Live Action)



  • “God of Love” Luke Matheny


Sound Editing



  • “Inception” Richard King


Sound Mixing



  • “Inception” Lora Hirschberg, Gary A. Rizzo and Ed Novick


Visual Effects



  • “Inception” Paul Franklin, Chris Corbould, Andrew Lockley and Peter Bebb


Writing (Adapted Screenplay)



  • “The Social Network” Screenplay by Aaron Sorkin


Writing (Original Screenplay)



  • “The King's Speech” Screenplay by David Seidler


Discuss here:




~ By Roy





Sunday, February 27, 2011

Nigerian filmmaker competes for the Golden Stallion of Yennenga at 2011 FESPACO



A scene from “Restless City”. New York based Nigerian filmmaker Andrew Dosunmu’s Restless City is among the 18 films competing for the Golden Stallion of Yennenga, the most coveted prize at the 22nd Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (FESPACO) in the melodramatic Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso from February 26 – March 5, 2011. The golden “Étalon de Yennenga” (Stallion of Yennenga) symbolizes the legendary founder of the 11th century Mossi empire of Burkina Faso and is awarded to the best feature film.

The winner in 2009 was the Ethiopia born director Haile Gerima for his movie “Teza”. Newton I Aduaka of Nigeria won it in 2007 with his “Ezra”, a riveting film on blood diamonds and child soldiers in Sierra Leone.

Other special awards include the Oumarou Ganda Prize, given for the best first film, and the Paul Robeson Prize for the best film by a director of the African diaspora.

“Restless City” is Andrew Dosunmu’s first feature film. It tells the story of an African immigrant surviving on the fringes of New York City where music is his passion, life is a hustle and falling in love is his greatest risk.
Djibril, an aspiring young musician from Senegal, lives in New York. Although he dreams of greatness, imagining the day his own child might be president of the United States, his path is unstructured, and he glories in the chaos of the street. When Djibril meets Trini, a prostitute under the control of Bekay, the local loan shark, his life assumes new purpose and momentum; however, whether Djibril and Trini can outrun Bekay’s nefarious influence is another story.

The other Nigerian filmmakers at the biennial pan-African event are Mak Kusare with “Champions of our time” Kunle Afolayan with “The Figurine” in the 24 entries for the TV and video films category, Didi Cheeka, a founding Director of AlternativCinema with “Bloodstones” and Julius Morno with “The Camera” in the short film category.

Another major news is the premiere of “Ouaga Paradiso,” a 52-minute documentary on African cinema.

There are 111 films in competition – including 18 feature films, 13 short films, 22 documentaries, 37 TV and video productions, 10 films from the African diasporas and 11 student films.



Click here to read the complete report



Saturday, February 26, 2011

Viasat Documentary Channels-Press Conference in Lagos, Nigeria


Mr. Martin Letzter

Martin Letzter from Viasat World in the UK was in Nigeria for the launch of Viasat’s Documentary Channels. He presented the unique series at a well attended press conference on Friday February 25, 2011, at the Sofitel Hotel in Ikoyi, Lagos.
The Viasat’s documentary channels are from the Modern Times Group (MTG), an international entertainment broadcasting group that is launching four pay-TV channels in Africa on 28 February. Viasat History, Viasat Nature, Viasat Explorer and Viasat Crime will initially be made available to satellite pay-TV subscribers in Nigeria and cable pay-TV subscribers in Kenya.


Mr. Tony Ikeokwu, MD/CEO of Infinity TV and Mr. Martin Letzter


Mr. Ingram Osigwe, the Media Consultant, Infinity TV and Mr. Martin Letzter

The channels are localised versions of Viasat Broadcasting's existing thematic documentary channels. Three of the channels are currently available in 29 countries across Northern, Central and Eastern Europe. Viasat Crime is available in the Nordic region. Each channel will be broadcast 12 hours per day, with Viasat History and Viasat Nature sharing one satellite feed, and Viasat Explorer and Viasat Crime sharing another. Distribution agreements have initially been signed with the HiTV and Infinity TV satellite networks in Nigeria, and with cable network operator Zuku in Kenya.


Mr. Julius Osuma, the Chief Marketing Officer of Infinity TV, Mr. Martin Letzter and Mr. Ingram Osigwe


Mr. Ingram Osigwe with an executive of HiTV


Executives of Infinity TV and HiTV seated with invited journalists and guests.


Friday, February 25, 2011

Is Living in Nigeria a Nightmare?



Lagos city is seen as one of the world's worst places to live according to the 2011 Economist Intelligence Unit's liveability survey.

The video is by Al Jazeera's Yvonne Ndege on what is one of Africa's most overcrowded cities on March 26, 2010.


Top News:

Gaddafi addresses crowd in Tripoli



Infinity TV brings Modern Times Group to Nigeria



Infinity TV brings Modern Times Group to Nigeria


The new satellite pay-TV station Infinity TV has brought the Modern Times Group (MTG), to Nigeria with the launch of four pay-TV channels in Africa. The company released the details of the Viasat History, Viasat Nature, Viasat Explorer and Viasat Crime channels at the first press conference on Friday February 25, 2011, at the Sofitel Hotel in Ikoyi, Lagos. Viasat is the brand for the digital satellite TV platforms operated by MTG, a leading international entertainment broadcasting group with over 50 million subscribers and attracting over 125 million viewers in 31 countries worldwide.



The channels have award winning documentaries such as Nature’s Babies, Untamed Europe and Winter in Yelowstone on Viasat Nature Channel.



Visual History… Bringing History to Life, Gladiators: Back From the Dead, The Somme and The Black Death on Viasat History Channel.



Star Wars Tech, Toughest Career Jobs and Escape To The Legion on Viasat Explore Channel.



The Hunt for the Texas 7, Inside: LA Gang Wars, and Final Approach on the Viasat Crime channel.

The localized documentary channels will initially be offered to satellite pay-TV subscribers in Nigeria and cable pay-TV subscribers in Kenya.

MTG has signed distribution agreements with Infinity TV and HiTV in Nigeria and with the Zulu cable TV network in Kenya. The launch of the four pay-TV channels will expand the distribution in Africa, including a free TV operation in Ghana and more networks will be developed in the remaining parts of Africa.


~ By Ekenyerengozi Michael Chima



Thursday, February 24, 2011

Nokia meets local bloggers in Lagos

It was an informal social networking affair in the afternoon of Thursday 24th February 2011, when the Nokia office in Nigeria hosted some local bloggers at a luncheon in the Zen Garden on Isaac John Street in Ikeja, Lagos.

The meeting was organized by the Quadrant Company coordinated by Oreoluwa Etti.
Mr. Osagie Ogunbor, the head of communications, Nokia West Africa discussed the latest developments from the world's leading mobile phone company and how a rapport with the bloggers would be highly appreciated.

Notable bloggers at the event were Yomi Adegboye, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of
Mobility Nigeria, Hope Obioma Opara, Publisher/Editor-in-Chief of Supple magazine, representatives of Bella Naija and Linda Ikeji among other invited guests.



President Goodluck Jonathan and the Diaspora Vice Chancellors



President Jonathan, the New Style of Academic Leadership by Aluko, Okogbaa and Farouk needs Bold, Full and Open Autonomy to control change.

Sir, the soon to come Academic Leadership approach to the new federal universities will enormously gain from an Executive order-type autonomy in order for it to fully evidence excellent practices, sustained outcomes and well defined changes in university educational system in Nigeria.

Sir, as an academic yourself, you have seen firsthand the lamentable nature of Nigerian higher institutions in spite of millions of money that have been poured into the system.

Sir, you will agree that in the last fifteen years the existing academic leadership in many of these higher institutions have had very little impact on the overall health of our universities, and this is partly because of some members of the leadership being all about self-interest rather focusing on matters of national interest.

Mr. President, as you rightly know, every great development started as an idea, as such to adequately tackle the many human and capital challenges the country currently face, you have looked beyond the old ways of ‘doing things’ in Nigeria. A great move indeed!

Sir, you have done this by taking a very bold and unpopular step which in the words of Mohammed farouk, the new Vice Chancellor of the federal University in Kashere, Gombe, include bringing in those who “will apply their knowledge, skills, expertise, and experiences” to better the nation.

Sir, I can assure you that compared to what exist currently, Bolaji Aluko of Howard University in Washington Dc; O. Geoffrey Okogbaa of the University of South Florida, and Mohammed K. Farouk of the Florida International University will come in with a collective culture in academic leadership and embark on your vision in a way that is marked with aggressive drive and a spirit of mobilization.

But the question Sir, is under what platform and mantle of leadership will they do their respective work? Because for them to bring in meaningful, fundamental and important progressive changes to higher education, they must be protected against the expectations and attitudes of the outmoded mindset that are pervasive within the Nigerian University education system.

There is no attempt here to disparage the work of the officials of the National Universities Commission as they try to function within the present institutional environment that surrounds them in a taxing society like Nigeria.

Mr. President, if you want these new appointees to turn around higher institutional learning in our society; beginning with the ones they will be leading, the long standing academic machinery will need to be ready for fresh, state of the art and cutting-edge approach to university management.Sir, you will agree with me that there could be both overt and covert resistance from the systems currently in place, and this is expected being the way life is.

Sir, I can assure you these Diaspora appointees will strategically, stubbornly, drastically and professionally push against unstable academic environments, unhealthy facilities, and non-functional library system. But again they will need your direct help!

Sir, through a special executive order your new appointees will have more freedom to erect and implement the type of higher learning in your shared vision with them.

The special autonomy which could come in form of writing and full understanding by all stakeholders will in no way diminish the powers, and functions already being exercised by those in charge of academic systems.

It is important that many of us in academic and administrative leadership in the Diaspora salute the Executive Secretary of NUC, Professor Julius Okojie who has continuously worked to raise the academic standards of universities in spite of the societal challenges in Nigeria. Many of us applaud him for his ongoing collaborative and cooperative spirit with the new VCs as they embark on their respective works.

With a greater level of independence, the new VCs will have the chance and control to assist in erecting new machinery in academic leadership that is at par with the 21st century educational system.

If given a special protection from how things are done currently, it is very likely that the learning and teaching environment in their respective pioneering institutions will by every reasonable way shut out and shut down many Nigerian university education problems.

These new appointees will set a far reaching criteria that will steadily enhance faculty/staff quality and development in various areas not limited to mandated completion of trainings in the areas of Sexual Harassment prevention, employment discrimination prevention and student education privacy.

The new Diasporan VCs, using their experiences and highly integrated perspectives will amplify an environment for collaboration with faculty and staff, thereby reducing any room for outdated equipment/laboratories and the almost lifeless infrastructures that currently exist.

They will fully ensure that quality delivery systems and benchmarks for teaching and working are current throughout in their respective universities as that is the only way to enhance a stable learning environment.

They will respectively exert efforts and time on showcasing the new federal universities by providing leadership and a well-defined path to corporate funding, applied research, laboratory development, equitable equipment, modern libraries, and they will promote learner-centered education.

They will aggressively create learning and teaching environments and see to the faculty/staff welfare, and they will create institutional environment that could be unattractive to the never-ending strikes, and the problems of cultism.

They will provide leadership in regards to making sure that each of the new universities has active and workable websites. They will bring in cutting-edge research that focus on solving our local and other home-grown problems.

They will attract lectures of international standards and proactively provide competent instructional technologies, thereby helping to achieve online, blended, and hybrid education which will connect well with face-to-face instructions.

They will aggressively provide leadership in the area of quality assurance in regards to institutional effectiveness, and work aggressively to efficiently and strategically stabilize electrical Power in their respective universities.

They will ensure quality production and establishment of journals, publications and lectures in their respective universities to enhance applied and scientific research.

They will provide strategic ways to protect administrators, faculty and staff from governmental abuse as it relates to the long standing manner of grossly dismissing and firing lecturers, staff, or even Vice-chancellors without any mark of courtesy and due process.

They will provide university environments and facilities which are attractive to international students, and see that an environment exists for functional basic medical and mental health care services.

They will help provide stress and physical examinations and recreational facilities within the new universities as well as provide student activity centers that meet international standards.

They will make sure that university websites are current and updated in order to allow for quick access to our current global economy.
They will be able to easily collaborate with the continental African universities and other institutions in order to build new cultures within our public institutions and private economies.

They will institute functional and quality leadership programs for public, government and corporate officials, thereby shrinking the urge for officials to travel to ‘Oyibo’ lands or European-American lands for ‘course’.

They should be allowed to create security or police type systems in order to fully respond to safety issues as they relate to the problems of strikes, kidnapping and cultism.

They will use their Diaspora experiences to secure external grants which could provide stipends for faculty to develop indigenous research and these monies could help to facilitate faculty collaborations with students for scholarly and applied projects.

They will help attract highly successful but settled diasporan Nigerians who are likely to appear at home and contribute to lectures, journals, books, and indigenous based studies which are akin to the needs of our systems and people.

They will create openings for Nigerian graduates to alternative vocations which could push them towards private corporations, thereby reducing the dependency on white-collar or government office jobs.

In the same vein they will work on harnessing business and entrepreneurial opportunities for their respective graduates.
They will provide leadership that will help create social networks through digital communication for our students thereby providing affordable access to our cyber world.

Mr. President, I would like to believe that your objective is to shape the educational history and culture in Nigeria, but the right person in the right place at the right time is all that is needed to bring in best practices across our higher institutions.

Please be assured that many of us in the Diaspora are fully confident that each of your new appointees will usher in the type of academic leadership and management style our society greatly deserves at this time. Goodluck to you Sir!

~ By John Egbeazien Oshodi, Ph.D., DABPS; FACFE; is a Licensed Clinical/Forensic Psychologist; Diplomate of American Board of Psychological Specialties; Fellow of American College of Forensic Examiners (For Psy); Former Interim Associate Dean and an Assistant Professor of Psychology, Broward College - North Campus, Florida. joshodi@broward.edu

Hot Topic on Education: We don’t need new varsities – Reps



Wednesday, February 23, 2011

'Enough is Enough Nigeria' Receives $130,000 grant to Promote free and fair Election



22 Feb 2011 15:17 Africa/Lagos

'Enough is Enough Nigeria' Receives Grant from Omidyar Network to Promote Transparency Around the Presidential Elections

PR Newswire

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Feb. 22, 2011

REDWOOD CITY, Calif., Feb. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Omidyar Network announced today a grant of up to $130,000 to Enough is Enough Nigeria (EiE Nigeria), a coalition of individuals and youth-led organizations leading a campaign aimed at enabling citizen participation in the Nigerian general elections in April.

The grant will be used in support of a non-partisan, one-stop online portal designed to aid voter registration, provide candidate information and monitor the elections. The project will utilize Twitter, Facebook and local social media tools such as Nairaland, Naijatalk and Gnaiga, as well as SMS, radio and television, to broaden its reach and citizen engagement.

"Democracy requires active participation, and the majority of Nigeria's population under 35 years of age has never voted. EiE Nigeria's platform and use of social media will help engage this significant portion of Nigeria's citizens and enable active participation and the ability to influence outcomes on issues of importance to them," said Stephen King, investment partner, Omidyar Network.

Through its Government Transparency investment area, Omidyar Network invests in organizations that use technology and media platforms to provide access to information and tools necessary for citizens to participate in the governing process and hold governments to account. Over the last two years, the firm has granted over $30M to organizations such as Ushahidi in Kenya, Janaagraha in India and the Sunlight Foundation in the United States.

"Nigeria's general elections in April are very critical to the next 50 years of Nigeria's development and are being described as a tipping point for the country. At EiE Nigeria, we are particularly excited about how this grant enables us to use technology to connect young Nigerians across the country and renew their interest in issues of leadership and governance," said 'Yemi Adamolekun, secretary to the board, EiE Nigeria.

The EiE Nigeria coalition is committed to instituting a culture of good governance and public accountability in Nigeria through advocacy, activism and the mobilization of the youth population as responsible citizens. Approximately 70% of Nigeria's population is under the age of 35, most are disenfranchised and yet disproportionately have access to technology – mobile phones, the internet, radio and television. EiE Nigeria's call to action is promoted through a campaign called Register, Select, Vote and Protect (R.S.V.P). Citizens are urged to register to vote, educate themselves and each other about the candidates, vote, and stay engaged and active in the political process once votes are cast. For more information, please visit: www.eienigeria.org

About Omidyar Network

Omidyar Network is a philanthropic investment firm dedicated to harnessing the power of markets to create opportunity for people to improve their lives. Established in 2004 by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and his wife Pam, the organization invests in and helps scale innovative organizations to catalyze economic and social change. To date, Omidyar Network has committed more than $383 million to for-profit companies and nonprofit organizations that foster economic advancement and encourage individual participation across multiple investment areas, including microfinance, entrepreneurship, property rights, consumer Internet, mobile technology and government transparency. To learn more about Omidyar Network, please visit www.omidyar.com.

SOURCE Omidyar Network

CONTACT: Greg Pershall of Omidyar Network, +1-360-607-8901, gpershall@omidyar.com

Web Site: http://www.eienigeria.org


American Red Cross Gives One-Year Update on Chile Earthquake Response and Future Preparedness Program

Neil Diamond The Bang Years 1966 - 1968, 23 Career-Defining Classics Restored to Original Mono on Newly Curated Columbia/Legacy Collection, Available Everywhere Tuesday, March 8

The Recession Appears to Have Improved Punctuality in the Workplace, Finds New CareerBuilder Survey

Salvation Army Sets Red Kettle Record For Sixth Straight Year

Protests in Libya

Entertainment Awards

Releases displayed in Africa/Lagos time 23 Feb 2011

18:52 International Survey Provides Unique Insight Into Small Business Landscape Across North America & Western Europe

17:40 RRsat Providing 3D Delivery of Fashion TV Programming on Three Satellites

17:26 Butler National Corporation Announces Completion of the Company's First R/X Modification Project in The Republic of South Africa

17:22 Frattini reports to the Chamber: the situation in Libya is most serious, a potential bloodbath. Europe must stand united in addressing the migration emergency

17:00 ARRIS Announces DVB Video Transcoding Support for International Markets

15:45 Quantitative Easing Presses Investors to Commodities - In-Depth Research Featuring Silver Wheaton Corp. and Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc.

15:39 TransMedia Names Helen Ann Britton VP Business Development; Adds More Publicists to PR Staff

15:31 Migrants Fleeing Violence in Libya Begin Arriving in Tunisia

15:21 EAC, Trademark East Africa sign MoU

15:15 SNR Denton Expands its Presence in Africa

15:11 New Website lifebyme.com Intends to Make Meaningful Conversations Hotter Than Sex

14:40 Ken Kragen, Organizer of 'We Are The World,' Joins Home Aid, a Virtual Fundraising Event to Benefit America's Homeless, Children, and Veterans

14:18 OFID Targets Sustainable Development With Four African Countries



23 Feb 2011
15:31 Migrants Fleeing Violence in Libya Begin Arriving in Tunisia
14:00 New Study: Girls More Likely to Use Social Media to Support Causes
13:04 Darfur / UNAMID Daily Media Brief
22 Feb 2011
14:21 Darfur / UNAMID Concerned About Recent SLA/ Minny Minnawi
05:29 Darfur / UNAMID Daily Media Brief
05:11 EAC –COMESA - IGAD observer missions' interim statement on 2011 general elections in Republic of Uganda 20Th February, 2011
03:34 Rotary und Sanofi Pasteur l?uten die B?rsenglocken in New York City und in ganz Europa um Polioausrottung zu unterst?tzen
21 Feb 2011
16:44 Trading Bells in New York City and Across Europe Ring Loud in the Fight Against Polio
12:45 Urgent Appeal to Stop Atrocities in Libya sent by 23 NGOs to US President Obama, EU High Representative Catherine Ashton, and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, 20 February 2011
12:43 24 rights groups urge US and EU to confront Libyan massacres in UN Security Council and Human Rights Council / NGOs demand Libya's suspension from UNHRC; UN Watch calls for urgent dispatch of medical supplies to hospitals
12:41 Final Outcome Statement of UNAMID JSR's Third Retreat with Special Envoys for the Sudan
08:00 Rotary, Sanofi Pasteur Ring Stock Exchange Bells in New York City and Across Europe in Support of Polio Eradication
17 Feb 2011
16:00 UNAMID Joint Special Representative Ibrahim Gambari's statement to the press
16 Feb 2011
15:18 Djibouti / Call for the immediate and unconditional release of Mr. Jean-Paul Noel Abdi, President of the Ligue Djiboutienne des Droits Humains (LDDH)
10:28 IIUM Confers Honorary Doctorate on His Highness Sheikh Humaid bin Rashid Al-Nuaimi




Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Award Winning Educational Hip Hop Program Killed by Budget Cuts



22 Feb 2011 13:45 Africa/Lagos


Award Winning Educational Hip Hop Program Killed by Budget Cuts

One of the nation's first programs to bring full-time Hip Hop education to high school students seeks new partners after financial crisis terminates its 5-year run

PR Newswire

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 22, 2011

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Since 2006, The Global Awareness through Hip Hop Culture program has been at the forefront of legitimizing the use of Hip Hop culture in mainstream education. Based at a charter school in South Los Angeles, it has been one of the only educational Hip Hop programs in the nation offered as a regular class to middle and high school students. Sadly, due to ever-increasing budget cuts, the program will no longer have a home come June 2011.

Sebastien Elkouby, the program's founder, created this class to address the educational crisis that affects about 50 percent of inner-city students across the U.S. He says, "For a variety of reasons, many students feel completely disconnected from the traditional educational process. This class uses the positive elements of Hip Hop culture that aren't usually promoted in mainstream media as a medium to develop critical thinking skills while teaching them language arts, social studies, and life skills."

For the past two years, Elkouby watched budget cuts terminate programs nationwide and suspected that his program would eventually suffer a similar fate. "I can't expect my program to be safe when thousands of teachers across the country are receiving pink slips. When it comes down to choosing between a Hip Hop class and a science class, it doesn't take a genius to figure out who's getting the ax first, no matter how enriching my program has proven to be."

During its run, the program experienced great success. Elkouby says, "We've achieved a lot. We've had Hip Hop legends like MC Lyte and KRS-ONE as guests. We've sent kids to DJ retreats. We've been awarded state-of-the-art studio equipment. We've received international media coverage and been featured in documentaries ... and this doesn't even cover a third of what we've achieved. But what I'm most proud of is the impact that the program has had on the students. For hundreds of them, this class has been life-changing."

Former student A. Dominguez says, "Taking this class has made me realize how much I have changed as an individual and has given me the hope to pursue my wildest dreams. Everyone should be able to participate in such a life-changing experience!"

In 2007, Elkouby began working with the International Visitors Council of Los Angeles, advising educators from around the world on how to use Hip Hop culture as an educational medium. In 2008, the National Society of High School Scholars selected Elkouby as "Educator of Distinction." Unfortunately, this wasn't enough to prevent the program from being terminated.

Elkouby is hopeful that the program will find a new home. "It doesn't even have to be offered at a school," he says. "I'm open to bringing the program wherever the need is. I know that there's money available to fund creative programs. We just have to find it. Who knows? It may even come from someone in the Hip Hop community."

The Global Awareness through Hip Hop Culture Program is currently in session until June 2011.

About The Global Awareness through Hip Hop Culture Program

The Global Awareness through Hip Hop Culture Program is an innovative music, language arts, and social studies program designed to assist low-performing students in developing their language skills, life skills, and global awareness through culturally responsive pedagogy. For more info, contact Sebastien Elkouby at urbanscientists@hotmail.com or 310-654-1681. Visit http://www.GlobalAwarenessThroughHipHopCulture.com.

This press release was issued through eReleases(R). For more information, visit eReleases Press Release Distribution at http://www.ereleases.com.

SOURCE Global Awareness through Hip Hop Culture Program

CONTACT: Sebastien Elkouby, urbanscientists@hotmail.com, +1-310-654-1681

Web Site: http://www.GlobalAwarenessThroughHipHopCulture.com


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